Off the Sikkim and Darjeeling

mangesh

Hi all,

This is my first post on this forum. I found indiamike while searching for info on Sikkim. I have been a silent observer/reader of all your posts which have helped me a lot in finalising my plans. Thank you all very much.

I am off to a Sikkim - Darjeeling trip with my wife and 12 year old son. My itinerary is as follows :

13th May : Mumbai Kolkata by flight.
13th May spend the day in Kolkata and depart for NJP by Darjeeling Mail
14th May : Reach NJP in the morning and proceed to Gangtok. Evening in Gangtok
15th and 16th May : North Sikkim
17th May : Gangtok sight seeing
18th May : Depart for Darjeeling, reach DJ, rest of the day in DJ
19th May : Darjeeling sight seeing
20th May : Darjeeling sightseeing and depart for NJP and onwards to Kolkata by Darjeeling Mail at night.
21st May : Reach Kolkata, spend the day sight seeing and evening 7.30 flight back to Mumbai

I hope the itinerary is OK. I have already done all the bookings : Hotels, jeeps, etc. through an agent in Gangtok.

What I have been racking my brains is for this :

What exactly do I see in the days I have in Gangtok and Darjeeling? I have read all the posts, but I am slightly overloaded with information.

Can I do river rafting on the way from NJP to Gangtok or from Gangtok to Darjeeling? That would save me travelling time as well as money.

Also, I have no clue as to what I should see in Kolkata during my stopover.

Could anyone suggest a hotel near Sealdah station where I can just drop my luggage, have a bath and go sight seeing? That's because my train leaves from Sealdah.

How much time does it really take to travel from Sealdah to the domestic airport? Being a Mumbaite, I am clueless about the traffic conditions in Kolkata.

I know I am posting this with only one day left, but I had to finish a lot of things at the University before I could be mentally free even to think of my trip.

I go click-click-click on my trips, so hope to upload and share a lot of pics and video.

Suggestions are most welcome.

Do visit http://picasaweb.google.com/mangesh.karandikar to see some of my pics.

Happy travelling

Mangesh Karandikar

tacita

hi mangesh,

welcome to indiamike! so good to read that you found the site useful for your imminent sikkim/DJ plans. you'll be there at a great time, when i hear the rhododendrens (sp?) are in bloom.

it's nice to see a manageable itineray proposed. too many travelers -- and i'm among them -- try to do too much. i'll answer what i can, for what it's worth.

for kolkata, make sure you figure horrendous traffic conditions into the mix, though i can't speak comparatively vis-a-vis mumbai. the streets are utterly clogged and it takes a long time to reach anything, especially at rush hour, not surprisingly.

i didn't use my kolkata time as effectively as i might have, but i was simply exhausted by that time. i enjoyed the huge banyan tree at the botanic garden, which i visited at dawn, when almost no one was aroubnd. your 12-year-old would really enjoy this remarkable tree, especially. the indian museum and/or victoria memorial are good bets, and they're relatively close to one another.

i don't know about the rafting, but from NJP to gangtok, you'll want to allow about 4 hours by taxi. it could be more if there's an accident (as there was when i was going through), or less if things are zooming along. not sure when you arrive NJP. if it's early, rafting might be a possibility to run by your travel agent.

i didn't go to northern sikkim, so obviously can't speak to that, except to say it's reputed to be the most spectacular area of the state. (i did delhi-bagdogra-gangtok-yuksom-pelling-darjeeling-kolkata-delhi.)

in gangtok, taxis have a 3-, 5- or 7-point tour they can take you on for your free day there. it sounds as bit hokey, i know, but it's well worth it. i did a private, modified version of that, using a list of things that interested me, gleaned from guidebooks. something i did not do, but very much wanted to, was ride the ropeway. again, a great thing for a 12-year-old (and adults, too!) taxis are inexpensive and it's the best way to get around efficiently.

darjeeling was delightful. definitely go to the hindu/buddhist temple at observatory hill. i also visited the tibetan refugee center, well worth the hike down and back up the hill. if monasteries are your thing (i like to see all i can), there are quite a few nearby. the japanese peace pagoda is also a must-see. i did go out to tiger hill, but the morning was cloudy, so we saw zilch. then again, the sunrises i saw in pelling were spectacular. i'm told that, comparatively, i didn't miss anything at tiger hill. i'd skip all the crazed vendor shopping in DJ. crowded and stressful. higher up, things are saner. the chowrasta area offers nice shops and restaurants. glennary's is excellent, both the dining room upstairs and the coffee shop downstairs, which has excellent internet access.

on some evenings, there is traditional dance to see in nightengale park. i was there out of season, so it was dark and the dancing suspended for the winter, but do inquire about this when you arrive. everyone seems to know about it.

i have an excellent local guidebook for sikkim and will check the title when i get home and post it here, but it seemed ubiquitous in sikkim - hard NOT to have one fall into your hands. can't recommend it highly enough. but-for possible copyright infringements, i'd love to scan and post it here. it's from the sikkim tourist bureau, i believe. again, will check and let you know.

thanks for the link to your pictures and, again, welcome to indiamike. have a wonderful trip!

__________________
Life is either a daring adventure, or nothing. ~Helen Keller

Radjesh

hi mangesh
just returned frm Sikkim, fantastic place.
On the way frm NJP to Gangtok thers's a place called Milli/Melli where river rafting is done. 2 types, one for 4 km & another for 10

Frm Calcutta airport to Sealdah a prepaid taxi cost 150 takes around 40 mins, depends on traffic of course

In Gangtok if u want to c Tsomgo lake & Nathula pass u have book atleast 3/4 days in advance. v decided in the last minute for Nathula & unfortunately permits were over, costs 500/head. Only 25 tourist vehicles r allowed there per day, hence the urgency.

we also boarded the Darj. mail @ Sealdah, when v went to Sealdah i didnt find any gud hotels nearby