Help on Travel to Sikkim between 16th to 23rd May

pooja12345

Hi
I would like to travel to sikkim from 16th to 23rd may. Could you kindly help me plan the trip. I am interested in visiting Gangtok and nearby places sikkim. I would be travelling from Mumbai so if I could do the booking from here that would be helpful.

Thanks
Pooja

jaekae

Hi Pooja,
The best way to plan would be to go through the posts that are already there on the forum - you'll find a wealth of information there. Also, do you want a relaxed holiday where you stay at one place, chill out and see places close by, or do you want a more active holiday where you see a whole, but are on the constantly on the move? What you do depends on what you want
Anyway, some generic stuff - the main places you can go to are:
Gangtok - you can spend a day seeing the local and nearby attractions including Rumtek Monastery, and spend a day going to Tsongo Lake and NathuLa pass.
Pelling/Yuksom/Ravangla - in West Sikkim - these are destinations for a relaxed time. The attracions around here can be covered in a day or so, so you can spend the rest of the time here relaxing, gooing on walks etc. I'd suggest you keep Pelling as base and visit the other places.
N.Sikkim - do this if you're going for a more hectic holiday. In this case, you should definitely do Lachen-Lake Gurudongmar, and if you have another day, do Lachung-Yumthang-Zero Point too.
I hope this basic stuff is useful. You can find pointers to some good maps again in these forums; the place names will make sense once you refer to them I'm sure you'll get a lot more meaningful answers if you post more specific questions. And anyways, you're headed for a great vacation!
Have fun!
- JK

pooja12345

Hi

Thanks for the reply. I was specifically looking for a more active holiday involving travel and visiting places.
Could you help me going about booking the trip through any travel agent?
Is it too crowded during the may in sikkim? What would be the approx cost for a 6 day trip considering visit to a max number of places there.


Thanks
Pooja

mousourik

Pooja,
do keep Tsomgo and Nathula in your program which can be toured from Gangtok itself. But pl. check whether Nathula is accessible on the days when u'll be there - most probably it's open for four days a week.
Do include north Sikkim as there's every possibility of your egtting snow there.
Regarding contacts, pl. look into other threads posted very recently in the Sikkim section - u'll get first hand and absolutely current information.
Nice holidaying !

amitmishr

Hi pooja,
I just came back from Sikkim for a 6 day trip in first week of may. You can go through
Needed help on Sikkim visit in first week of May
If you need any further info, you can ask. Would advice you to go to Gurudongmar in North Sikkim. Yumthang you can avoid, nothing really great. But North Sikkim is arduous and get your woolens in place. Also, don't drink local water there before heating.
cheerio..

jaekae

Hi Pooja,
A tentative agenda could be as follows:
16th morning > NJP - Pelling. Reach Pelling by noon.
16th afternoon > Walk around Pelling visiting Rabdentse ruins and Pemayangtse monastery
17th > Take a day trip to Khechopalri Lake, Yuksom and and reach Gangtok by evening
18th > Visit to Lake Tsomgo and NathuLa. Shoudl be back by 3pm
19th > Local sight seeing around Gangtok (incl. Rumtek Monastery)
20-22 > 2 night 3 day North Sikkim tour, covering Lachung - Yumthang - Zero Point - katao - Lachen - Gurudongmar > Gangtok
23rd > Gangtok to NJP.

With this you should be able to see most of the attractions in Sikkim. I've assumed you reach NJP on 16th and have to reach back there on 23rd. If you have more time than this, lucky you If not, you can probably cut the Local sight seeing in Gangtok. Or worse, cut off the Yumthang leg of the N.Sikkim tour, make it a 2 day-1 night trip and just do Lachen-Gurudongmar.

Hope this helps. Do post if you have any questions, but as already mentioned, also go through other posts for more ideas.
Have a fun trip and let us know how it goes!
- JK

nikon_D300

HI Pooja

J.k's itenerary is almost right but wrong planning !!!

I have a good view of sikkim and a frequent visitor.
If u take my advice then ----

16 --- NJP to GNGTK (evening stroll and rest / try to book the trip for North Sikkim for 17th & Nathula, Tsomgo, Baba Mandir on 20th).
17 --- 2n 3d trip to North Sikkim. (Lachung / Lachen)
19 --- Back to GNGTK.
20 --- Nathula , Tsomgo , Baba Mandir trip and Back.
21 --- Take a local tour including Rumtek Monastry, Institute of Tibetology, Handicrafts Handloom, Hanuman Tak and move to Pelling by evening and book for local sight seeing the next day.
22 --- Local Sight seeing for the day and good night sleep.
23 --- Back to NJP for way back home.........

thats it !!!
I would prefer pelling as last destination as it is the ideal place for peace and calm for ur mind and body after those adventurous holiday !!! You need to get rest before departing !

Wishing you a Happy Journey ahead !!!!
Enjoy the pristine beauty of Sikkim the land of orchids......

Mysteriously yours

estranged_gnrs

Almost similar... I will be reaching NJP on 1st morning and have to catch the train back on 7th evening from NJP. This helps guys.

Few queries -
1> Weather - Rains a scare?
2> I have not done any hotel booking till now. Is there a chance of not getting a room to stay in places like Gangtok,Pelling etc? Or decent hotels are always available on walk-in basis? I will be having my wife along, so will prefer something moderate.

Thanks!

Rohit