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Dates: 4th – 15th September 2025
Price: £3,795 places available
Single Room Supplement: £395
Deposit: £400 per person
Price Includes: All meals, accommodation with private facilities, ground transport, services of guides, tourist taxes $100 per day, holiday report
Not Included: Flights, travel insurance, drinks & any other personal items
Leaders: Sonam Dorji
Group Size: Minimum of 2 and a maximum of 4 guests plus 1 leader
Grade: Gentle paced walks in a variety of terrains. Guests must be prepared for some days which include long drives due to the nature of the locations and terrain needed to cover to find our target areas and species
Holiday Highlights
- Unique butterfly tour and a quest for a mythical species in it’s very own Kingdom of Bhutan – the Bhutan Glory!
- Many other beautiful butterfly species to see, including the amazing Yellow Gorgon, Common Blue Apollo & maybe even Kaiser-i-Hind
- Led by a Bhutanese butterfly expert, who has been studying the butterfly and other fauna of Bhutan for years
- Awarded Best in Travel 2023 by Lonely Planet – Bhutan is a Himalayan paradise often referred to as the real life Shangri-la!
- Experience a pristine landscape, where snow-capped peaks rise above primeval forests and beautiful traditional villages!
- Other great wildlife to see alongside the butterflies, such as the endangered Golden Langur and Rufous-necked hornbill.
- Small group to ensure the very best wildlife observation and photographic opportunities are available
An exciting and exclusive butterfly tour and a quest for the mythical Bhutan Glory!
Situated in the Eastern Himalayas, on the path of the ancient Silk Road, the Kingdom of Bhutan is a delicious enigma for many travellers – a peaceful, Buddist democracy renowned for pioneering the concept of gross national happiness, Bhutan is also famous amongst naturalists in the know for its incredible biodiversity – this sparsely populated and little-visited country remains largely unspoilt, a rare gem in these changing days of the 21st century. Our top butterfly target is the iconic, dramatic, and stunningly beautiful Bhutan Glory Bhutanitis lidderdalii! But there is a remarkable range of other species to look for, including a host of emperors, gorgons, satyrs and the glorious Common Blue Apollo and even the chance of the dazzling Kaiser-i-Hind! We’ll also be keeping track of the birds, mammals and flora we encounter during our dozen days exploring the elevations and hidden corners of what is some of the most visually stunning countryside in region. Bhutan is a mountainous country and it takes time to move between the various locations. The best time for butterflying tends to be between mid-morning and mid-afternoon (approximately 10am – 2pm), so we will aim to manage our longer drives to avoid these times and spend the time in the field. At this time of year some cool and wet weather is to be expected, but somewhat against logical thinking, the Bhutan Glory flies well in these conditions and we should see them at their prime on this tour – perfect for photo opportunities! Your guide for this adventure will be Sonam Dorji. He graduated from Sherubtse college in eastern Bhutan with a B.Sc. in Physical science. He worked as a communication officer in an Environmental NGO in Bhutan for several years. He began butterflying in 2010 and since then has been engaging actively in butterfly and wildlife promotion in Bhutan. He has already made a significant contribution towards the knowledge of butterfly fauna in Bhutan, including the recording of several species for the first time in the country. During the recent pandemic, he discovered the elusive Kaiser I hind in Bhutan, plus a location where Bhutan Glory (Bhutanitis lidderdalii) and Ludlow’s Bhutan Glory (Bhutanitis ludlowi) fly together, something which had not previously been observed elsewhere. We’ll expect to see mammals the likes of the beautiful and globally endangered Golden Langur and, with a national bird list approaching 800 species, we’ll confidently expect to see some special species – including members of the dramatic hornbill family amongst others. The habitats we’ll visit will vary from lowland forest to alpine passes, ensuring that we maximise our exposure to as many butterflies, birds and mammals as possible. We’d be delighted for you to join us on our pioneering tour to beautiful Bhutan!
Day 1 (Sept 4): Arrival and meet at Paro airport. Overnight in Paro (2200 m)
Day 2 (Sept 5) after breakfast we will drive to Chelela Pass (4000 m). We will take a packed lunch with us and spend the day looking for high altitude butterflies.
Day 3 (Sept 6) A visit to the world-famous Tiger’s Nest Monastery.
Day 4 (Sept 7): Today we will head to Punakha. On the way we will do some butterflying in the Thinleygang area (2000 m).
Day 5 (Sept 8) From Punakha we will drive to Jigme Dorji National Park (1500m).
Day 6 (Sept 9) From Punakha (2000 m) we will leave in the morning for a second day at Jigme Dorji National Park.
Day 7 (Sept 10) In the morning, we will drive to Pele la Pass at an altitude of 3500m. Here we will look for Common Blue Apollo (Parnassius hardwickei) and other high-altitude species. In the afternoon we’ll drive to Trongsa (2000 m).
Day 8 (Sept 11): Today we head to Mongar. On the way we will spend some time to look for Apollo at Thrumshhingla pass.
Day 9 (Sept 12): Mongar, to explore for butterflies, including kaiser-i-Hind.
Day I0 and 11 (Sept 13,14): Drive go Tashigang. The next 2 days here will be spent looking for Bhutan Glory, Kaiser-i-Hind and other exciting butterflies.
Day 12 (Sept 15): Drive to Gauhati for the end of the tour.
Sonam Dorji graduated from Sherubtse college in eastern Bhutan with a B.Sc. in Physical science. He worked as a communication officer in an Environmental NGO in Bhutan for several years. He began butterflying in 2010 and since then has been engaging actively in butterfly and wildlife promotion in Bhutan.
He has already made a significant contribution towards the knowledge of butterfly fauna in Bhutan, including the recording of several species for the first time in the country.
During the recent pandemic, he undertook a lot of field work. He discovered the elusive Kaiser-i-Hind (Teinopalpus imperialis) in Bhutan, plus a location where Bhutan Glory (Bhutanitis lidderdalii) and Ludlow’s Bhutan Glory (Bhutanitis ludlowi) fly together, something which had not previously been observed elsewhere.
Since then, he has been documenting the life cycle of B. ludlowi, as well as continuing to record different species in close consultation with Greenwings, his chosen partner for ecotourism.
Sonam has boundless energy and enthusiasm for the nature of Bhutan and is committed to helping conserve it. He believes strongly in involving the local people in order to achieve that and has been instrumental in setting up a number of educational activities with local children in the area where the two Glories were found. He has also been able to demonstrate the potential benefits of ecotourism, by using funds raised from his work to invest in local facilities and encouragement of the production of various nature-related arts and crafts for local people to generate an extra income from.
Greenwings plans to help Sonam develop his work, partly by using some of the proceeds generated from our Bhutan tours. He has also been awarded a grant from The Swallowtail & Birdwing Trust.
Reports to follow
