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A lovely time in Bhutan
Hi Sonam,
Kuzuzangpo La! Sorry for the late reply.
Thank you, we had a lovely time in Bhutan! The weather was nice & cool, only a little chilly in the evening. We appreciate this opportunity to give some feedback.
1. Guide
Under your Accommodation voucher, our guide’s name was stated as Mrs Tshering Palden, so we were a little taken aback when a guy approached us with my name at the airport arrival hall. He turned out to be KP (Kinley Penjor) & our quiet & friendly driver was Tshering (Mr).
We found KP to be polite & knowledgeable about culture & history but he does not deliver the information in an interesting manner. He is helpful when we voiced certain requests & he tries his best to fulfil them. However, he could have been more pro-active & ATTENTIVE in anticipating his guests’ needs, especially when we have 3 ladies in our group. For example, when we stop for lunch & we had to cross over a rocky area from the road to the path, instead of making sure that we are able to negotiate the rocky area, KP just went ahead to the restaurant & we were left to help each other over. He must also improve in his photo-taking skills.
By the 2nd day, we found that we share almost the same itinerary with another Singaporean group, lead by Tobgay. As both groups stayed at Hotel Norbuling, we started chatting with the other group of 4 ladies, especially when we keep meeting each other again at the various destinations.
Tobgay, in comparison, was gregarious & attentive to his group. After a few stops, we even merge with his group whenever we stop. At the various monasteries, he gave very comprehensive talks, while KP will just quietly stand by the side. He is very entertaining & it makes the talks less boring. When both groups were scaling Tango monastery on the 2nd day, Tobgay will make sure to look after his 1 guest, who is not as strong at the rest. KP is efficient but (unfortunately) pales in comparison with a more experienced guide.
2. Hotel
a) Hotel Norbuling (Thimphu)
We like this hotel very much. We were lucky to get a spacious corner room on level 3, overlooking the archery field & a wonderful view of the mountains in the background. The staff were patient & efficient. When we had problem with our bedside lamps & the toilet taps, they quickly help us remedy them. Beds are comfortable. The Wi-Fi is a little erratic though.
b) Hotel Drupchhu (Punakha)
We love the whole hotel’s landscaping & the rooms are open & spacious but
i. There was no television in the room nor Wi-Fi. We really had to entertain ourselves.
ii. The food was really bad! Cold or just lukewarm. During the last morning, when there was a big group from China before us & many dishes were empty, they did not even bother to top up the food. In comparison, Hotel Lobesa was a lot better. We had lunch & dinner there on the 2nd day at Punakha & the food was so good. Good variety & piping warm. When 1 of the guests rejected the ice cream dessert, they even offered to bring fruits for her instead.The friendly owners were there mingling with the guests. We even found out from the other group of ladies who were staying there, that the staff had kindly volunteered to wash their muddy shoes after our trek to Chimi Lhakhang. My group had to wash our shoes ourselves. Please recommend this hotel for future guests.
c) Metta Resort & Spa
Our room was rather cosy with lots of heaters available.The lady owner was very friendly & the food was wonderful!! We had a lot of Chinese dishes & hot soup.
3. Itinerary
No complaints about the itinerary as your travel tips have pre-warned about changes. We were given the option not to go to Gangtey as there were road blocks, plus it was not the season for Black-neck crane. Thus, we spent 2 days at Punakha. Taktsang Monastery was nicely scheduled on the 6th day when we are used to all the walking & climbing. Our guides also planned a nice, relaxing hot stone bath + Farmhouse dinner that night. A lovely end to a wonderful trip.
4. Comments
a. Under recommended clothing, it would be good to note to lady travelers that scarves cannot be worn in monasteries. Most of us were under the impression that instead of collared shirts, we can wrap scarves instead. But to our surprise, scarves are not allowed. Luckily most of us had long sleeves or we had to wear our collared jackets when we visit the monasteries. While visiting temples and places of importance and dzongs, long pants and collared shirts will be required. (We advise travellers to wear long pants/skirts throughout the trip)
b. Also about clothing. Near the end of the trip, we realized that KP never passed us the kira that was offered. When we checked with the other group, they said the same. However, they managed to borrow some kira from Metta Resort & took photos in them on the last night.
Anyway, I just want to thank you & your team for helping us organize this trip. It was a wonderful experience for us.
Jody Tan