Sikkim — The Himalayas, Made Easy

Sikkim sits tucked between Nepal, Tibet and Bhutan in India's far northeast, and offers many of the same Himalayan rewards as Ladakh or Kashmir — without the same demands on your trip. Gangtok, the capital, sits at a comfortable 1,650 metres, framed by views of Kanchenjunga, the world's third-highest peak, and centred around MG Marg, a pedestrian-only promenade of cafés and shops that gives the city a genuinely relaxed, walkable centre rare among Indian hill towns. India's first fully organic state, Sikkim also consistently ranks among the country's cleanest and best-organised — something visitors notice almost immediately.

Beyond Gangtok, Tsomgo Lake — a glacial lake at roughly 12,000 feet, often paired with a visit to Nathu La Pass on the Indo-China border — sits alongside a pair of striking modern monuments: the 130-foot seated Buddha at Tathagata Tsal near Ravangla, and Samdruptse's 135-foot statue of Guru Padmasambhava near Namchi, reached via a long ceremonial staircase lined with prayer wheels. For travellers with extra time and the right permits, Gurudongmar Lake in the far north — one of the highest lakes in the world, ringed by prayer flags and snow-capped peaks — adds a genuinely remote extension few visitors make it to. Given its compact size, Sikkim is realistically covered in 4 to 6 days, and pairs naturally with Darjeeling given the shared Bagdogra gateway — together forming one of the more rewarding Northeast India circuits for travellers who want Himalayan scenery without Ladakh's altitude-driven planning constraints.