Norling Guest House, Dharamshala

shalini_9

Hi,

I will be travelling to Dharamshala, Mcleodganj and Dalhousie around end-Nov. Has anyone of you stayed at Norling Guest House in Dharamshala? It is in the Norbulingka Monastery complex. and that the reason I wanted to stay there. I would like to know if the place is good enough to stay particularly during winters (warm water in bathrooms??). Also could anyone please suggest a good hotel in Dalhousie?

Thanks

Shalini

Cardinal Divide

Norling is great and in a beautiful peaceful rural area but it is a long taxi ride from McLeod Ganj.
If you want to be in town try Chonor House, Pema Thang or Annexe Hotel. They will all have hot water and you can pay extra for a heater too if need be.

dzibead

Good advice from Cardinal Divide, as usual. But the Norbulingka isn't a "monastery complex", although Dolma Ling nunnery is adjacent to it. There's a temple at the Norbulingka, but no monastery. It's a crafts training and cultural institute, and very definitely worth a visit.

__________________
"Nearly all men can stand adversity, but if you want to test a man’s character, give him power." - Abraham Lincoln
"The perfect is the enemy of the good." - Voltaire

Cardinal Divide

I should add to Dzibeads informative post that there is at least one monastery and a nunnery near Norbulingka and a large and lovely temple is located within the complex where the hotel is located. The Norling Guest House will defiantly have hot water and the Norbulingka area is much warmer than McLeod Ganj in winter as it is at a lower elevation. Have you seen this website?
www.norbulingka.org
You could stay at the Norling Guest House and make a day trip to see McLeod Ganj.

staremperor73

I originally was booked to stay there but was told it does not have hot running water etc..

Those hotels mentioned by previous posters are apparently booked out for HH teachings around mid to late nov.

I did manage to get a room at Kareri Lodge, which is a little more expensive but nice.

Good Luck & safe travels

Sarah

Cardinal Divide

Norling Guest House at Norbulingka has plenty of hot water among other lovely things. It is really, really nice. The day my family stayed there Jet Li had just checked out.
It is possible that there is a super low budget guest house somewhere with a similar name which may have caused confusion.

shalini_9

Thank you guys..

I have made my bookings at Norling. I intend to stay in Dharamsala and just do a day trip to Mcleodganj.

dzibead

But keep in mind that the Norling Guest House is not in Dharamsala. It's in Sidphur (actually, it's sort of in the middle of nowhere, which makes it quite peaceful), and Sidphur is about 6 km or so away from the town of Dharamsala (i.e., Lower Dharamasala, as distinguished from Upper Dharamsala aka McLeod Ganj). Usually when visitors/tourists talk about going to "Dharamsala" they're really referring to McLeod Ganj or "Upper Dharamsala." There's not much of interest for the average tourist in "Lower Dharamsala" IMO.

shalini_9

Thank you.. I guess if the place is beautiful, distance shouldnt be an issue