Six Senses Bhutan, Thimphu

Of the Six Senses lodges we stayed at on our recent trip to Bhutan, the Paro lodge was our favorite. The general manager was a Bhutanese man who was seemingly everywhere--one moment supervising the gardners, the next moment greeting guests returning from excursions or chatting with guests while helping clear dishes at meals. His hands-on approach, energy and guest focus were impressive. We also enjoyed the food at the Paro lodge the most. The chef was a woman who came to our table and talked to us after several meals, and when we told her how much we liked one of her dishes she handwrote the recipe for us to take home. Her homemade pastas and desserts were exceptional! Our meal orders were guided by a knowledgeable server, Mendrel, who also came to our room with breakfast before our early morning hike to Tiger's Nest. The difference between a good hotel and a great hotel is the service, and the service at Six Senses Paro was some of the best we've encountered on our trips.

We just returned from our trip to Bhutan and I keep trying to find the words to explain and express how incredible, beautiful, and awe-inspiring it was for our family. The first thing you should know is that this is absolutely the place you need to take your kids. Please feel free to DM me and ask any questions - I had a lot of anxiety about whether they were too young, if it would be full of hikes and temples and not much else, and how they would find it overall - so I’m here to help if you’re considering it and am happy to answer any questions. I would say it’s probably best for kids over 5, though. They’ll need to be able to walk without a stroller and not be napping, but otherwise it’s definitely a place my kids found entirely beautiful, fun, and exciting. DO IT. But: as with everything with kids, you need to do it right and I’m convinced that the best possible option for families in Bhutan is Six Senses. I’ve been looking into this trip for years and years plus love researching travel for fun, so I know all the options, have looked at all the rooms and offers at all the different properties and I promise you will not do better than Six Senses. There are so many things to know about Bhutan, but here are a few: it’s insanely clean and free of trash and even billboards (they’re not allowed), it was a beautiful break from all that stuff you see normally. Everyone, I mean everyone, was incredibly friendly and welcoming. We learned the word for hello and that worked to get waves and smiles everywhere. Our kids especially were constantly being welcomed, since kids aren’t as common it was novel for people to see them - but not in an overt and uncomfortable way, just super friendly. The nature is astounding. The country has such a focus on sustainability topped with the Six Senses approach, so we found ourselves constantly astounded. As for Six Senses they think of everything and then more. There were countless times our guide would pull something out of the van that was the best idea ever, for example: walking sticks. It’s something we wouldn’t have packed but came in handy so many times on hikes and were just really nice to have. Everything was at our pace and what we were comfortable with doing, including and especially at the beginning when we were still adjusting to the time zone. Also, super useful to know that laundry is included. This sounds like a minor detail but let me tell you it is a wonder. To be traveling with a suitcase full of clean clothes is miraculous and part way through the trip I pointed out that we would have either had all dirty clothes at that point or would have had to deal with spending our precious vacation time on laundry. It’s another thing that just makes everything so wonderful. The food: I could write paragraphs about how much we loved everything. What’s great about Six Senses is there is SO much variety on the menu, including local specialties, and then you can also always order anything you can think of o