Namchi district · Theme
Monasteries in South Sikkim
Prayer halls, masks and butter lamps
Photo: Revant Singh Rathore · CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
In South Sikkim, monasteries works best in Buddha Park (Tathagata Tsal), Kewzing, Namchi and Ralang Monastery. We have 7 packages built around it. Sikkim has a gompa in almost every valley, from Dubdi (1701) above Yuksom to Rumtek, seat of the Karma Kagyu lineage in exile. We time visits for morning prayers and the mask-dance days of the Tibetan calendar, and we brief you on the etiquette before you step inside.
Buddhism reached Sikkim with the Nyingma lamas who consecrated the first Chogyal at Yuksom in 1642. The monasteries that followed, Pemayangtse, Tashiding, Phodong, Rumtek, still run on ritual time: prayers at dawn, cham dances on fixed days of the lunar year.
Walk clockwise, ask before photographing inside a prayer hall, and keep your voice low. Mask-dance dates move with the Tibetan calendar each year, so check current status before you travel.
Places
Where to go
pilgrimage site
Buddha Pa…2,115M
Buddha Park (Tathagata Tsal)
A 130 ft copper Buddha with Mount Narsing behind it
Kewzing
A Bhutia village where homestay income is shared
town
Namchi1,500M
Namchi
Two giant statues, one tidy hill town, mild weather all year
monastery
Ralang Mo…1,940M
Ralang Monastery
Kagyu monastery of the mask dances, 6 km below Ravangla
town
Ravangla2,050M
Ravangla
A cool ridge town between Buddha Park, Ralang and Maenam
pilgrimage site
Samdruptse2,200M
Samdruptse
Guru Rinpoche, 135 ft tall, on the wish-fulfilling hill
village
Yangang1,500M
Yangang
Lepcha, Bhutia and Nepali farms below Maenam's Bhaleydhunga
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Trips to start from
Indicative prices per person, twin sharing. Each one can be changed.
Value
Top2,200M
Gangtok, Namchi, Ravangla and Pelling, 7N
Gangtok · Namchi · Ravangla · Pelling
Budget
Top2,150M
Namchi, Ravangla and Pelling, 6 nights
Namchi · Ravangla · Pelling
Budget
Top1,800M
Namchi weekend from NJP, 2 nights
Namchi
Budget
Top2,100M
Namchi and Ravangla on a budget, 4 nights
Namchi · Ravangla
Value
Top2,100M
Easy South Sikkim family trip, 5 nights
Namchi · Ravangla
Budget
Top2,100M
South Sikkim pilgrim circuit, 3 nights
Namchi · Ravangla
Value
Top2,100M
Pilgrim circuit for seniors, 5 nights
Namchi · Ravangla · Gangtok
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Hours that fit the theme
Monasteries and shrines
Buddha Park at opening time
Be at the gate when Tathagata Tsal opens, walk the long avenue while it is still quiet, circle the 130 ft Buddha …
Culture
The Buddha's life in the spiral museum
Inside the statue's base, a museum's spiral gallery tells the Buddha's life in sequence, from birth at Lumbini to enlightenment and final …
Monasteries and shrines
Butter lamps and dusk at Tathagata Tsal
Return late in the afternoon, when the tour groups have left, to light a butter lamp, walk a last kora around the …
Adventure
Walk from Buddha Park towards Ralang
After your visit, walk downhill from Buddha Park along the quiet road towards Ralang Monastery, about 6 km, through village fields and …
Monasteries and shrines
Visit Kewzing's Bon monastery with your host
A quiet visit to one of very few Bon monasteries in India, guided by your homestay host. Learn how the Bon tradition, …
Nature
Kewzing's monastery and chorten trail
A gentle morning loop on village paths linking Kewzing's monasteries, chortens and viewpoints, with Kangchenjunga and Narsing above the West Sikkim hills …
Village life
A cardamom and farm day with a Kewzing family
Spend a morning in the fields with your host family: picking large cardamom in the shaded gullies in autumn, sorting and drying …
Food
Butter tea, churpi and a Bhutia home kitchen
Join your hosts in the kitchen to watch or help make suja, the salted butter tea of Bhutia homes, and a simple …
Price your own route
Tell us dates, people and budget. We send a day-by-day plan with every cost shown. StartNot sure where to start?
We match districts to your month, your budget and the people travelling with you. StartAsk the Gangtok desk
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Where we would book
Kewzing village homestays
A Bhutia village on the Ravangla–Legship road that started a community homestay programme in 2003. A village tourism committee shares guests between participating families. …
Budget
Yangang village homestays
A small group of family homestays in Yangang, a Lepcha, Bhutia and Nepali village below Maenam hill on the Ravangla side. Expect simple rooms, …
Value
Mt. Narsing Village Resort
A long-running cottage resort on the Ravangla–Pelling road, a few kilometres from Ravangla town. Two wings at different prices, lawns and gardens, an indoor …
Value
Bon Farmhouse
A family-run farmstay at Kewzing, set among a few acres of tea, cardamom and vegetable fields below Ravangla. Responsible-travel listings have featured it for …
Comfort
Seven Hill Resort
A cottage resort on about six acres of sloping, landscaped ground at Phalidara above Namchi. Traditionally designed cottages with balconies face Samdruptse, Solophok's Char …
Comfort
The Barfung Retreat
A small cottage retreat in Barfung village just outside Ravangla, above the village primary school. Wood-panelled rooms in three cottages, breakfast included, and walking …
Premium
Sobralia Hotels Casino Resort & Spa
Namchi's largest upmarket hotel, formerly Summit Sobralia Resort & Spa, on the road up to Char Dham. A five-storey building with valley and Kangchenjunga …
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Tell us your dates and your budget
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