The Ultimate Guide to Hike Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest) Monastery in Paro, Bhutan

Hike to Taktsang (Tiger’s Nest) Monastery was on the top of my bucket list in my Bhutan trip. It was my last day in Bhutan and I had planned to experience the best on my last day.

After 7 amazing days in Bhutan, I was on my way to visit the iconic structure of the country – Paro Taktsang a.k.a. Tiger’s Nest Monastery. I had seen so many pictures of this monastery but nothing came in comparison when I had seen it in front of my eyes. It was magical.

Well, it is truly said that if you do not hike to Taktsang your visit to Bhutan is incomplete. So, just do not let it happen. In this post, I will try to pen down a complete guide to hike Taksang (Tiger’s Nest) Monastery.

Read More : My list of six must see places in Paro, Bhutan

“There are only two mistakes one can make along the road to truth – not going all the way and not starting”

– Buddha

Background and Legends of Taktsang

Taktsang literally means “Tigress Liar”.

It is believed that Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche) came to this place from Tibet on the back of a tigress. Yeshe Tsogyal, a disciple of Guru Rinpoche in Tibet transformed herself into a tigress and carried the Guru on her back.

In one of the caves here, the Guru then performed meditation and emerged in eight incarnated forms (manifestations) and the place became holy. Subsequently, the place came to be known as “Tiger’s Nest”.

The popular legend of the Taktsang Monastery is further embellished with the story of Tenzin Rabgye, who built the temple here in 1692.

It has been mentioned by authors that the 8th-century Guru Padmasambhava had reincarnated again in the form of Tenzin Rabgye.  

Location of Taktsang

The monastery is located 10 kilometres north of Paro and situated on a precarious cliff at 3,120 metres (10,240 ft), about 900 metres above the Paro valley.  When you look at Taktsang from Paro valley, it seems hanging from the edge of that cliff.

The path to the monastery is a well-laden dirt trail, that hikers take to reach there. But this is not the only path to the monastery. In fact, this trail is one of the three paths that leads to this holy place.

“If you find no one to support you on the spiritual path, walk alone. There is no companionship with the immature”

– Buddha

The first path is this popular trail passing through the pine forest and decorated with bright, prayer flags – symbolizing protection from evil forces, positive energy, vitality and good luck.

The other two paths pass through a plateau, called “a hundred thousand fairies’ plateau” – which is in the upper Himalayas and come to the monastery from above.

Reaching There from Paro

The starting point of the hike is around 10 minutes drive from Paro. From the parking lot first glimpse of the monastery looks amazing – some temple-like buildings far far away, hanging like a bee hive from a straight wall of a mountain, visible above the rows of pine trees.

Usually, it takes around 5-6 hours for the entire hike. You can get a horse to ride until the midpoint. But there is faith if you ride on an animal while going up you will split the good merits you gathered in this journey with that animal. 

So if you are healthy and determined, just don’t let those merits get divided. And remember you will not get a horse while coming back. So I would suggest to walk at your comfort and skip the animals.

We started late around 11:30 in the morning. Reason being, I wanted to photograph the monastery when sunlight falls directly over it. We were late but we were ready to walk uphill. We decided to go slow and enjoy every moment of our journey.

Read More: Our hike to Cheri Monastery in Thimphu, Bhutan

Our Hike to Taktsang 

“Ahhh…here we are at last…. lets do it”

Hike to Taktsang starts right beside the parking lot where our car dropped us from Paro. We bought our entry pass. And without wasting any more time we proceed towards the trail. Though we were quite late still there was a significant number of tourists who were about to start also. As it was peak season, that place was quite crowded, full of tourists and local vendors.

As soon as we stepped forward one local lady approached us to buy walking sticks from her. We were not carrying any walking pole, so without thinking twice we bought two walking sticks from her. Though I realized later those were just for rent and I had to return it when we came back.

The starting point was full of local vendors selling traditional pieces of jewellery, woollen products and souvenirs.

“First impression is not always the best impression”

Honestly, on the first impression, it looked quite overcrowded and dingy to me. As we moved forward passing by a water wheel, we saw many horses and mules grazing around. And their owners were looking for customers who want to ride a horse to climb up. Those horses took tourists to midpoint near cafeteria.

As we dodged aside we came to a meadow which was right beneath the mountain that we were going to hike. First few hundred meters were in plain covered with tall pine trees in both sides and then gradually we started to ascend.

We had to walk carefully as horses were coming down quite fast and there were scattered horse poops all over the path. Many tourists especially elderly people who went up a few hundred meters and then had breathing difficulties, decided against walking further and were coming down. So the initial part of the trail was pretty congested.

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“Focus and walk…..and keep dodging”

As we went further up, the initial crowd thinned out and the dirt path was also less full of shits. So we could look up a little but there was no view of the monastery yet because we were winding up the mountain from the other side.

We had to be cautious though from the horses. As the trail was not quite wide in most part, we had to push ourselves against the wall on our right to save us from getting hurt by those horses. So we paced slow and stopped frequently. Though we could not see the monastery, the view of the beautiful Paro valley on our left kept us walking.

“If you are facing in the right direction,

all you need to do is keep walking.”

– Buddha

Finally we got the first glimpse of monastery when we were almost to the midpoint.

“Relax….you have reached the halfway”

We reached the halfway after 2 hours. It is a small flat area with a giant prayer wheel in one side and tons of prayer flags hanging over the head.

The belief is that air blowing across this prayer flags spread the Buddhist chants written over those flags, to all over the valley. This keeps all demons away and protects the people of this valley.

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“Make a little detour and have a cup of coffee”

The cafeteria was also at the same level. It was 100 meters off the main trail. We decided to take a break there and had our lunch. The unobstructed view of the monastery from the cafeteria was mesmerizing. But as we were late already and it was still more than an hour hike left, we quickly finished our lunch, took a few photos of monastery and started moving again.

The second part of the trail was relatively steeper but this time the uphill seemed less challenging. The reason might be, we became more accustomed to the trail and the gradient. And most importantly no more line of horses was there to disturb us. Above all every now and then we were rewarded by a glimpse of the monastery, more closer we reached more astonishing the view was.

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“There it is…..Incredible”

Finally, we reached the vantage viewpoint from where Taktsang monastery looks most beautiful. I was pressing shutter repeatedly till I got a decent photo of the monastery. Until my wife reminded me that we did not reach the monastery yet and we must keep moving before it gets closed.

“Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment”

– Buddha

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“Stairs… stairs and stairs”

From this point, there were 800 more stairs to reach the monastery. First, we went down around 600 stairs and then crossed a small bridge. This bridge was beside a 200 ft tall waterfall which drops into a sacred pool. Then we climbed more steps up. We could see the gate of the monastery now. We were really catching our breath but we were happy that we made it.  

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“Checked, set and enter”

At last, we reached the Monastery. We were at the entrance. I took one last photo before we had to deposit our bags, camera, mobile phones, shoes and walking sticks. We cleared the security after showing our photo ID and entry tickets.

Then there were few more steps to go up and at the main door we were greeted by a young monk. He led us through all the temples and enlighten us about stories of Guru Rinpoche and the monastery.

We stayed for 30 minutes inside the temple. We were the last group to visit the temple on that day. It was almost 4 p.m. We came out of the monastery. and collected our belongings from the locker at the security check area. Then we started our journey back.

“Mission accomplished”

It took little above 2 hours to get down to the base with non-stop walking except two photo breaks in for 10-15 minutes each.

When we came down to the parking lot it was almost dark…. it was 6:30 in my watch. Two local kids were there who took those walking sticks from us and ran away.

“Let’s celebrate…..”

Our driver was waiting in the parking lot. He drove us back to the town. We were exhausted but that day we deserved a celebration. So we told our driver to drop us in front of a cafe instead of going straight to the hotel. We celebrated with pastries and coffee. Then walked back to our hotel.

We finally struck out one entry from our bucket list…….. Hike to Taktsang a.k.a Tiger’s Nest Monastery.

The Temple Complex  

The complex has white buildings with golden roofs. Paro Taktsang Monastery consists of four main temples. All buildings are interconnected by staircases with steps carved into the rock. Almost every single building of the monastery complex has a balcony with a breathtaking view of the surrounding Paro valley.    

The main shrine of the monastery – the prayer wheel is located in the courtyard of the temple. Every morning at 4 a.m. it is being rotated by the head monk to mark the beginning of a new day.   

The interior design of the temple impressed us with its luxurious beauty: gold-plated dome and flickering lights that are illuminating golden idols. In the hall of Thousand Buddhas, which is carved into the rock, a large statue of a tiger is located. The tiger is respected as the symbol of Paro Taktsang because of the legend, according to which the location of the Monastery was chosen by the tigress – Yeshe Tsogyal.   

“Love is a gift of one’s inner most soul to another so both can be whole”

– Buddha

There are eight caves in the monastery; four of them are comparatively easy to access. The cave where Padmasambhava is believed to have entered first, on the back of the tiger, is known as “Tholu Phuk” cave and the one where he meditated is known as the “Pel Phuk”.

Monks of the monastery are supposed to live and meditate in these caves for 3 years.

Essentials for hike to Taktsang

First thing you should take care for your hike to Taktsang, is your Hiking shoes. You must not injure yourself in this hike. And remember downhill is much more difficult than uphill. Reasons being two – you are more prone to ankle sprain or knee twist while going down and you will be in a hurry also, as your visit to monastery is accomplished and you want to go back to town as quickly possible. So a pair of proper hiking shoes is always going to be protective.

Next is Backpack. Keep your backpack light. An extra jacket, a scarf or a handkerchief and a woollen cap particularly in winter could be useful. Keep an umbrella with you. A bottle of water preferably a litre, some dry fruits or snacks (biscuits or energy bars) should be inside your backpack. Carry a sunscreen lotion with you

Carry one or two analgesic tablets or a painkiller spray and few adhesive dressings with you. There is no need to carry your complete first aid box with you.

Do not forget to keep a copy of your ID card/ Passport/ entry permit in your backpack. You better put your entry pass inside also to be more secure.

A Walking Stick will be really helpful. It will ease out strain over your knees. You can rent one at the base as we did.

You should avoid wearing shorts. There is no specific dress code but just like other monasteries in Bhutan, you should be in respectable clothing while entering. A cap and a sun-glass will be very helpful but remember those things need to be removed before entering the monastery.

And finally carry your Mobile Phone, Camera and Tripod. You will capture your best memories of Bhutan in this hike. So take your time until you are satisfied with your best frame of Bhutan.

Tips to remember

• This hike to Taktsang is an experience, not a target. Decide as per your limits and experience. Go as far as your health permits. Remember you have to descend that same distance you climb. Do not force your parents or children to hike with you. Be wise and clear your mind before you start.
• Do not hike to Taktsang Monastery in your first few days in Bhutan. If possible do a small hike before this hike. Our hike to Cheri Monastery helped us to complete this one without a hitch.
• I will suggest not to plan it on your last day also like us. Please do the hike on your penultimate day in Bhutan because in case you have to postpone it due to bad weather you will have a buffer day in hand.
• Always get your entry tickets before you start the hike and keep it inside your backpack. I have seen people who decided against it and then regretted later.  Yes, you can hike to Taktsang without ticket till the gate of the monastery. But security will allow you to enter inside only against that ticket. Do not forget to carry your photo ID as well.
• Check your gears night before the day of the hike. Charge your mobiles and camera batteries.
• Try to wear loose clothes but avoid wearing shorts. Keep a light jacket preferably with a zipper. Wear your hiking shoes. You should wear socks, you will need it after removing your shoes at the entry. Keep your sunscreen with you. Keep 1-2 painkiller tablets or a spray in case you suffer a sprain.
• Do not start very early if you like to take photos. Because light will be over Taktsang Monastery after 1 pm. So you will have to wait till then for a good photo.
• Always take a walking stick with you. You can rent one near the car parking.
• Keep some snacks with you and a bottle of water. Food is available in the cafeteria but it is relatively costly (but considering the fact that staffs have to carry everything from the valley and cook there – the price seems quite logical).
• Hike smart and regulate your speed. Remember this is not a competition.
• Respect local culture. Listen to your guide while inside the temple. Enjoy the view of the valley from temple.
• Lastly take your time and make the best memories of Bhutan. But do not litter around and hike responsibly.

“It is better to conquer yourself than to win a thousand battles. Then the victory is yours. It cannot be taken from you.”

– Buddha

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