lhuntse dzong
Eastern Bhutan

Lhuentse

Ancestral valley of the royal house and home of the kingdom's most precious weaving.

Altitude 1,450 m Best season October to April Worth 1 to 2 nights Getting there Three hours north of Mongar

The most treasured textile in Bhutan — the kishuthara, a silk brocade so fine a single kira can take a year — is woven in one village in Lhuentse, by women working at back strap looms in the winter light.

This is the ancestral district of the royal family, whose line traces to Dungkar village here, and it remains one of the least visited corners of the kingdom. The dzong stands on a spur above the Kuri Chhu; the great Guru Rinpoche statue at Takila watches over the valley from a hillside of prayer flags.

Come in the weaving months, sit beside the looms in Khoma, and understand why these cloths are heirlooms before they are ever worn.

While You Are Here

Things worth your time

  1. 01 Khoma village looms Watch kishuthara take shape thread by thread — and buy, if you buy, directly from the weaver.
  2. 02 Lhuentse Dzong On its river spur, nearly always yours alone.
  3. 03 The Guru of Takila One of the largest Guru Rinpoche statues in the world, gazing down the valley that guards the royal line.
  4. 04 Dungkar village The ancestral home of the Wangchuck dynasty, a quiet place of some weight.

Lhuentse Tshechu each winter fills the dzong courtyard high above the Kuri Chhu. Read about Lhuentse Tshechu

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