A Design Lover's 5-Day Spiritual Journey Through Bhutan

Whitewashed farmhouses stitched along the river, hand-painted timber, layered rooflines, and prayer flags moving in the wind all set the aesthetic scene from the moment you land in Paro, before a scenic hour's drive to Thimphu, Bhutan's low-rise, laid-back capital, where locals circle the National Memorial Chorten in slow clockwise loops, prayer beads clicking, in daily worship.

In the afternoon, we took in a trio of sights: the giant gilded Buddha Dordenma and its meditation hall, lined with over 100,000 smaller Buddhas, seated on a hilltop overlooking the Thimphu valley; the Traditional Medicine Institute; and the Pangrizampa School of Astrology, where a monk can prepare a personal astrology reading. Design lovers can swap these for the National Institute for Zorig Chusum, the school of the 13 traditional arts, or the Royal Textile Academy. At dusk, Tashichho Dzong's whitewashed walls turn honey-colored, the perfect prelude to a simple dinner of ema datshi, red rice, and butter tea at MUSK or Dim Sum Basket.

Patchwork fields meet gentle forested slopes in this peaceful central valley, criss-crossed by nature trails and home to the renowned Gangtey Monastery, where morning prayers with monks in the Shedra are a special way to start the day. No wonder it's a haven for the endangered black-necked cranes that migrate here each winter from the Tibetan Plateau.

Hike the Gangtey Nature Trail, the shortest and most beautiful of the walking routes in Bhutan, which weaves through a shady pine forest before emerging into the open for breathtaking views of the Phobjikha Valley.

Known for its quality produce, the low-altitude Punakha Valley is all terraced rice paddies, red chilies, and aubergines drying in the sun on corrugated tin roofs. Two rivers, the Pho Chu and Mo Chu, converge in the valley, while tucked-away temples, such as the infamous Chimi Lhakhang monastery, surrounded by fluttering prayer flags, can only be reached on foot.

Visit the majestic 17th-century Punakha Dzong ("palace of great happiness"), the second-oldest and second-largest in Bhutan, rising at the confluence of the two rivers. Then, retreat to COMO Uma Punakha, a wonderful property perched above a bend in the Mo Chu, where the COMO Shambhala spa's traditional Bhutanese hot stone bath, river stones heated over fire and steeped with local artemisia herbs, is the most restorative way to end the day.

Paro's single street, lined with shops, is the place for picking up the softest yak-wool shawls, Bhutanese whisky, intricate wood carvings, and singing bowls to take home. Light butter lamps at sacred shrines, browse the collection of relics at the National Museum, and rest up ahead of the trip's pinnacle: an early-morning trek up to Bhutan's iconic Taktsang Monastery, known as Tiger's Nest, which clings to a cliff 3,000 feet above the valley floor.

The hike itself is half the reward: a two- to three-hour climb through blue pine forest strung with prayer flags, past spinning water-powered prayer wheels, with the gold-roofed monastery appearing and disappearing through the mist above. Legend has it that Guru Rinpoche flew here on the back of a tigress in the eighth century, meditating in the cave around which the temple complex was later built. Pause at the cafeteria viewpoint for butter tea and the classic photograph, then cross the final ravine, where a waterfall streams down the cliff face. Go early to beat both the crowds and the midday sun.

Start the day at Kyichu Lhakhang, one of the kingdom's oldest temples, built in the seventh century, so the story goes, as one of 108 temples raised in a single night to pin down a demoness. Thirteen centuries of worshippers have worn its wooden floors into soft waves, and the orange tree in the courtyard is said to fruit all year round.

The afternoon is yours to wander Paro's single-street town, where every shopfront is hand-painted and no two are alike. If you're invited into a traditional farmhouse, say yes. Animals on the ground floor, family in the middle, chilies drying in the attic; it's how the valley has lived for centuries. Stay on for a home-cooked dinner around the bukhari stove, or head back into town to Sonam Trophel, a family-run favorite known for its momos and hearty Bhutanese home cooking.