Carpets, choktse tables and thangkas
Crafts and culture in Sikkim
The Directorate of Handicrafts and Handloom in Gangtok, Lepcha weaving in Dzongu, thangka painters, carpet weavers and woodcarvers. We take you to workshops and take no commission on what you buy.
Photo: Amitabha Gupta · CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
The Directorate of Handicrafts and Handloom in Gangtok, Lepcha weaving in Dzongu, thangka painters, carpet weavers and woodcarvers. We take you to workshops and take no commission on what you buy.
Sikkim's crafts come from its communities: Bhutia carpets and choktse folding tables, Lepcha cane work and weaving, Nepali metalwork and woodcarving. Many workshops welcome visitors.
Buy from the maker or a government emporium when you can. We do not take commission, so we have no reason to push you anywhere.
Packages
Trips built around it
Sorted by price. Indicative per person, twin sharing.
Budget
Top1,500M
Dzongu Lepcha village escape
Dzongu
Budget
Top2,000M
Gangtok monasteries and food, 4 nights
Gangtok · Martam
Budget
Top2,100M
South Sikkim pilgrim circuit, 3 nights
Namchi · Ravangla
Value
Top1,980M
Pakyong villages: Aritar, Mankhim and Rolep, 4N
Aritar · Mankhim · Rolep
Value
Top5,183M
Dzongu homestay and North Sikkim
Gangtok · Dzongu · Lachen · Lachung · Gangtok
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
An itemised quote within one working day. No payment to start. StartWhere to go
Places for crafts and culture
monastery
Enchey Mo…1,860M
Enchey Monastery
Gangtok's Nyingma monastery on the ridge, 3 km above MG Marg
town
Gangtok1,650M
Gangtok
Sikkim's capital on a ridge at 1,650 m
garden
Ranipool …900M
Ranipool and Saramsa Garden
A river junction town and a 1922 orchid garden
monastery
Ranka and…1,420M
Ranka and Lingdum
A Zurmang Kagyu monastery in the Ranka forest, 20 km from Gangtok
monastery
Rumtek1,500M
Rumtek
The Karmapa's seat in exile, 24 km from Gangtok
valley
Dzongu1,200M
Dzongu
The Lepcha reserve across the Teesta from Mangan
heritage site
Kabi Lung…1,300M
Kabi Lungchok
The stones where Sikkim's blood-brotherhood oath is remembered
monastery
Labrang2,130M
Labrang
A Nyingma monastery above Phodong with its original timber frame
village
Phodong1,400M
Phodong
A Kagyu monastery town on the North Sikkim Highway
Darap
A Limbu farming village 8 km from Pelling, with homestays
monastery
Dubdi Mon…2,100M
Dubdi Monastery
The hermit's cell above Yuksom, often called Sikkim's oldest monastery
Gyalshing
District headquarters and the transport hub below Pelling
village
Hee Bermi…1,950M
Hee Bermiok
Limbu heritage, cardamom farms and forest walks west of Pelling
heritage site
Norbugang1,800M
Norbugang
The stone throne where Sikkim's first king was consecrated in 1642
monastery
Pemayangt…2,085M
Pemayangtse Monastery
Sikkim's senior Nyingma monastery, home of the Zangdok Palri model
heritage site
Rabdentse…2,000M
Rabdentse Ruins
Forest ruins of the royal capital of Sikkim from 1670
monastery
Sanga Cho…2,200M
Sanga Choeling Monastery
A hilltop monastery dated to 1697, above the Pelling Skywalk
monastery
Tashiding1,465M
Tashiding
The heart-shaped hill of chortens and the sacred Bumchu vase
village
Yuksom1,780M
Yuksom
Sikkim's first capital and the gateway to Kangchenjunga
pilgrimage site
Char Dham…1,710M
Char Dham, Solophok
A 108 ft Shiva and India's four dhams on one Sikkim hilltop
Kewzing
A Bhutia village where homestay income is shared
monastery
Ralang Mo…1,940M
Ralang Monastery
Kagyu monastery of the mask dances, 6 km below Ravangla
pilgrimage site
Mankhim1,980M
Mankhim
Kirat Rai temple on a ridge above Aritar
town
Rhenock1,040M
Rhenock
Old crossroads town between Kalimpong and the Silk Route
town
Rongli1,585M
Rongli
Permit town and old market at the foot of the Silk Route
Daramdin
Flat farmland, Limbu and Lepcha villages and a tower of clay pots
Tharpu and Mangardzong
The fort site of the last Mangar raja, in a warm paddy valley
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
An itemised quote within one working day. No payment to start. StartThings to do
Experiences on the way
Monasteries and shrines
Morning prayers at Enchey
Reach Enchey before the sightseeing taxis and sit at the back of the prayer hall while the monks chant with drums and …
Culture
Watching the Detor Chaam at Enchey
Each winter Enchey's monks perform the Detor Chaam, two days of masked dances in the courtyard before the Tibetan new year. Gangtok …
Nature
Ridge walk from Enchey to Ganesh Tok
Walk the upper ridge road from Enchey to Ganesh Tok, past the TV tower and through conifers, with views over the town …
Nature
Dawn light at Enchey for photographers
At sunrise the golden cupola, prayer flags and pine trunks of Enchey catch low light, and the ridge is almost empty. A …
Culture
Namgyal Institute and Do Drul Chorten
A morning at Deorali seeing the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, opened by Nehru in 1958, and the white Do Drul Chorten above …
Food
MG Marg and Lal Bazaar food walk
A walk from the clean, car-free MG Marg down to Lal Bazaar, Gangtok's main market, tasting momos, thukpa, sel roti and churpi …
Nature
Ropeway ride from Deorali to Tashiling
A short cable-car ride across the steep face of Gangtok, from Deorali near the Tibetology institute to Tashiling beside the Secretariat. Under …
Craft
Workshops at the Handicrafts Directorate
Watch young artisans paint thangkas, carve and paint wooden choksee tables and weave carpets and Lepcha loin-loom cloth at the government Directorate …
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
An itemised quote within one working day. No payment to start. StartWhere to sleep
Stays that fit
Budget
Mintokling Guest House
A long-running, family-feel guest house on Bhanu Path, just below the Secretariat road and about 10 minutes on foot from MG Marg. Quiet garden, …
Budget
Hotel Sonam Delek
A small Tibet Road hotel that has been running since the early 1990s, a 10-minute walk from MG Marg. Rooms have balconies facing the …
Value
Netuk House
A family-run heritage house on Tibet Road built in the late 1950s for Gellong Netuk Lama, a counsellor to the Chogyal. Traditional Sikkimese rooms, …
Value
The Hidden Forest Retreat
A family-run guest house in Middle Sichey, about 2 km from central Gangtok, set in roughly three acres of garden built around an orchid …
Value
Hotel Tibet
An established mid-range hotel on Paljor Stadium Road, a few minutes' walk from MG Marg, decorated in a traditional Tibetan style. Suites and deluxe …
Comfort
The Chumbi Residency
One of Gangtok's best-known mid-range hotels, open since 1997 on Tibet Road, five minutes' walk above MG Marg. Consistent service, valley and Kangchenjunga views …
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
An itemised quote within one working day. No payment to start. StartGet my price
Plan a crafts and culture trip with us
Who is travelling, when, and roughly what you want to spend. The Gangtok desk replies within one working day with a day-by-day plan and an itemised price.
- No payment to start
- Permits handled through registered partners
- Every hotel, car and fee listed