Darjeeling Summer Trip Plan 2026

• ✓Arrive from Bagdogra Airport (IXB, 67km, 3 hours) or New Jalpaiguri station
• ✓Check into a heritage hotel near Mall Road or Chowrasta
• ✓Walk to Chowrasta — Darjeeling's central promenade and heart of town
• ✓Visit Observatory Hill — prayer flags, Mahakal Temple, and panoramic views
• ✓Evening walk along Mall Road — buy Darjeeling tea directly from shops

🍽️ Lunch at Glenary's Bakery, Dinner at Keventer's

• ✓4 AM start for Tiger Hill (11km) — Kanchenjunga sunrise at 2,590m
• ✓Watch the world's third-highest peak glow orange at dawn
• ✓Visit Batasia Loop — the Toy Train's famous spiral with war memorial
• ✓Happy Valley Tea Estate — guided tour of first-flush processing (₹150)
• ✓Afternoon visit to Himalayan Mountaineering Institute (₹100) and zoo

🍽️ Packed breakfast, Lunch at Sonam's Kitchen, Dinner at Shangrila

• ✓Morning ride on the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway — UNESCO Heritage train
• ✓Darjeeling to Ghum (7km, 2 hours, ₹800–₹1,500) through tea gardens
• ✓Visit Ghum Monastery — the oldest Tibetan monastery in the region
• ✓Padmaja Naidu Himalayan Zoological Park — red pandas and snow leopards
• ✓Afternoon at Japanese Peace Pagoda — serene Buddhist stupa with views

🍽️ Breakfast at Sonam's, Lunch at Gatty's Café, Dinner at Dekeling Hotel

• ✓Drive to Mirik (49km, 2 hours) — scenic hill station with lake
• ✓Boat ride on Sumendu Lake surrounded by pine, cardamom, and orange orchards
• ✓Walk over the 600-foot footbridge connecting two sides of the lake
• ✓Visit Devi Stan Dara viewpoint for views of Nepal border mountains
• ✓Return to Bagdogra for flight or combine with Gangtok (130km, 4 hrs)

🍽️ Breakfast at hotel, Lunch at Mirik, Departure