Exclusive News Luxury Travel Mag / The Breathtaking Destination That Is Perfect For Slow Travel / Editing By Ute Junker / Publisher Luxurytravelmag

With its majestic mountain landscapes and unique, inspiring focus on collective happiness, a visit to the Kingdom of Bhutan will restore your weary soul

My first coffee of the morning usually goes down quickly, but today I’m making it last. I’m determined to savour this view for as long as I can: mountains on the horizon, cloudless sky seemingly shimmering at my feet.

It’s an illusion, of course, but an entrancing one, created by the reflecting pools at Six Senses Thimphu, a luxurious haven sitting high above Bhutan’s capital in the Himalayas.

I soon realise that the morning’s coffee has set the tone for my entire stay in Bhutan, a destination for which the concept of slow travel might have been invented. In this devoutly Buddhist Himalayan kingdom, there is never any need to rush.

(Thimphu is reputedly the only capital city in the world that doesn’t have a single traffic light.) The Bhutanese believe in embracing the small joys, as befits a place that invented the concept of Gross National Happiness and only permits development that brings positive benefits to the country, its environment and its people.

That applies to tourism, too. The country has focused on the luxury sector to avoid the impacts of mass tourism, which means you never have to worry about crowds.

Travellers come here in search not just of spectacular mountain landscapes, but also for a fresh perspective. Amid Bhutan’s dramatic landscapes, its high peaks and verdant valleys, your own issues and concerns tend to fade into insignificance.

The journey begins

Most visitors start their trip in Thimphu or the nearby city of Paro, the launching point for the famous climb to Paro Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest Monastery), set in lonely splendour on a cliff 900 metres above the valley floor.

The Tiger’s Nest hike takes at least 2.5 hours for the six-kilometre ascent, much of which is steeply vertical, and around 90 minutes on the way down – but the views along the way make the effort well worth it.

The hike teaches us that one important lesson about travelling in Bhutan: it’s good to take it slow. When we head off on the 70-kilometre journey from Thimphu to the Punakha Valley, the drive takes us around three hours, along winding mountain roads swathed in verdant forests.

The highlight is cresting the 3,100-metre-high Dochula Pass. On a clear day, the snowy panorama of Himalayan peaks – including Mount Everest – is spread out before you; when clouds hang heavy, you may find snowflakes swirling around your head.

Arriving in Punakha feels like landing in another world. Sitting at 1,240 metres, Punakha’s sub-tropical climate supports lush rice paddies and even banana trees.

That makes for some glorious hikes, including an easy 40-minute walk to the Chimi Lhakhang fertility temple, past family farms and fluttering prayer flags.

Built for the royal family, the interiors of the temple are utterly spellbinding – and the fact that photos are forbidden means you have to drink in all the details while you are there.

Punakha’s most famous attraction is its imposing dzong, set between the valley’s two rivers, the Mo Chhu (Mother River) and Po Chhu (Father River). Whitewashed dzongs – a combination of fort, government centre and monastery – were traditionally the most important buildings in the country, and Punakha’s is the most magnificent of all.

Dazzled though we are by the dzong’s exquisite interiors, it is not Bhutan’s buildings that make the biggest impact – it’s the people we meet, from crimson-clad monks to a mother-and-daughter team who are working to conserve traditional weaving methods using plant-based dyes.

Local flavour

Then there is the charming family of farmers who cook up a delicious lunch for us, including the best lentil soup I have ever tasted.

Bhutan is not particularly known for its food, but local tour operator MyBhutan is set on changing that – hence this farmhouse dining program, which it operates in several locations across the country.

“Every valley is unique in terms of its latitude and the ingredients you will find there,” says MyBhutan’s Matthew De Santis. “To find the best food in any area, you have to go to the farmhouses. For our food program, we have identified one great home cook in each of three valleys who help introduce our guests to the local cuisine.”

Desantis, an American, is one of Bhutan’s longest residing non-natives and co-founder of the boutique luxury outfitter, MyBhutan. MyBhutan is known for delivering experiences no other tour operator can offer – something that speaks both to its approach and its connections.

While every MyBhutan itinerary is tailored to its guests’ interests, the aim is to showcase the true diversity of the kingdom, a place that is embracing modernity while still preserving traditions.

When we chat to the cheerful restaurant owner who leads our cooking class – including some utterly delicious dumplings – we discover she was actually one of the first female police officers in Bhutan.

Luxe lodgings

Hotel fans will be delighted by Bhutan’s stellar range of lodgings. Como, Six Senses, andBeyond and Aman all have properties here. But there are also homegrown products such as Paro’s Bhutan Spirit Sanctuary, where traditional wellness treatments are included in the rate, and Pemako Punakha, where you are blessed on arrival by the resident lama.

Perhaps our most memorable experience, however, comes during our night camping on a slope high above a river valley – although MyBhutan’s take on camping is far from bare-bones, involving comfortable beds, toilets with seats and even a massage tent.

Despite the chill in the air we spend an entertaining evening learning traditional Bhutanese sports, sampling local whiskey by the fire and having our astrology charts read by a Buddhist monk, while a full moon hangs low in the sky above us, seemingly just an arm’s-length away.

When nature calls in the pre-dawn darkness, I reluctantly force myself out from under the cosy covers and pick my way carefully to the toilet.

As I head back to my tent I notice the sky is a shade or two lighter than it was moments ago. The sun is about to rise. Thankful that I have rugged up, I stand and watch as the sky lightens, creating magnificent silhouettes of the surrounding peaks – a moment of utter beauty that I have all to myself.