Royal Heritage Tour
The tour will utilize the historic route the royalty used to travel from East to West. Palaces, Dzong, and other places along the old route in relation to the history of the monarchy will be improved and opened.
o Conduct visits in conjunction to existing travel itineraries to various Dzongkhag
o Driving tour to each Dzongkhag starting from Thimphu/Paro and exit from Samdrup-Jongkhar.
| SL.no |
Dzongkhag |
Site Description |
| 1 |
Punakha |
Coronation Room |
| 2 |
Trongsa |
1. Kuenga Rabten Palace
2. Endo Choling Palace
3. Thruepang Palace
4. Samcholing Palace
5. Trongsa Dzong and Ta Dzong
|
| 3 |
Bumthang |
1. Wangdi Choling Palace
2. Domkhar Tashi Choling Palace
3. Tang Ugyen Choling
|
| 4 |
Mongar |
Zhongkhar Dzong |
| 5 |
Lhuntse |
1. Dungkhar Ngatsang
2. Dungkhar Choeje birth place
|
Brief Description about the Palaces:
Endo Chholing Palace (1st king’s palace-privately owned by Ashi Kelzang). The palace was built by the first king’s grand father-in-law Trongsa Penlop Ugyen Phuntsho (father of Jigme Namgyel’s wife) in 1830’s or 40’s. It was used as his palace. Presently the palace is used as a residence by the great grand daughter of Penlop Ugyen Phuntsho. It also houses about 150 monks who are sponsored by them. The palace has an old architecture as some of the old dzong .The interior also has some old designs and the palace looks like a dzong.
The palace is not open to the tourist right now but there are plans to open it to visitors. (Source: Dasho Karma Galey)
After the birth of the heir in the same year, 1928, the King built himself a fine new palace in Mangdelung called Kuenga Rabten.
He inherited or acquired the place at Tekha where his parental uncle Dunkhar Gyletshen had settled after losing his office of Trongsa Penlop. With its warmer, more temperate climate the valley of Mangdelung provided a welcome relief from the harsh winters of Bumthang. Indeed, the king was eventually build himself a no less than three more residences at various points in this long, well cultivated valley, at Samdrup Choling, Endochholing and Beling. He chose to spend his life moving between these great mansions, back and forth according to the seasons and following the general pattern of transhumance common to the whole region. Here he could breed the fine horses that were his abiding passion. It was the homeland of all his relatives, he understood all the variants of the local language, and he barely moved beyond. Wherever he happened to be residing, there lay the centre of his Government.
Thruepang palace:
It was built by the 2nd king Jigme Wangchuk as his Palace probably in 1930’s.The palace was occupied by the senior queen Ashi Phuntso Chhoden. It was the birthplace of the third king and he traveled between the palaces of Kuenga Rabten and Wangdichholing and Truepang palaces during his childhood. It was renovated recently and is used as a palace for the fifth king.
Samchholing palace
Built by the second king, it was later handed over to Ashi Pem Dechen, mother of HRH Namgyal Wangchuk. It has some beautiful architecture. It is about 15 minutes walk from the road head south of Kuenga Rabten village.
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CZ Associates