Small group trip · North East India · 15 days
Sikkim and West Bengal, into the Hidden Land
From£1,790
From the foothills of West Bengal to the hidden valleys of Sikkim, this journey takes you into one of India’s least explored regions. Wake to misty ridgelines under the Himalayas and visit sacred lakes and hot springs.
Go deeper into Upper Dzongu, the protected homeland of the Indigenous Lepcha community. With our local partner specialising in sustainable, community-led tourism, we stay with Lepcha families, hike slowly through villages and terraced fields and meet people keeping centuries-old traditions and knowledge alive.
Spend time in Kolkata, the vibrant, cultural melting pot that is home to diverse Bengali history and cuisine.
Want to keep going? Add on Varanasi, one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, and the Taj Mahal.
Built forUnder 35s
StaysHotels and homestays
PermitsSikkim and Dzongu permits sorted
Over 35, or rather go at your own pace? Try our DIY trip kit and bespoke trip planning built from the same knowledge and contacts we have in the region
Highlights
- A dawn walk through Kolkata’s flower market beneath Howrah Bridge
- A heritage walking tour through diverse historical neighbourhoods of old Kolkata
- Lunch with an Indigenous Oraon community on a working tea estate
- Four nights in community-run homestays in Upper Dzongu, the protected Lepcha heartland
- Tea estate tour and exploration
- Cooking class
Good to know
Why Sikkim?
You might not have heard of it, which is part of its charm. Sikkim is the world’s only fully organic state, recognised by the UN. It banned plastic bags in 1998 and plastic bottles in 2018. Peaceful, relatively untouched and tucked between Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet, it shares their landscapes and spiritual heritage while staying under the radar for foreign travellers because of its remoteness. Indigenous cultures, including the Lepchas, add another layer, making it a place that feels both ancient and alive.
Who are the Lepchas?
The Lepchas are the original guardians of the Eastern Himalayas, an Indigenous community whose worldview is rooted in animism and a deep kinship with nature. Mountains, rivers, forests and even rocks or trees are living beings with spirits, stories and responsibilities, and this shapes everything from how they farm to how they build their homes.
Water sources are protected as sacred and forests are treated as part of the community. Spend time with Lepcha hosts and you’ll see it in everyday life: weaving bamboo and nettle fibre, growing cardamom without disturbing the forest floor, and telling stories that blend ecology with myth. It is sustainability without the buzzword.
This is our most off-the-beaten-path adventure yet, and we’d love for you to be part of it.
Day by day
Route
- KolkataDays 1–2
- KalimpongDay 3
- GangtokDays 4–5
- Upper DzonguDays 6–9
- TemiDay 10
- DarjeelingDay 11
- Overnight trainDay 12
- KolkataDays 13–15
Day 1 · Arrival in Kolkata
Kolkata
Arrive in Kolkata and settle in, with time to sort cash and a SIM. An easy first dinner, then an evening wander around College Street, Kolkata’s book market, and one of the city’s most storied coffee houses.
Day 2 · Flower market and Kolkata’s many communities
Kolkata
An early start at the riverside flower market beneath Howrah Bridge, one of Asia’s largest, while it’s in full swing. Then a guided walking tour through the temples, synagogues, fire temple and old Chinatown left by the Jewish, Chinese, Parsi, Armenian and Buddhist communities who made Kolkata home. A free afternoon, then an introduction to Bengali food for dinner.
Day 3 · A tea estate, then into the hills
Kalimpong
Fly to Bagdogra and spend time with an Indigenous Oraon community on a working tea estate, sharing a home-cooked lunch and hearing about life on the plantations. Then wind up into the Eastern Himalayas to Kalimpong.
Day 4 · Kalimpong crafts, then into Sikkim
Gangtok
A morning in Kalimpong at a family-run handmade paper workshop and a small museum keeping Lepcha traditions alive, your introduction to the culture you’ll meet in Dzongu. After lunch with mountain views, cross the border into Sikkim and arrive in Gangtok.
Day 5 · Gangtok
Gangtok
A free day in Sikkim’s capital: monasteries, viewpoints, the ropeway and the main promenade, MG Marg. Or take a day trip to Tsomgo Lake, a glacial lake at 3,753m.
Day 6 · Into Upper Dzongu
Upper Dzongu
Head north into Upper Dzongu, the protected heartland of the Indigenous Lepcha community, where you’ll stay in community-run homestays for the next four nights.
Days 7–9 · Life in the valley
Upper Dzongu
Forest and village walks, sacred lakes and monasteries, natural hot springs, and time with local weavers, farmers and your hosts. Evenings are spent around the fire with home-cooked food and stories of Mayal Lyang, the Hidden Land. Signal is limited here, so expect a few days off-grid.
Day 10 · A night on Sikkim’s only tea estate
Temi
Leave Dzongu and break the journey with a night at Temi, Sikkim’s only tea estate, set up by the state government rather than a corporation.
Day 11 · Tea gardens and Darjeeling
Darjeeling
Wake to rolling tea gardens, with an optional tea factory tour, then continue to Darjeeling. Afternoon tea at a century-old bakery, evening prayers at the Japanese Temple, the Peace Pagoda and Mall Road.
Day 12 · Toy train and the overnight train
Darjeeling
A last morning in Darjeeling, then ride the UNESCO-listed Darjeeling Himalayan Railway to Ghoom before heading down to Siliguri for the overnight train back to Kolkata.
Day 13 · South Kolkata
Kolkata
Back in Kolkata, this time in our favourite, calmer neighbourhood. A Bengali lunch, then markets, textile shops and local designers in Ballygunge and South Kolkata.
Day 14 · Lakes, chai and quiet temples
Kolkata
A slow day around Rabindra Sarovar lake, a small museum of Durga Puja effigies, saffron chai among locals, and a peaceful neighbourhood temple. A farewell dinner and drinks to end the trip.
Day 15 · Departure day
Kolkata
Fit in some last sightseeing or shopping before your airport transfer. Joining the Varanasi and Taj Mahal add-on? We continue from here.
Optional add-on: Varanasi and Taj Mahal
7 days, 6 nights. £740 when booked with Sikkim and West Bengal, or £820 on its own. New dates launching soon.
Add-on days 1–3 · Sunrise on the Ganges
Varanasi
Arrive in Varanasi, one of the world’s oldest living cities, where spirituality, daily life and centuries of tradition blur together. From April to July, activities run in the early morning and late afternoon to avoid the midday heat. Take a sunrise boat ride on the Ganges, watch the Ganga Aarti ceremony at sunset, and visit the Hanuman Temple, with an optional stroll around Banaras Hindu University. Leave on the evening of add-on day 3 by sleeper train to Agra.
Add-on day 4 · Agra
Agra
Free time on arrival.
Add-on day 5 · Sunrise at the Taj Mahal
Delhi
Sunrise at the Taj Mahal, then on to Delhi after lunch for a final night and goodbye dinner.
Add-on day 6 · Departure day
Delhi
Breakfast and airport transfer included.
No time for the add-on but still want to see the Taj Mahal? Fly from Kolkata to Delhi on day 15, stay the night, and take one of the many Delhi to Agra day trips the next morning.
What’s included
Some travel days mean a lighter packed meal on the go.
Hotels and guesthouses in the cities and hills, four nights in community-run homestays in Upper Dzongu, a night at Temi, and the overnight train.
The flight to Bagdogra, private car through the hills, the Darjeeling toy train, the overnight train and airport transfers.
We arrange the Inner Line Permit for Sikkim and the Protected Area Permit for Upper Dzongu, plus local guides who know the region.
Kolkata walking tour and flower market, the tea estate visit, the paper workshop and Lepcha museum, village walks, hot springs and craft in Dzongu, and the toy train.
An experienced leader on the ground the whole way. Interested in leading future trips? Tell us when you apply.
Optional extras: a day trip to Tsomgo Lake from Gangtok. Not included: flights to and from India, visas, travel insurance, personal expenses, and optional add-ons beyond the group itinerary.
Dates and prices
Private rooms available for an extra cost, enquire after you sign up (at the Dzongu homestays only if there is space). Varanasi and Taj Mahal add-on: £590 with this trip. Can’t make these dates? Apply anyway and we’ll see what we can do, or register interest in future trips.
How joining works
Fill in the short application form so we can get to know you.
We’ll chat so you can ask questions and know exactly what to expect.
When you’re ready we send a link to secure your spot.
The rest is due a month before departure. We’ll send a reminder.
Why travel with OTW
Built for 18 to 35s, never more than 10, so you travel as new friends.
Access built on years of local knowledge and trusted contacts.
We work directly with communities and local organisations.
Mentorship, and the chance to come back as a leader and travel free.
from £1,790
Departures March and November