Disha's Seven-Day Bhutan Solo Trip with Thrillophilia

Thrillophilia Verified Booking
PNR: AUKPK0216E
Traveller: Disha Karia, Mumbai
Trip Duration: 7 Days / 6 Nights
Package: Bhutan Unveiled: A 7-Day Quest for Wonder

There is a particular kind of Bhutan trip review that reads differently from the rest. There are some trips people take for a destination, and then there are some they take for themselves. For Disha Karia from Mumbai, this Bhutan trip in March 2026 was definitely the second kind.

It was her first solo trip without her husband or children. The first time she had picked a destination just because she wanted to go there. Bhutan felt like the right place for it. Safe, peaceful, slower than most places, and quite the choice for someone travelling alone for the first time.

She came across Thrillophilia via social media as she was comparing different travel portals. And right after her first call with Anshuman Sharma from the Bhutan team, she felt reassured enough to go ahead with the booking. In her experience, everything from helping with flight tickets to making sure Jain meals were arranged throughout the trip was included from the beginning. Even the driver details and vehicle number were shared a day in advance before departure so that the travellers had clarity.

In her own words, she expressed happily, “The hotels where we stayed were all very good and comfortable. As for food, I had opted for Jain food. Thrillophilia made sure that at every destination, I got my preferred food. They even served me their local dish, Ema Datshi, in jain preparation.”

When she landed, 14 travellers, all from different Indian cities, were already right there for their journey. Who used to be strangers started seeming more familiar to her by the end of the first evening.

Entering Bhutan Through Phuntsholing

The drive from Bagdogra to Phuntsholing was where the group really started bonding. People began introducing themselves during the long coach ride through the foothills. There was a 9-year-old boy in the group, a 65-year-old man, teachers, professionals, solo travellers, and families from different cities.

Phuntsholing introduced them to Bhutan with the Bhutan Gate, colourful monasteries, quieter roads, and a calmer pace to the trip. Disha spent the evening walking around Zangto Pelri Lhakhang and Gumpha Mandir, which, as she stated, was majorly why she had wanted to travel solo in the first place.

Thimphu Was Where Solo Travel Started Feeling Easy

The next morning, the immigration permits were sorted before the group left for Thimphu. The journey itself was scenic, but what stood out more for Disha was how comfortable she felt travelling there.

One of her biggest questions before booking had been simple: Is Bhutan safe for a solo woman traveller? After spending a week there, her answer was immediate: absolutely.

The country felt warm without being overwhelming. The people were very kind, and considering that she went with a group, the journey felt even more comfortable. Their guides, Tashi and Kezang, were attentive throughout the trip without being too intrusive, which made the experience feel relaxed rather than over-managed.

In Thimphu, the group explored Simply Bhutan and Dechen Phodrang Monastery, and later spent time just walking through the city. By then, Bhutan had started feeling familiar instead of foreign to Disha.

Punakha, Prayer Flags, and a Different Side of Bhutan

Day three took the group to Punakha through Dochula Pass, and this was where Bhutan really opened up visually.

The prayer flags, the mountain views, the changing clouds, there were long stretches during the drive where the entire coach just went quiet. Everyone was busy looking outside.

At Chimi Lhakhang, the group shared plenty of laughs over the temple’s famous fertility symbolism, and later at Punakha Dzong, the mood shifted completely again. The monastery sitting at the meeting point of two rivers looked exactly like the kind of place people imagine when they think of Bhutan.

The suspension bridge, the murals, the monks moving quietly through the courtyards, it all felt calm without trying too hard to impress anyone.

The Details That Made the Journey Feel More Comfortable

The next couple of days covered Thimphu sightseeing and the transfer to Paro, but for Disha, some of the smaller moments stayed with her more than the famous landmarks.

The hotels throughout the trip were comfortable, clean, and consistently well-managed. More importantly, her Jain food preferences had been communicated properly everywhere in advance.

One evening, the kitchen even prepared a Jain version of Ema Datshi, Bhutan’s famous chilli and cheese dish, especially without onion or garlic. It may sound like a small thing, but for her, it was one of the moments that made the trip feel genuinely thoughtful.

Tiger’s Nest and the Trek Nobody Forgot

Day five was Tiger’s Nest Monastery, the part everyone had been both excited and nervous about.

The trek is not easy. It takes hours through steep forest trails and mountain paths before finally reaching the monastery built into the cliffside. But what made the day memorable was not just the destination. It was also the group itself that brought magic.

The 9-year-old and the 65-year-old both completed the trek. Whenever someone slowed down, others waited. People shared water, snacks, encouragement, and random conversations during breaks. Somewhere during those seven hours, the group stopped feeling like a tour group entirely.

When Disha finally reached the monastery, she described the feeling perfectly in her review later:

“The happiness I felt within cannot be expressed in words.”

And honestly, everyone around her seemed to feel the same way.

How Thrillophilia Made Disha’s First Solo Trip Feel Easy

What Disha appreciated most afterwards was how easy the entire journey had felt despite it being her first solo trip.

Anshuman had stayed patient through all her questions before departure, while Tashi and Kezang handled everything smoothly on the ground in Bhutan. Permits, transfers, meal coordination, and even the pacing during the trek days moved the way it should without becoming stressful.

There was just a small room allocation issue at one hotel in Thimphu, but the Thrillophilia team resolved it within an hour before it became a bigger problem. Disha later mentioned that what stood out was not that something unexpected happened, but how calmly it was handled.

By the time she returned to Mumbai, Bhutan had become more than just another destination for her. It had turned into proof that she could travel solo, enjoy her own company, and still feel completely comfortable doing it.

And according to her, this was only the beginning.