The Darjeeling Sikkim tour package for 5 days is a private-car loop from Bagdogra airport: two nights in Darjeeling, two in Gangtok, one car and chauffeur throughout. The car is billed per kilometre on a 250 km-a-day minimum, so this short hill route is charged on 1,250 km; hotels are quoted separately by our travel desk.
What five days buys you in the eastern Himalaya
Five days is the shortest trip that does justice to both hill capitals of the region. Darjeeling gives you the colonial ridge town, the tea estates and the dawn view of Kanchenjunga from Tiger Hill. Gangtok, the capital of Sikkim, a hundred-odd kilometres away across the Teesta valley, gives you Buddhist monasteries, a tidy pedestrian high street and the option of a high-altitude lake. Splitting the nights two and two means you never unpack for a single night, and the only long drives are the airport runs at either end and the one transfer in the middle.
What you give up is west Sikkim and Kalimpong. Pelling, with its close-up face of Kanchenjunga and the Pemayangtse monastery, and Kalimpong's flower nurseries sit on the 7-day Darjeeling and Sikkim package, which adds two more hill towns without making any single day much longer. If you have only a long weekend, a shorter Darjeeling-only stay can be put together by the travel desk; if you have well over a week, ask about adding Lachung and the Yumthang valley in north Sikkim, covered in our Lachung road guide.
This length suits first-time visitors, couples, and families with children old enough to cope with a 03:45 start for Tiger Hill. It is less suited to anyone who dislikes winding roads: every day here involves some hairpins, and there is no flat alternative.
Sikkim permits, explained without the jargon
Paperwork is the part of this trip people most often get wrong, so here is the short version.
- Indian citizens need no permit to enter Sikkim or to stay in Gangtok. Carry a government photo ID (Aadhaar, passport, voter ID or driving licence), because hotels and checkposts ask for it.
- Foreign passport holders need a Restricted Area Permit to enter Sikkim at all. It can be issued at the Rangpo checkpost, which is exactly where this itinerary crosses the state line, or applied for in advance through the online system linked from Sikkim Tourism. Carry your passport, Indian visa and spare passport photos.
- Tsomgo lake is a protected area for everyone, Indian or foreign. Permits are processed through a registered Gangtok tour operator, usually the day before, and need copies of ID and photographs. The excursion is commonly made in a Sikkim-registered vehicle that holds the required pass; the travel desk tells you in writing whether your own car can go up or whether a local vehicle is arranged, and quotes any extra.
- Nathu La, the pass beyond Tsomgo, is open to Indian nationals only and is not part of this package.
Permit rules in border states change with little notice, and roads above Gangtok close after heavy snow or landslides. Your chauffeur will not attempt a restricted road without a valid pass, and if Tsomgo is shut on the day, Rumtek and the town sights fill the time comfortably.
Two hill roads, and why hours matter more than kilometres
The whole package covers roughly 400 km of driving, which sounds modest until you remember average speeds in the hills. Out of Bagdogra the route crosses Siliguri, then climbs through Sukna, Tindharia and Kurseong on the Hill Cart Road, sharing the carriageway with the little trains of the Darjeeling Himalayan Railway. Some drivers prefer the Rohini road for the first climb because it is wider; either way, allow three hours, and more at weekends.
The middle transfer drops from about 2,000 m in Darjeeling to the Teesta riverbed, runs beside the water and then climbs to Gangtok on NH10. That highway is the lifeline of Sikkim and also the stretch most prone to slides in the monsoon; outside June to September, delays are usually roadworks rather than closures. Plan on four to five hours door to door, with a tea stop at Teesta Bazaar.
Your chauffeur plans around three things: the early start for Tiger Hill, the midday congestion in Gangtok's one-way system, and your flight on the last day. For the drive down, count on four and a half to five hours from Gangtok to Bagdogra, and build in margin in peak season, when the Sevoke road and Siliguri can crawl. Motion sickness is common on these gradients; eat lightly before the transfer days and take the front seat if you are prone to it.
Fuel is never the problem, with pumps at Siliguri, Kurseong and Gangtok, but parking in Darjeeling is. Several hotels around Chowrasta sit on lanes cars cannot enter, so the car drops you at the nearest point and a porter carries the bags up. That is normal on the ridge, not a hotel failing.
Choosing a car for mountain roads
Every class in the fleet can do this route; the question is comfort and luggage. A compact sedan at Rs 72/km suits two travellers with soft bags. An Ertiga at Rs 84/km adds a third row for a family of four and more boot space. The Innova Crysta at Rs 114/km is the hill favourite for four to six adults: higher seating, better suspension over broken patches and room for suitcases without a roof carrier. For eight to sixteen, a Tempo Traveller at Rs 156/km fits, though the hairpins above Darjeeling make it slower. See the full fleet, or read about the Innova Crysta on rent and the Ertiga on rent.
The fare table on this page applies each per-km rate to the billable distance. Because the actual driving, about 400 km, is well under the 250 km per day minimum across five days, the bill uses 1,250 km. On top come a driver night allowance of Rs 3,000 per night, tolls, state entry fees and parking at actual cost, and 5% GST. Every car is within four model years.
Where to base yourself in Darjeeling and Gangtok
In Darjeeling, the most useful area is the ridge between Chowrasta, the Mall and Gandhi Road: walkable to the viewpoints, the cafés and the toy-train station. Heritage hotels from the British era and mid-range guesthouses cluster here; quieter homestays sit out at Ghum or on the Lebong side, a short drive down. A tea-estate bungalow outside town is a splurge worth one night if the budget allows, though it adds driving time on the Tiger Hill morning.
In Gangtok, staying within walking distance of MG Marg keeps evenings easy, since cars are not allowed on the promenade. Higher up the ridge roads you get better views and quieter nights but lean more on the car. Families often prefer a larger hotel with its own restaurant, because dining choices thin out after about 21:00.
Our travel desk can hold rooms in either category and put the car, the hotels and the Tsomgo excursion on one written quote.
Weather, views and the busy weeks
- October and November: the clearest skies of the year and the best odds of an unbroken Kanchenjunga at sunrise. Also the busiest, because the Durga Puja and Diwali holidays send much of Bengal to the hills; book rooms early.
- December to February: cold and often clear. Tsomgo may be frozen, and the road above Gangtok can close after snowfall. Pack thermals and gloves.
- March to May: rhododendrons and magnolias flower and days are pleasant, but afternoon haze often hides the peaks. School holidays in May fill hotels again.
- June to September: monsoon. Landslides can shut NH10 for hours or days; the tea gardens are at their greenest, but mountain views are rare. We still run the package, with slack built into flight plans.
Losar, the Tibetan new year around February, brings masked monastery dances to Gangtok and Rumtek, and is a good reason to travel in the cold months.
How to book, pay and cancel
Book the car for the full five days through the online booker; pay by card or UPI and a GST invoice is issued. For hotels, the Tsomgo permit and the toy-train ride, ask the travel desk for an all-inclusive written quote. Cancellation is free until 72 hours before pickup, then 10% within 72 hours, 50% within 48 hours and 100% within 24 hours or for a no-show; the full wording is on the cancellation policy page. Flying via Kolkata? The tour packages from Kolkata page lists other circuits that suit the city, and our Kolkata taxi service handles the airport run at home. For background reading, see Darjeeling by road and Gangtok by road.
