Top Rated Things to Do in Sikkim

Sikkim is one of the most sought location among travellers seeking a relaxing holiday amidst beautiful nature, far from the city. It’s a petite but lovely town of India, often known as “Switzerland of the East”.

Captivating view of its snow caped mountains, monasteries, lakes, wildlife attracts lots of tourist from all over the world. Other than its captivating natural beauty, there are lots of top-rated things to do in Sikkim such as-

Surrounded by majestic mountains of Himalaya, dreamland in North-East India, Sikkim brings a brilliant opportunity to test the strength of your legs. With lots of trekking options for everyone, there are few treks that need minimum precaution and an amateur can try it. Also, you will find every trekking experience is different from the other.

Goecha La Trek is a must if you are an adventure junkie travelling to Sikkim. It’s a 10 days trek, from Kanchenjunga to Mount Pandim, from Three Sisters to gigantic Everest. You will be welcomed by the spell-binding view of Kanchenjunga, rising high with all its majestic glory while walking through the breath-taking Tshoka Rhododendron forests, gigantic Dzongri and Thangsing meadows.

The actual trek starts from 5700 ft, Yuksom moving through the deep green forest of Sachen, charming Tshoka Monastery, lush green land of Dzongri you will reach Lamuney, highest point of the trek at 13,693 ft. While on your way, do enjoy the sparkling blue water of Samiti Lake, Goecha La Pass and the charm of amazing peaks of Kanchenjunga.

Teesta, lifeline of Sikkim not only beautifies the natural panorama of the state but also attracts travellers to try different adventure sports like rafting. The great cascades of this fiercely flowing river can be tamed by experienced and crazy rafters only.

That’s why two rafting options are available here, one is for swimmers and other is for people who don’t know swimming and an expert rafter will always be present to guide you. You can enjoy the beautiful site of paddy field, deep green forests, small villages and scattered white sandy beaches where you can enjoy the camping.

One of the most exciting and must do adventure in Sikkim that can be enjoyed by a traveller without any age bar. If you want to experience the full ride, then start from Deorali, the first station and complete it till the end enjoying spectacular views of the lovely Gangtok and the surrounding mountains from the highest point, you will get the bird eye view of the city.

It’s almost 3 km ride covered in 20 minutes, it has three terminal stations – Deorali, Tashiling and Nam Nang, you can start from any of the station, and the ride is available everyday between 8 am until 4:30 pm.

If you are an animal or photography lover, you can’t miss this experience. Wildlife sanctuaries of Sikkim are few of the finest in the country with a scenic mixture of plains, valleys, lakes, glaciers, snow-capped mountains, ancient forests etc. Khangchendzonga and Kewzing are two best national parks in Sikkim for Bird Watching and enjoying alpine ecosystems.

Khangchendzonga is home to a wide range of animals like Red Panda, snow leopard, musk deer, Himalayan tahr. Kewzing on the other hand is a perfect location for bird watching with over 200 species of birds including the Satyr Tragopan, Scaly Laughingthrush, Fire-tailed Myzornis, Sultan Tit, Scarlet Finch, Puff-throated Babbler, Cutia and Streaked Spiderhunter.

Riding a Yak is an exciting experience, especially for kids. Yaks are adorable and friendly wild ox found in North-east India, Nepal, and Tibetan regions, so you can enjoy these rides in few places only and when you are in Sikkim why to miss the chance.

You will find the Yaks attractively decorated with colourful woollens, strings, bells near lovely Tsomgo Lake and you can hire them for a ride on the outskirts of half frozen lake.

Striking blue lakes bordered by snow clad mountains are the speciality of Sikkim, home to few of the best picturesque lakes such as Gurudongmar and Tsomgo, which are the favourite abode for all the travellers and landscape photographers of the country.

Fly like a bird in the blue sky and let the moment captured in the camera along with the thrill of jumping off a cliff and flying over snowy mountains. The perfect thing to do in Sikkim for adventure seekers.

Witnessing the surreal beauty of mesmerizing land from the top, at an altitude of 2,200 meters. For the best paragliding experience visit Sikkim during Annual Sikkim Paragliding Festival which is held in Gangtok, in month of October and November under the clear sky and perfect temperature.

The true culture heritage of Sikkim can be seen through these monasteries, there are around 200 monasteries. They are renowned spiritual and architectural attractions of the town.

Some of the most eminent monasteries are Rumtek monastery the largest monastery in the state situated in Gangtok, Enchey monastery (Gangtok), Pemayangtse Gompa, situated near Pelling and Tashiding monastery (West Sikkim).

Shopping is an essence of any trip and when you are in Sikkim you can’t leave the town without buying some of the famous handicrafts such as Chinese Feng Shui items, New Year lamps, idols of Laughing Buddha, Dragons, Tibetan cups, hand woven blankets, traditional dresses, carpets, wooden, bamboo items and many more.

They are perfect gifts or souvenirs that you can buy for your friends and family. Shopping in Sikkim is not only about buying things its about meeting the locals, getting close to the culture and admiring the efforts put by locals in making handicraft items.

Sikkim promises a blissful holiday with enthralling adventures that stays in your mind forever. The list of top-rated things to do in Sikkim is never-ending such as, Helicopter Ride, Hang Gliding, Mountain Biking, cycling, mountaineering along with experiencing their lifestyle, festivals, culture and the list goes on.

Depending upon your calibre and preferences you can decide and select what you want to do, but don’t miss something that’s solely belongs to Sikkim and its beauty.