Thimphu Tsechu and Domchoe
Duration: 12 days (including programs apart from the Tsechu alone)
Entry and Exit: Paro
Held at Tendrelthang Grounds inside the massive Tashichhodzong
Highlights: Culture, people, dress, ornaments, food, mask dances, songs, photography.
Summary
A cultural bonanza, where the spiritual and the secular blend, this Festival is attended by hundreds of people from Thimphu and the neighboring districts, dressed in their best attires. Read More
Paro Festival Tour
Duration: 8 days
Exit and Entry: Paro
Venue: Paro Dzong Courtyard.
Summary
Paro Tshechu is one of the biggest festivals in the Bhutanese calendar and was started by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, and Penlop Rigzin Nyingpo during the consecration of Paro Dzong in 1644. The festival is observed in three parts – the pre-festival rituals on the first day, ceremonies on the second day inside the Paro Dzong, and the main festival at the festival ground for three days. Bhutanese from all walks of life in their finery come to attend the five-day festival. Read More
Punakha Tsechu
Duration: 6 days
Entry and Exit: Paro
Venue: Punakha
Summary:
One of the biggest festivals in the Bhutanese calendar, the Punakha Tshechu is held every year, sometime in February or March. The most important display during the five-day festival is the re-enactment of the Tibetan invasion of Bhutan in 1639. In this theatrical display, a mock throwing of a relic to the Mochu River is dramatized along with a group performance by more than a hundred people dressed as warriors, popularly known as “Pazaps”. Read More
Tashigang Tsechu
Duration: 16 days
Entry: Guwahati, Assam, India
Exit: Paro, Bhutan
Venue: Trashigang Dzong
Summary
Held within the confines of Bhutan’s largest district in Trashigang Dzong (Fortress), the three day tsechu is observed during the 7th to 11th days of the tenth month of the Bhutanese calendar (December). Read More
Jambay Lhakhang Festival
Venue: Jampa Lhakhang (Bumthang) grounds
Total Duration: 10 days
Other places: Western and Central Bhutan.
Entry : Paro
Exit: Paro
Summary
The Naked Dance of Jampa Lhakhang Drub is one of the most unique amongst scared mask dances held around the country. At midnight, 16 naked men perform the sacred dance, which has its origin in the 8th century. Read More
Chorten Kora Tsechu
Venue: Chorten Kora
Total Duration: 15 days
Other places: Western, Central and Eastern Bhutan.
Entry: Paro
Exit: Guwahati, Assam, India
Summary
A festival held in reverence to the ultimate sacrifice made by a princess during the construction of the chorten (stupa), this festival involves circumambulation. Read More
