As the morning sores in, with the warm rays of the sun knocking through the window, wake up with a cup of fresh tea and proceed towards the breakfast table with a beutiful valley view. You will be served with a hearty breakfast at the hotel. Post breakfast, the Sikkim itinerary now takes you out for a tour of some famous and must-visit tourist attractions in Gangtok.
Tsomgo Lake (12,400ft) - also known as Changu Lake in local dilects, is an oval-shaped glacial lake that is only 38 km from Gangtok Town. Tsongmo lake is almost about more than 1Km in length anf the road winds through its curve giving a full view of it. The name Tsomgo is made of two words in Bhutia Language 'Tso' means 'lake' and 'Mgo' means 'head' in a short 'source of the lake'. This high altitude lake is surrounded by snow-capped, steep mountains and remains frozen during wintertime. As summer beings to step-in, the glacier melts, and the lake gets its origin. The locals consider the lake to be sacred, and it reflects different colors with the change in seasons. A newly constrcted Ropeway ride accross the lake makes it a major attraction.
New Baba Harbhajan Singh Mandir - The Baba Mandir was built, in the Memorial of Baba Harbhajan Singh the Late Sepoy who died while performing national duties in 1968. It is believed that the spirit of the Harbhajan Singh still protects the soldiers in that area and cures the ailing ones. Nathula is approximatly 12Km from Tsomgo Lake, and 52Km from Gangtok city. Baba Harbhajan served as a part of the border patrol force, and in the year 1968, while escorting a mule column, he fell on a fast-flowing stream and got carried away by the powerful water current. Soldiers found his remains after 3 days and cremated with full military honor along with a shrine on his Samadhi built as per Baba's wish, which he expressed through his friend post-death. The original bunker of Baba Harbhajan Singh is located further up 15KM near the Gnathang valley, which is the Old Baba Mandir, but, because of its difficult terrain, tourists can't reach there so they build a New Mandir for easy access. On Sundays, a 'Langar' runs at the temple, which provides free meals to the visitors.
Nathula Pass - A major mountain pass in the Himalayas which connects India and Tibet. Located around 52 km from Gangtok at an altitude of Fourteen Thousand ft. The road to Nathula is the highest motorable road, passes through the Tsomgo lake, and requires an special entry permit to visit. Yes Tourism India can get ypou the permits for nathula but request for Nathula Permit has to be given 42Hrs in advance. The view from this international border is breathtaking and allows the tourist to get a glimpse of China on the other side. You can click some photographs at some selected places only.
Note: Request for an inclusion of Nathula Pass to make your Sikkim tour more exciting (charges extra). Foreigners can go upto Tsongmo lake only after necessary PAP permits.