Rhododendron Festival

When it happens

The festival is set on Gregorian dates in spring, timed to the rhododendron bloom rather than to a lunar month. It is held in April, when the park’s rhododendron species are in full bloom.

The days have moved in search of the bloom. The festival used to run over three days, then moved to two days earlier in April. Because the days follow the bloom rather than an almanac, they usually shift from year to year.

Where it happens

The park lies below Dochula on the Thimphu–Punakha highway, just over the pass from Thimphu.

It is one of Bhutan’s first botanical parks, rich in biodiversity, with walking and nature trails and a lake. Bhutan has 46 recorded rhododendron species, and the park holds 37 of them. Of those, 29 are native to the park and the rest were planted from other regions. Rhododendron kesangiae is among the blooms highlighted.

Rhododendron Week at Merak, in Trashigang, is a separate festival.

History

The festival began in 2012 to attract tourists and local visitors. One stated purpose is to earn income for local communities, to offset the limits the park’s designation puts on taking resources from it.

Communities of Chang, Kawang and Dagala in Thimphu, together with Toeb in Punakha, run the festival, and Toeb leads the organising on the community side. Green Bhutan Corporation Limited now manages the park.

What happens

The core attraction is a garden walk and exhibition through the blooming rhododendron collection. This is a secular eco-tourism and community festival, not a cycle of monastic mask dances, and it has no masked religious dances.

Cultural and entertainment performances run through the festival, and visitors are welcome to join the dancing. There are also local food and drink stalls and arts and handicraft sales. Other activities include nature-trail walks, boating on the park lake, horse riding and traditional Bhutanese games.

Being there

Because the park is on the Thimphu–Punakha highway, a visit is easy to combine with sightseeing in Punakha. Besides the trails and the lakeside, the park later added a 280-metre zip line.

Access has improved, with a footpath for people with disabilities, a modified boating deck and wheelchair-accessible pathways.