How to Reach Paro From Kerala

Kerala – the God’s Own Country, is undoubtedly one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world! Attracting millions of customers every year, this scenic Indian state also serves as an ideal passage to reach many other tourist destinations; both within and away from the country. Bhutan is one among them!

For those, who yearns to visit the beautiful Paro Valley in Bhutan from the Indian state of Kerala, but are not sure about how to reach Paro from Kerala, here is how they can complete this wonderful journey. Let’s find out how one can visit Paro by air, train, and road while starting from God’s Own Country – Kerala.

How to Reach Paro from Kerala by Air

As a state, Kerala lies on the higher side of air traffic. The state offers flights to numerous cities and countries across the globe. However, since the Paro International Airport in Paro do not have any direct flight connectivity with this state, visitors won’t be able to fly directly from Kerala to Paro in Bhutan.

However, if you are smitten by how to reach Paro from Kerala by air, you can complete this fun-filled journey via other Indian airports that have both direct and connecting flights to Paro. The Indira Gandhi International Airport in Delhi, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport in Kolkata, Bodhgaya Airport in Gaya, Bagdogra Airport in Siliguri (West Bengal), and Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in Guwahati (Assam) has regular flights operated by Druk Air and Bhutan Airlines on a daily basis.

From Surat, you can fly to any of these airports, and later take a flight from there to reach Paro International Airport to reach the scenic Paro Valley in Bhutan.

In addition to all these Indian airports, there are several other international destinations that have regular flight connectivity with Paro International Airport. International visitors who do not wish to travel to India for an air journey to Paro, they can take flights from Singapore, Bangkok, Dhaka, and Kathmandu to reach Paro with Druk Air.

How to Reach Paro from Kerala by Train

Bhutan do not have any railway connectivity with other countries. Thus, if you are thinking about how to reach Paro from Kerala by train, you won’t be able to book any trains between these two destinations. However, you always have the options to reach either West Bengal or Assam which are two of the nearest Indian states to Bhutan. From these two states, you can embark on road journeys to finally reach Paro in Bhutan.

If you plan to take a train ride to West Bengal, you should book train tickets till Kolkata, New Jalpaiguri, Siliguri, Hasimara, or New Alipurduar railway stations in West Bengal. If you wish to extend your train journey to Assam, you should book train tickets to either Bongaigaon Railway Junction or Guwahati Railway Station.

From any of the railway stations in West Bengal, you can hit the road to enter Bhutan through Phuentsholing. Here onwards, you should embark on another road journey to reach Paro. On the other hand, if travelling from Assam, you can take a road trip to either Gelephu or Samdrup Jongkhar in Bhutan, and take another road trip to reach Paro.

Note: Details of the road trips to reach Paro will be discussed on the next section.

These are the easily available train to reach West Bengal or Assam from Kerala:

Guwahati Express (12507)

Shalimar Express (16323)

Shalimar Express (22641)

Gurudev Express (12659)

Guwahati Express (12515)

Dibrugarh Vivek Express (15905)

Dibrugarh Express (06336)

How to Reach Paro from Kerala by Road

If you are planning for a road journey from Kerala to reach Paro in Bhutan, you should plan the trip via Kolkata. Upon reaching Kolkata, you can choose among direct bus journey or another leg of road trip to Bhutan from the city.

You can follow any of these two routes to complete an enthralling road trip between Kerala-Kolkata:

Route 01: Kerala – Bangalore – Tirupathi – Nellore – Vijaywada – Vishakapatnam – Bhubaneshwar – Kolkata

Route 02: Kerala – Bangalore – Kurnool – Hyderabad – Vijaywada – Vishakapatnam – Bhubaneshwar – Kolkata

Upon reaching Kolkata, you can take a direct bus to Thimphu from the Esplanade Bus Stand. This bus journey would take you around 18 hours to reach Bhutan’s capital city Thimphu. From Thimphu, you can again board the local buses or hire local cabs to drive another 50km (1 hour) to reach Paro.

If not the bus journey, you can also plan for another road trip from Kolkata via Jaigaon to reach Phuentsholing town of Bhutan; 705km (17 hours’ drive). Jaigaon shares its boundaries with Phuentsholing, and is an ideal point to acquire Bhutanese Visa. Once you have your visa with you, you can start with the last leg of your road trip along the Thimphu-Phuentsholing Highway, and after driving around 143km (4 hours), you will be in the gorgeous Paro Valley in Bhutan.

In case, you have already opted for a fight or train journey to Assam, you can embark on a road journey to Paro either from Bongaigaon or Guwahati. From Guwahati, you can make your Bhutan entry through Samdrup Jongkhar point, which is nearly 150km (3 hours’ drive) away from Guwahati. From this point, you can drive along the N-27 to reach Paro after traversing 459km (10 hours’ drive).

From Bongaigaon, your Bhutan entry would be through the Gelephu point, which is only 50km from Bongaigaon. On reaching the entry point, you should continue driving through the Wangdue-Tsirang Highway for another 250km (8 hours’ drive) to reach Paro in Bhutan.