How to Reach Paro From Pune

Pune in Maharashtra is a popular metropolis among the travel enthusiasts. Steeped with rich history, dotted with fascinating hills and mountains, adorned with scenic meadows and landscapes, this city has been a primal centre of learning and was once the political hub of India. Fondly called the ‘Queen of Deccan’ and the ‘Oxford of the East’, Pune is one such city that usher life into the souls of wanderlusts! Be it weekend getaways, long vacations, backpacking options, family holidays, or corporate outings, this city has no dearth of options for its admirers.

Also, as the city has an excellent communication system with the rest of the country, it also attracts a large chunk of global tourist every year. Be it air, train or roadways, the city boasts of its well-laid connectivity. And having said all these, let’s explore how to reach Paro from Pune by air, train and road. If you too are having Bhutan trip in your mind, keep scrolling till the last to find out how you can reach the gorgeous Paro Valley from Pune.

How to Reach Paro from Pune by Air

Paro International Airport in Paro is the sole international airport in Bhutan. Due to the crucial topography of this airport, only a few of the experienced pilots are allowed to fly form or land at this airport. Even in India, not all the airports offer direct flights to this airport; Pune International Airport also don’t have any flights to Paro.

However, if you are planning for a Bhutan trip and thinking much about how to reach Paro from Pune by air, you can fly to any of the below mentioned airports in India, and book a flight to Paro from there.

Indira Gandhi International Airport (Delhi)

Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport (Kolkata)

Bodhgaya Airport (Gaya)

Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport (Guwahati)

Bagdogra Airport (Siliguri, West Bengal)

All these airports have both direct and connecting (via Nepal) flights to Paro International Airport in Bhutan. These flights are operated by Druk Air and Bhutan Airlines, and are available on a daily basis.

In addition to all the Indian airports, there are several other international airports that offers direct flights to Paro International Airport. Singapore, Kathmandu in Nepal, Bangkok in Thailand, and Dhaka in Bangladesh are some of the international destinations that offers direct Druk Air flights to reach Paro.

How to Reach Paro from Pune by Train

If you are looking for direct train journeys from Pune to Paro, you may have to think again as Bhutan doesn’t have any rail connectivity with any foreign destinations. However, this shouldn’t stop you from planning your Paro trip as you can always reach its nearest Indian destinations by train, and finally make your entry to Bhutan by roadways.

To begin with your trip, you can book any of the trains departing from Pune and heading towards the Indian states of West Bengal or Assam. If you book tickets till West Bengal, you should deboard the train either at Kolkata, New Jalpaiguri, Siliguri Town, New Alipurduar, or Hasimara railway station. From all these stations, you can hire a private cab or other mode of transportation to reach Jaigaon, a small town on the Indo-Bhutan border. From this town, you can make your Bhutan entry through Phuentsholing town of Bhutan.

Once in Phuentsholing, you can board the regular Bhutanese buses or hire a local cab to reach Paro by traversing along the Thimphu-Phuentsholing Highway. This journey is around 143km and should take almost 4 hours to complete.

To note here, if you are deboarding the train directly at Kolkata, you can book direct buses plying from the city to Thimphu in Bhutan. These buses are run by the Royal Bhutanese Government, and are available at the Esplanade Bus Stand in Kolkata. These buses take around 18 hours to reach Thimphu. Following your arrival in Bhutan’s capital city, you can hire private taxis or local buses to reach Paro, which is around 50km (1.5 hours’ drive) away from Thimphu.

In case, you plan to book a train ride from Pune to Assam, you have to get down either at Bongaigaon Railway Station or at Guwahati Railway Station. From either of these railway stations, you can drive or hire local modes of transportation to reach Paro by road (this will be discussed in the below segment).

Available trains to reach West Bengal and Assam from Pune:

Azad Hind Express (12129)

Howrah Duronto (12221)

Kamakhya Pune Special Train (02512)

Karmabhoomi Express (22511)

How to Reach Paro from Pune by Road

If you are longing for how to reach Paro form Pune by road, you should first plan a roadways journey from Pune to Kolkata. Since Kolkata is one of the closest tourist hubs to Bhutan, this city offers a plenitude of options to the tourists to enter into the Bhutanese land. You can plan a Pune-Kolkata road trip by following this route: Pune – Nagpur – Nagpur – Sambalpur – Kolkata.

Once you are in Kolkata, you can either take a direct bus to Thimphu from Esplanade Bus Stand, or plan another road trip to Jaigaon in West Bengal to make your entry to Phuentsholing town in Bhutan. Be it from Thimphu or Phuentsholing, you can easily reach Paro as you can avail plenty of transportation options from both these Bhutanese destinations.

In case, you are already in the Indian state of Assam and are planning for a road trip to Paro, you can select either Bongaigaon or Guwahati as your starting point. From Bongaigaon, you should drive around 50km (1 hours) to make your Bhutan entry through the Gelephu. Here onwards, you should follow the Wangdue-Tsirang Highway to reach Paro; distance would be around 250km (8 hours’ drive).

From Guwahati, you should drive almost 150km (3 hours) to step into the Land of Thunder Dragons through Samdrup Jongkhar entry point. From this point, you should drive another 459km (10 hours) to finally reach Paro Valley.