Buthan Blossoms
As it welcomes its 50th year of tourism, the Himalayan kingdom of Bhutan still holds the promise of the authentic, the unspoilt and the unique. In other words, of an earthly form of transcendence...
In the annals of travel, there are a few destinations where legend and lore reign supreme. Near the top of the list is the last Buddhist kingdom, perched 8,000 feet above sea level in the heart of the Himalayas, literally on top of the world. It wasn’t until 1974 that we became acquainted with the peoples of this proud and private landlocked nation nestled between China and India. What we discovered was a modern-day Brigadoon, one that introduced televisions only in 1999, becoming the last country on Earth to do so.
It is an enchantingly beautiful land of wooded glades studded with chir pines and criss-crossed by fluttering prayer flags, calming and reflective brambling brooks flowing with aquamarine glacial waters, and revered snowcapped peaks that lure a niche demographic that comes to this spiritual-activity-rich destination to go peregrinating up hill and down dale through the untouched tableau.
And it is untouched. For few places still hold the promise of the truly authentic, the unspoilt and the unique. Such is the lure of Bhutan, and the transcendent impression it leaves on your being.
That’s partly due to accessibility, or lack thereof: as most visitors are required to be accompanied by a licensed guide for the duration of their stay, and pay a daily fee to support sustainability efforts, the numbers remain exceedingly small. Add to that a vertiginous road network (not for the faint of heart) and the fact that only Bhutanese pilots can make the swooping corkscrew turns past rocky couloirs and gilded temples into Paro airport on the nation’s two carriers (DrukAir and Bhutan Airlines), and it’s clear why a visit is a special experience, if not a privilege.
But as the country enters its 50th year of tourism, the hospitality scene, which was hitherto dominated by two international purveyors, is upping its credentials as it reaches the first quarter- milestone of the 21st century.
Venerable Amankora, the archetype and forerunner, remains so. Its five lodges of varying sizes in unimpeachable locations and different altitudes in the valleys of Paro, Thimphu, Punakha, Gangtey and Bumthang set the benchmark for farm-to- fork cuisine, spot-on smiling service, and unrivalled surroundings. Their concept of ‘peaceful journey’ is now mirrored by Thailand-based Six Senses, who have a quintet of outposts, with a collection of 82 suites and villas, that debuted in 2018. But whereas Aman’s accommodations have the same timeless style, set- up and surroundings for seamless transitioning from lodge to lodge, those purveyed by Six Senses will reflect their multifarious settings.
Another recent newbie in the Land of the Thunder Dragon is Punakha River Lodge, courtesy of the luxury hospitality company and tour operator andBeyond. Situated in a river bend between Punakha’s picturesque rice fields, the group’s first owned and managed property in Asia debuted in 2023, and is a petite eight-suite retreat (six luxury tents and two villas) ideal for active types who enjoy hikes, rafting and mountain biking (a favourite pastime of Bhutan’s much-revered monarch).
In the Phobjikha Valley, another outdoorsy hotspot, the hamlet of Gangtey is home not only to the endangered Black-necked crane but Gangtey Lodge, a bijoux 12-suite outpost where stillness and silence are luxuries. Boasting long views (and a handpainted cathedral ceiling in the main lodge flanked by two stone fireplaces), this is a place for rest and rumination, and where, by day’s end, you can tuck into steaming momos (dumplings) or sink into a traditional hot-stone bath.
The king has mandated a ‘mindfulness city’, an economic hub that will cover 2.5 per cent of the country.
Meanwhile, long-established Como Hotels and Resorts, one of the originals, who operate two lodges that resemble the country’s stately dzongs (former fortresses) in Paro and Punakha, continue to attract their devotees, but Paro (the nation’s gateway) is also now home to Le Méridien Paro Riverfront, featuring 59 riverside guestrooms. It complements the 78-room Le Méridien Thimphu in Bhutan’s capital city, which has also just welcomed the Yarkay Thimphu with 83 rooms, two restaurants, and a wellness centre with views of the Himalayas a stone’s throw away.
With so many new options for visitors, officials are now turning their gaze to investment opportunities beyond the traditional hospitality sector. The world’s first carbon-negative country, whose much-touted GNH (Gross National Happiness) is celebrated over GDP, has just completed the restoration of 18 major bridges, 10,000 stairs, and hundreds of miles of pathways as part of the Trans-Bhutan trail, an ancient 250-mile pilgrimage route that had fallen into disrepair as Bhutan introduced roads. Travellers can now hike, bike or camp along the entirety of the trail or its choicest sections, joining dots between stunning mountain vistas, mighty fortresses, and remote monasteries.
While investment in the arts (Bhutan held its first international film festival last September) and other sectors are also bolstering its soft-power status and in turn its economy after the deleterious effects of the pandemic, no initiative is as grand as the new ‘mindfulness city’ the king has mandated, an economic hub that will cover some 2.5 per cent of the country —an area larger than Singapore. Gelephu Mindfulness City, as it will be known, will be a low- to-mid-rise metropolis built over the next two decades in the tropical lowlands of the country, around and astride 34 rivers, designed as a masterplan by the Danish-architect Bjarke Ingels to highlight Bhutan’s cultural riches while fostering innovation and development.
It is those cultural riches and their unique traditions and identity that imbue visitors and envelop the populace (quite literally) in the handwoven natural-dyed national outfits known as gho for men and kira for women, an effort not only to preserve a remarkable textile art but to safeguard another facet of a country that remains entirely exceptional and will leave a lasting impression on your heart and soul.
