Located in the lap of nature in the lesser Himalayas, Darjeeling is a small beautiful down in West Bengal. Come here to feel how it felt to live in the eras gone by- of living in an undisturbed environment, of breathing fresh air, of being friends with nature, of living in the times of steam engine, the time where there used to be unconditional bliss and tranquility.
Darjeeling is a multi cultural town, where people from different cultures live together as a community, celebrating diversity and staying united at the same time, effortlessly maintaining their harmonious and envious bond with Mother Nature. Here you’d find people speaking multiple languages like Bengali, Gorkha, Hindi, English, Nepali and Tibetan.
How to reach– You could board a flight, the city is well connected through the air route by all the metros. The nearest airport is Bagdodra, which is 88kms away from the main city. From there, it would take around three and a half hours for you to reach Darjeeling. If you are planning to travel by train, the nearest station is New Jalpaiguri (NJP) which is also at a similar distance. Bus services are available from Siliguri a small town brimming with energy, located at a distance of 80kms from Darjeeling is know as ‘the gateway to the hills’, bus services are available from here to the city.
Accommodation– Hotels and guest houses belonging to various ranges of rent are available. You could look up for them over the net. Also, government accommodation facilities are also available, for further details check them up on the official website.
Places to visit-
Tiger Hill: 13 kms away from the city, situated at a height of 2590 meters, this place mesmerizes you and takes over your senses with its beauty. It is known to give an amazing sunrise and sunset view over Kanchenjunga mountain range. You can also have a glimpse of the highest peak of the world from here, the Mount Everest.
Batasia Loop and the War Memorial: located 5kms away from the town, this is where the toy train takes a 360 degrees turn to cross over the ascend. There is also a war memorial build the fond memories of the brave martyrs. You could also shop for local handmade things from the local market here.
4kms away from the market square on the National Highway is located the Ava Art Gallery which was established back in 1965. It hoards 60 amazing pieces of art work in oil, water and thread painting.
Known as the heart of the town, Chowrasta is the central place to the mall road and has shops and eating joints on both sides of the road. Tourists spend a lot of time walking and shopping here. It being a vehicular movement free zone is an added advantage for the tourists for they can walk at their will without disturbance or bothering about traffic. Attached to the Chowrasta is the Brabourne Park, this garden is known as a picnic spot with its popular musical fountain.
Other places that must be visited are Botanical garden, Rock and Ganga Maya Park, Peace Pagoda, Nightingale Park, Senchal Lake, Dhirdham Temple, Happy valley tea gardens, Padmaja Naidu Himalayan zoological park, Raj Bhawan and then there are many monasteries here which are worth visiting.
Darjeeling also gives you options for adventure sports. You could go for trekking and river rafting. Walking across the tea gardens and finding just greenery for as far as your sight allows will be an amazing feeling.
The best time to visit Darjeeling would be from March to June and from October to November. Make sure you carry light woolens even during summers.
Happy travelling with Travel Planet!
