Darjeeling is a town in West
Bengal, eastern part of India.
Darjeeling is a
tourist destination for Indians as well as visitors from abroad. Darjeeling is also famous
because of tea industry.
Darjeeling
is connected by rail from New Jalpaiguri. The Darjeeling Himalayan Railway runs
on narrow gauge and has been declared a World
Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1999. Darjeeling
is well connected by road with New Jalpaiguri, Siliguri, Bagdogra, Gangtok and Kathmandu. Nearest airport is Bagdogra.
There are literally hundreds of hotels and lodgings in Darjeeling of all types
and categories. Some are great heritage and premium properties while some are
mid priced and budget hotels. But the best of the lot are often run by the
owners themselves and have traditionally been family run businesses.
There are many places you can get your food. But it depends
on so many factors like quality of food, the location of the restaurant,
upscale or budget eatery, ambience, cleanliness… there are actually so many
things that you wish to have in place before you go for one.
While dining in Darjeeling
you must keep in mind that the hill town goes off to sleep by 8:30 pm. Most
restaurants, particularly the smaller ones go out of stock by 7:30 pm during
high season and stop taking further orders.
Tourist attractions
Himalayan
Mountaineering Institute and Darjeeling
Zoo
The zoo is located in the same premises where HMI is and
therefore should be covered at the same time. The unique feature of this zoo is, it houses animals of high altitude and mostly from upper Himalayas.
You can see some rare animals here like Red Pandas, Snow Leopards, Tibetan Wolf
and lot more.
Located at the highest point in the Darjeeling area, Tiger
Hill is best known for the dazzling sunrise view of the Kanchenjunga and the
snow covered peaks of the entire eastern Himalayan range. On a clear day you
can even see the mount Everest from here. Tiger Hill is located 11 KM from Darjeeling Town and takes 40 minutes to reach by
car.
Batasia Loop
Located 5 KM from Darjeeling town and just below Ghoom,
Batasia Loop as the name suggest, is a loop or a spiral of a narrow gauge
railway track where the Toy train negotiates a sudden sharp descent from Ghoom.
It's a wonderful viewing place with manicured gardens, streams and falls, from
where you can get a wide range view of the Darjeeling's
landscape, Kanchenjunga and the other Eastern Himalayan
Peaks.
Darjeeling Ropeway
This is one way you can be part of special diverse offerings
from the nature and all in one place. From the ropeway of Darjeeling which is
also known as the Rangeet Valley Passenger Cable Car, you can have mind blowing
view of the valley below, see the spread of lush tea gardens, dense forests,
mountain streams in their full flow, waterfalls, and the awesome snow peaks at
the background. Get off at a lower station and enjoy the tea estates, walk
through the tea gardens, or just relax and enjoy the view around. It's hard to
find all these together in one place.
Darjeeling Mall
and Chowrasta
The Chowrasta or the Mall is the town center in Darjeeling. This is a
lovely little flat area, a public square where four roads meet. This public
place is where you would like to lounge, bake in the sun, sit and
watch the wonderful views of the mountain range and see many locals and
tourists hanging around. One side of the mall is lined with pine trees through
which you get wonderful mountain vistas, the other side is lined with lovely
boutique shops of different kinds. All around the mall, you have benches to
sit and relax.
Rock Garden and Maya Park
These two are scenic parks in wonderful settings located a
few miles away from the Darjeeling
town. Rock garden is about 10km and Ganga Maya is another 3 km from there. Rock
Garden is all about terraced gardens at different levels that have been cut
through the rocks having a waterfalls with nice seating arrangements. Ganga
Maya is more spread out and has a beautiful stream flowing through it on a
valley, has flower gardens, fountains and more.
Japenese Temple and Peace Pagoda
About 10 minutes by car, you will reach a wonderful area
that is symbolic of peace and tranquility. Located in the Jalapahar hill, the Japanese Temple is built in traditional Japanese
style where you can join the prayers and feel the spiritual peace amongst
humming and chants. Close to it is the Peace Pagoda where there are four large
avatars of Lord Buddha. The view from the top is magnificent. You can see the
snow peak range from here including the Kanchenjunga.
Bengal Natural
History Museum
What started as a modest effort in 1903 to display
butterflies and birds of the Darjeeling district, has grown to house a large
collections of mammals, birds, nests with eggs, reptiles, fishes and even insects of wide varieties. The displays are actually
specimens of real creatures that had been captured, stuffed and preserved. The
Bengal Natural History Museum can be reached by few minutes walk from the
Chowrasta Mall.
Observatory Hill and Mahakal Temple
Rising from behind the Mall, Observatory Hill is an ideal
place to get a 360 degree view of
Darjeeling
and the peaks surrounding it. The
Mahakal
Temple, the central
temple of Darjeeling
of all faiths and is located on top of the hill where the original Dorjeling
Buddhist Monastery once stood.
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