Sikkim Trip - Planning the Itinerary and Arrival at Gangtok

The Beginnings : It was in the month of March 2016, I started planning for a trip to the Himalayas. I was more interested to visit Bhutan, the Himalayan kingdom – known for its pristine nature and Gross National Happiness(contrary to Gross Domestic Product) – a bold concept in quantifying the well being of a citizen. Budget constraints and the thrill as well as joy of exploring paradises in our own backyard, prompted me to check for Sikkim tour packages! North Sikkim is a must in the itinerary, said my friend Sandeep, a prolific explorer himself! But there were only few packages available, which included it. After careful contemplation, I finalized a package, which had the following itinerary!


Day 1 : Bengaluru to Bagdogra by flight, Transfer to Gangtok by car
Day 2 : Changu Lake, Baba Harbhajan Singh Mandir
Day 3 : Journey to northern Sikkim, Lachung
Day 4 : Yumthung Valley, Zero Point and return back to Gangtok
Day 5 : Gangtok Sightseeing, Transfer to Darjeeling
Day 6 : Darjeeling Sightseeing
Day 7 : Bagdogra to Bengaluru by flight

Initial Hiccup! I was tempted to try OLA cabs for airport transfer. So, I had booked an OLA cab, the night before. Next morning, fifteen minutes before the scheduled time, when the OLA driver called for the last mile directions to reach my house, he asked for the destination to drop. When it was scheduled time, I expected him to be near my house but there was no sign of him. Worse still, he did not pick my call for the next 20 minutes! Finally, I cancelled the booking and made a new one. For the second booking, when the driver came to know of the destination, he excused himself saying his vehicle is not getting started due to chilly weather! At least, I thought, this guy is politely refusing to come unlike the former driver, who was more unprofessional in his attitude. Time was running out and I was getting tensed, with the classic refusal of service in Bengaluru – a cab driver playing an adamant autowalah! Cancelling the second booking, I did a third booking. As a saving grace for OLA as well as a relief for my anxieties, this time the driver arrived at my place within 3 minutes. Lesson learnt – never hire an OLA cab for airport transfer!

Arrival at Bagdogra, Briefing at Siliguri : Boarding the Bagdogra bound flight at Bengaluru airport in the morning at 10 35 am, we reached our destination in the afternoon at 2 45 pm. Small airport at Bagdogra in West Bengal is a transit point as there are no operational airports in Sikkim as of now. After meeting the travel representative at the airport, we boarded a Toyota Innova. Within half an hour, we were at Siliguri. A surprise lunch was arranged by the tour operators at a restaurant in Siliguri! Finishing our lunch, tour manager collected our photos and id proofs, which were required for obtaining inner line permits. Inner line permits are a must for visiting border areas in Sikkim. After all the accompanying tourists arrived, there was a briefing by the tour manager about the profile of north east region of India and do’s and don’ts during the tour.

Journey to Gangtok : Soon after, we left for Gangtok. It was a four hour long journey. Though the distance is mere 120 km’s, curvy and uphill roads make travelling, a time consuming affair. We were told earlier by the tour manager that the maximum distance one can cover in an hour is 25 km! Our driver spoke little. I did not enquire him after his brief replies to my earlier queries. But after a while, he began to strike a conversation. He would point to the zone, where elephants would cross. After a while, I observed that he blew the vehicle horns sparingly, even when he was driving at high speeds or negotiating nasty curves. It seemed like drivers coming in the other direction were in perfect harmony with him! Later, our driver pointed out at the Coronation Bridge, which was on to our right and was built across Teesta river, a tributary of mighty river Brahmaputra.

Coronation Bridge, Sevoke near Siliguri, West Bengal

This bridge he said would lead to us to Bhutan border! The bridge was built by the British during 1937-41 to commemorate the coronation of King George VI and Queen Elizabeth. This is also called Tiger Bridge (Bagh pul in Hindi) because of the tiger statue at the entrance of the bridge. The bridge is also known by the name Sevoke bridge, named after the nearby town! Continuing our journey, I was enthralled by the sight of moonlit hills on the way. Houses on the slopes were twinkling in pale yellow light with hills silhouetted against milky moon lit sky. Bright full moon raising out of the hills added to the visual spectacle. Our journey was smooth till we reached Rangpo check post. At Rangpo, we were asked to show our identity cards. It seemed to be a routine affair for the people visiting Sikkim, as it is in close proximity to international borders. We were nearing the capital of Sikkim, when our driver pointed at the huge campus of Sikkim Manipal University. I tried to explain him that Manipal is a town near to my native and background of the university. I think I failed in my attempt looking at his responses!

Arrival at Gangtok : Misty surroundings greeted us when we reached the capital of Himalayan state. When we arrived at our hotel at 8 30 pm, fog prevented us from a getting a glimpse of the building. But the light from the lobby with a triangular roof, breaking the blanket of fog made the place appear other worldly. It could well match the description of an inn in a novel set in England! Wait – there was more to it! While making our entries for the check in, we were served steaming hot black tea. It was a heavenly experience, before our retreat for the day!