Bhutan or Nepal or neither in late July
 

Hi everyone. I'm trying to plan another trip to Asia and was pondering visiting either Nepal (probably just Kathmandu and surroundings) or Bhutan (probably just Paro and surroundings). Unfortunately, this is the monsoon season. Has anyone been to either one of these places during this period and can tell me what to expect weather-wise? Does it rain all the time or just at night? Other than the weather does anybody have any opinions of one versus the other? Thanks all.

Hi CCC-

Sorry I can't help with your Himalaya dilemma, but did you do a trip report from your last trip? I seem to recall you were going/went to Bali. Would love to see your report, if I missed.

Good luck with your plans,
Cruisinred

I was in Nepal in December, so can't help weather-wise (I assume you've consulted www.weatherbase.com). I found Nepal fascinating and very much enjoyed the trip, but it also had the most polluted (air, tap water) that I've seen anywhere. Nepal has been mostly deforested.

I have been doing research on Bhutan, as it's one of the places we are considering for November. You may already know that you have to contract with a local tour agency for your trip, which will include a driver/guide, your hotels and meals and costs $200-240 per day pp double occupancy. Unless, of course you choose to stay at the Aman or Uma Paro which costs the price of the rooms ($300-500 per night last I saw) on top of the other charges. Bhutan is mostly forested, and the culture has been carefully preserved by the strict limitation on tourists and the government programs to conserve the culture. I would expect it to be a vastly different experience from Nepal.

Hi Cruisinred,

You didn't miss my report. I had every intention of posting one, but a little procrastination turned into more procrastination and then... It's tough with four kids! Our last big trip with the children was to Burma and Bali, both of which were awesome. Since you mentioned Bali, I will tell you that we rented a fabulous house on the outskirts of Ubud which served as our base. Hopefully your posting served as a kick in the rear to get me to post my report. If not, I'm always happy to answer any questions.

Hello CCC,Greetings from Nepal..

The time you have choosed is normally okay? But compare with dry season it is not so much suitable. I am really sorry for any advertising agains this forum but as I am working in tourism I may suggest you that if you like to surroundings around kathmandu(Nepal) and surrounding around Paro(Bhutan) then it won't be worst,you can enjoy with beautiful nature. And about the weather in Kathmandu will be 33C.D in the afternoon and bhutan will be little less hot but as my experience in tourism and also been arrange the tour I can suggest you that you may visit both country. Pls let us know for more details..
Cheers

Dear ccc,
There are 2 advantages going to Bhutan during monsoon.
1.It is cheaper (165US$/Person/Night) excluding the surcharges against 200US$ during the season.
2.Virtually no tourist around which means you can get to use best rooms.

Monsoon cannot be measured.There are days of sun and a day or 2 without rain or even for couple of days it may not rain.But the chances are very high that it will.Usually mornings are warm and clear with rains during late afternoons and evenings.But again there are times when it rains nonstop for days.It is a gambling where your winning chances are 30%.Know that the major problems you will have are that roads can be blocked with lanslides (but this is rare in and around Paro).Another is that the flights in and out of paro are ocasionally cancelled during monsoon.So be prepared.

Enjoy your travelling.
Cheers!

The main downside to traveling to this region this time of year are the ground leeches(if you do any trekking outside the main towns). This doesn't sound like a huge concern, but when you trek across a nice grassy pasture and find you have 50 leeches climbing up each of your legs, it is quite disconcerting to say the least. My experience with this happened to me in Sikkim (between Bhutan and Nepal), so the terrain is very similar, but the locale is more remote. It was late May, so things could be better by July. Anyone care to comment?