north east trip in november

morningdew

hi...
i am planning a 8 days northeast trip in nov end. plan to cover darjeeling, gangtok, pelling or north sikkim.
i have a few questions:

1. will it be very very cold in november or comfortable enuf to travel?

2. how do u think i can fit the above places in my itinerary and how long shud i give for each place?

3. is pelling better or shud i do north sikkim? v are interested in snow... u think i can snow in ne of the above places?

4. v intend to fly to badodara so as to spend less time in travel.

please help....

theyyamdancer

Hello, morningdew, and welcome to India Mike. I think 8 days might be a little bit rushed to see all those places. The roads are long and winding after all. For instance, between Pelling and Gangtok you have to think of a six-hour jeep ride. Also, it depends on your budget, for obviously the more of you are crammed into the jeep the cheaper it will be but also more uncomfortable and more exhausting. Again depends on your age and who else is travelling with you. Another factor is the possibility of Altitude Sickness in North Sikkim. If you are accompanied by children and/or aged relatives, do not treat the matter lightly! It takes time to acclimatize to the altitude, therefore the best way is to ascend gradually. Even Darjeeling has been known to affect some people, although more rarely.

As for the time of year, November is perfect I have been told repeatedly. We visited in March of this year (Darjeeling, Gangtok, Lachung, Lachen, Yumthang, Thangu, Rinchenpong) and several people told us that November is the best time of all for (1) clear views; (2) unobstructed roads (in March we had snow-blocks in the very far North). As for how much snow you would actually encounter, someone else will be able to tell you for I am not able to answer that.

Flying into Bagdogra is a great plan. That is what we did too. From there it is around three or four hours by jeep to Darjeeling.

We spent 5 days in Darjeeling, getting used to the altitude, then 15 days in Sikkim. I realize you may not have that amount of time at your disposal, but in that case I would cut down your itinerary slightly.

North Sikkim has to be of necessity a "package" which is organized in Gangtok. You can haggle when you get there. Most people take a 2 nights/3 days trip, which is fine. Also since you are (I assume) Indian you will be able to go all the way up to Gurudongmar Lake. Not to be missed apparently. There you would most certainly see snow.

Anyway, glad to help.

morningdew

hey thanks for all the help... well, i'll travelling wid my partenr n v r below 30 so travelling i guess shud not be an issue.
i have gone thru some itineraries on the web which give u an option of either pelling(east side) or the north side... i guess u have done the north side...
as u've correctly sd i have exactly 9 days with travel from bombay so internal travlling will leave me wid only 7 days.
i was thinking abt 2nights in darjeeling, 3 in gangtok n 2 in lachung.
wat do u suggest n how shud i plan my itinenary?

thanks again for the help...

theyyamdancer

So, you are looking at 2 nights in Darjeeling, 3 nights in Gangtok, 2 in Lachung.

Why three nights in Gangtok by the way? If I were you and fatigue no concern (!) I would head straight for the North to maximize your snow time. Since you stated in your original post that snow is your priority!

So, perhaps:

Day 1, Day 2 : Darjeeling (go for walks, acclimatize, go up Tiger Hill at sunrise for the views of Katchenjunga), eat and drink Tibetan food, stroll along the Chowrastra for more views, etc. (Wish you could stay a lifetime!)

Days 3 to 6: Pass quickly through Gangtok, in enough time to organize the North, perhaps also visit the Institute of Tibetology and/or Rumtek monastery,and .....speed off away to the perpetual snows and in search of snow leopards (only joking),

Day 7 : Return, via Gangtok, via Bagdogra.

Or something like that.


PS Don't forget to check the political situation. These days a GMM member was killed and the situation in Darjeeling has again become tense. By November hopefully you will be OK.

jyotirmoy

theyyamdancer is right. One night in Gangtok is enough. Rather spend a day in Ravangla, awsome Kanchenjungha view. Whether at Pelling or Ravangla don't miss the sun rise.

morningdew

thanks guys... u've been a real help...

but u say 1 night in gangtok is enuf... then wat abt that tsongo lake excursion from gangtok which i hear is frozen for more than 9 mnths n is quite a must see... wen do u suppose i do that???

also wat else do i see in north sikkim other than lachung?? if i have 3 nights in N sikkim how do i plan that???

theyyamdancer

OK, let's not panic! Tsongo Lake takes one day. You are quite right then. You will need more than one night in Gangtok. (We did not visit the lake; have to save some for next time, right?)

As for the North Sikkim trip, the travel agents in Gangtok have it down to a fine art. In general, it goes like this:

First Day: Drive by jeep to Lachung, which takes around 7 hours, stopping off for photos at waterfalls on the way, and generally also a lunch break (pity the poor driver). Arrival just before nightfall at 8610 feet, having travelled 124 km.

Second Day: Early start, drive north - by north-east to the Yumthang Valley at 12,000 feet at a distance of 24 km from Lachung. If you are lucky you may get even further (foreigners not allowed any further). Maybe visit some hot springs. (As I said before we didn't make it because of the snowblocks.)

Return to Lachung and rest. Sleep again there in hotel (which choice comes with choice of travel agent).

Third Day: Drive a (shorter) distance to Lachen village, then continue up to the village of Thangu, where the landscape gets really amazing, if possible continue all the way up to Gurudongmar. This will be the highest part of the trip (and the coldest). Return to Lachen, drink lots of ginger tea, sleep.

Fourth Day: With sadness in your heart, back south to Gangtok, stopping off at Singhik for the views of the mountains.

Anyway, that is the gist of it. It can be made shorter or made longer to tailor your needs. You can PM me if you like for the names of some travel agents in Gangtok. One I used and one I would use next time. ( Oh, just noticed you have only three posts. When you get to ten posts, I think that's right, you are allowed to use PMs.)

mousourik

Pl. check out first whether Tsomgo lake will be frozen at Nov at all.
Secondly, Pelling is closer to the Kanchenjunga than Rabangla. But combining Pelling with North Sikkim in your schedule might be difficult, particularly because you are keen on going to Tsomgo also.

mousourik

Well, that was a nice itinerary suggested by T-dancer for north Sikkim.

morningdew

wow.. that was great help...

from ye mail it seems gangtok is an amazing place worth seeing again n again...

well, tentatively this is my plan... let me kow if u feel its too ambitious

day 1: bagdogra airport to darjeeling
day 2: site seeing in darjeeling full day
day 3: early morning tiger hill n leave after b/f for gangtok
day 4: tsongo lake excursion full day
day 5: gangtok site seeing n evening relaxation (hope so!!)
day 6: leave for lachung n overnite there
day 7: yumthang valley excursion n overnite at lachung
day 8: lachung to gangtok n relax
day 9: gangtok to bagdogra to bombay

u think this is too hectic or mayb i shud stay a nite extra in lachung n skip gangtok last nite. but the prob is that i have a 13.55 flight to catch from bagdogra to bombay, so gangtok is a better option na???

ps: my husband prefers relaxation n luxury travel... u think this is a hectic itinerary??? i sooo want to see the north east n have convinced him abt it.. just hope it does not get too tiresome

theyyamdancer

It sounds excellent, a combination of hectic and relaxing. Time stands still once you reach the high mountains. Not a day passes by when even now I don't imagine myself there... (daydreams)...

The only tiresome part in my opinion will be your choice of guide. It is unfortunately obligatory to have one with you in North Sikkim. Ours was quite unhelpful. But on the other hand perhaps just imbibing the nature without too much explanations is the way to go!

mousourik

Also get mentally prepared that in case Darjeeling is inaccessible for political situation, Pelling can be included in the latter half.

morningdew

thanks guys....

u've been great great help.... will let u know how everything went... n just pray no more tensions happen in darjeeling...