The Paro City Guides deal with the questions every Bhutan trip raises: what to ask your tour operator for before you arrive, so your guide and driver take you where you actually want to go, how to climb to the Tiger’s Nest at your own pace instead of on horseback, where ema datshi comes properly hot rather than toned down for a hotel buffet, and which drives over Chele La and Dochula repay the winding roads. Each guide is a short, honest list that tells you why a place is worth it, what to eat or look for and one useful tip, and it opens in your browser as soon as you have paid.
About the Paro City Guides
- 61 places
- 3 guides
- 7 languages
- Works offline
- Print or PDF
- Instant access
- Free updates
The three Paro guides
Food guide
20 places
Ema datshi, momos and a women-run bakery in Paro town, tea facing the Tiger’s Nest, heritage hotel dinners near Rinpung Dzong, then markets, farmhouse meals and buckwheat dumplings in Thimphu, Punakha and Haa.
Things to do guide
20 places
Paro’s dzongs and oldest temples, the Tiger’s Nest hike and quieter valley walks, the runway viewpoint and the riverside market, and day trips to Thimphu, Punakha and Haa.
Day trips guide
21 places
The Haa valley over Chele La, Thimphu’s dzong, chortens and market, Punakha across Dochula and half days in the Paro valley, all with honest drive times.
Why an interactive guide beats a list
Tick places off
Mark each place as done and watch your progress, so you always know what is left.
Your own notes
Write notes on any place and add your own finds. They stay on your phone.
One tap to Maps
Every place opens in Google Maps, and the day route puts your picks in a sensible order.
Open now, near me
Filter by what is open right now or what is closest to you.
Works offline
Open the guide once with a connection and it keeps working without data.
Print it or save as PDF
On a computer, print any guide or save it as a PDF to take with you.
Three places from the guides
Gangtey Palace, Paro
Hillside above Paro town
Built as a palace in the 19th century and now a heritage hotel, it faces Rinpung Dzong across the valley. Book a Bhutanese meal in the restaurant, or just order tea on the veranda for a few hundred ngultrum and take your time with the view. From the food guide.
Dhungtseg Lhakhang
Near the Paro-Thimphu road bridge, 5 min from town
Thangtong Gyalpo, the saint who built bridges across Bhutan, raised this temple in the 15th century in the shape of a chorten. Steep ladders lead up three floors standing for hell, earth and heaven, past some of the finest old murals in the country, and tour groups rarely stop. From the things to do guide.
Juneydrak Hermitage
Above Katsho village, 15 min drive north of Haa town
A hermitage on a cliff face, reached on foot in 40 to 60 minutes through rhododendron forest from Katsho. Inside is a footprint linked to the female saint Machig Labdron, and you may well have the place to yourself. From the mountains and day trips guide.
Plan your days in Paro
Day one: stay in the Paro valley. Start at Kyichu Lhakhang while the prayer wheels are turning, climb the ladders inside Dhungtseg Lhakhang, then walk up to Rinpung Dzong and cross its covered wooden bridge down into town for lunch. Watch a plane bank into the valley from the airport viewpoint and end with tea on the veranda of Gangtey Palace. Day two: be at the Tiger’s Nest trailhead by 7:30 with a rented stick, stop at the cafeteria for tea with the monastery straight ahead, then come back down for coffee and a tart at Brioche Cafe and a proper dinner at Zhiwaling. For a slow or rainy day, ask your driver for Thimphu: cross the chain bridge at Tachog Lhakhang on the way, browse the covered Centenary Farmers Market, circle the National Memorial Chorten with the locals and finish with momos at Zombala.
Questions about the Paro guides
What do the Paro City Guides include?
Three guides with 61 places in total: food, things to do, and mountains and day trips. Every entry tells you why it is worth going, where it is, notes on opening times and one tip you can put to use.
How do I receive the guides once I have paid?
The links show up on your order confirmation page and in the email that follows. They open in the browser of any phone, tablet or laptop, with no app to install and no account to create.
Can I use the Paro guides without internet?
Yes. Open each guide once while you are online and it keeps working offline after that, ticks and notes included. Only opening a place in maps needs mobile data.
Which languages are the Paro guides available in?
The guides open in English, German, French, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese and Korean. You can switch the language inside the guide at any time.
How much do the guides cost?
One guide is €4.99, two are €8.99 and all three together are €13.98.
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