Central heartland
Bumthang
Four valleys at the spiritual heart of Bhutan.
Overview
Bumthang is where Buddhism took root in Bhutan. Guru Rinpoche left the print of his body in the rock at Kurjey in the eighth century, the seventh-century Jambay Lhakhang is one of the oldest temples in the Himalaya, and the treasure-finder Pema Lingpa was born here in the fifteenth century and pulled sacred relics from the Burning Lake.
The name covers four valleys, Chokhor, Tang, Ura and Chhume, at around 2,800 metres, broad and open with buckwheat fields, apple orchards, stone farmhouses and forests of blue pine. Jakar, the main town, has a Swiss-founded dairy and brewery and a rare, gentle feeling of space.
This is the end of most journeys east, and the place travellers tell us they would return to first. Two or three nights lets you cycle between the temples of the Chokhor valley, walk up to the Burning Lake, and see the Ura valley at its own slow pace.
- Altitude
- 2,800 m
- From Paro
- About 10 hours by road, usually over two or three days; 35 minutes by domestic flight to Bathpalathang.
- Best months
- April, May, September, October, November
- Region
- Central heartland
Best time to visit
Four seasons, two of them famous.
Spring and autumn are peak. Monsoon is green and quiet. Winter is cold, clear and empty.
Spring
March to May
Apple and peach blossom in the Chokhor valley, rhododendrons on the Yotong La and the Ura Yakchoe festival in late spring. Mornings can be frosty into April.
Monsoon
June to August
Cool, green and often cloudy with light rain. The valleys are empty and the buckwheat is in flower; a good season for walking if you do not mind damp.
Autumn
September to November
Clear skies, buckwheat harvest and the Jambay Lhakhang Drup with its midnight fire ceremony. The finest season in Bumthang and the busiest.
Winter
December to February
Cold, dry and still, with snow possible on the valley floor. Farmhouses are warm, the temples quiet, and the light extraordinary.
Festivals here: Ura Yakchoe (April / May), Jambay Lhakhang Drup (October / November). Dates follow the lunar calendar; verify yearly.
Highlights
What Bumthang does better than anywhere.
Mebar Tsho, the Burning Lake
A dark pool in a gorge of the Tang Chhu where Pema Lingpa dived with a lit butter lamp and surfaced, still burning, holding sacred treasures. Pilgrims leave lamps on the rocks.
Cycling the Chokhor valley
The valley floor is flat and the temples close together: Jambay, Kurjey, Tamshing and the Jakar dzong in a loop of a morning, with farmhouse stops for tea and buckwheat pancakes.
The Ura valley
An hour east over the Shertang La, Ura is a high, treeless valley of a single stone village gathered round its temple, where women still wear sheepskin shawls and the Yakchoe festival brings everyone home each spring.
Dzongs & temples
Whitewashed walls, red roofs, and the people still inside them.
Jakar Dzong
The Castle of the White Bird, built in 1667 on a ridge above Chamkhar town where a white bird is said to have settled to mark the site. Its curtain wall is one of the longest in Bhutan and the view takes in the whole Chokhor valley.
Long sleeves and trousers in the dzong; no photography inside shrine rooms.
Jambay Lhakhang
One of 108 temples the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo is said to have built in a single day in the seventh century to pin down a demoness. Each autumn its Drup festival ends with the Mewang fire blessing and the midnight Tercham.
Long sleeves and trousers in the dzong; no photography inside shrine rooms.
Kurjey Lhakhang
Three temples against a cliff where Guru Rinpoche meditated and left the imprint of his body in the rock, in the eighth century. A great cypress said to have grown from his walking staff shades the courtyard, and the royal family's ancestors are cremated here.
Long sleeves and trousers in the dzong; no photography inside shrine rooms.
Stays
Where to sleep in Bumthang.
Placeholder names until partner agreements are signed. Prices per person per night, SDF included.
Journeys
Journeys that pass through Bumthang.
Questions
Before you go.
Yes. Domestic flights link Paro and Bathpalathang airport in about 35 minutes, weather permitting. Many travellers drive east over several days and fly back. Schedules change seasonally; verify at booking. Verify against https://www.bhutan.travel before launch.
Verify against bhutan.travel before travelling. Fees verified as of 2026-10-14.
Three nights is right for the Chokhor temples, the Burning Lake and a day in Ura or Tang. Two is the minimum; a week is not too long if you like walking.
The Jambay Lhakhang Drup in October or November and the Ura Yakchoe in April or May are the best known, among many smaller village festivals. Dates follow the lunar calendar; verify yearly.
Verify against bhutan.travel before travelling. Fees verified as of 2026-10-14.
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