Bhutan's old capital — the fortress where Bhutan's kings were crowned, the world's most photogenic dzong, and rice paddies and sub-tropical warmth in the Himalayan foothills
Punakha is the second-most important town in Bhutan — the former capital (until 1955), winter residence of the Je Khenpo (spiritual head of Bhutanese Buddhism), and home of the Punakha Dzong, widely considered the most beautiful fortress monastery in the Himalayas, built at the confluence of two rivers (the Mo Chhu and Pho Chhu) in 1637. The dzong's annual Punakha Tshechu festival (February/March) features masked dances and the unfurling of a 20-metre thangka (religious painting) that is only displayed at dawn. The valley is warmer and lower than most of Bhutan (1,200m altitude), producing su…
Punakha Dzong was built in 1637 by the unifier of Bhutan, Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal — the Tibetan Buddhist lama who codified Bhutanese law and governance and is revered as the founder of the modern Bhutanese state. The dzong served as Bhutan's capital for centuries and the site where every Bhutanese king has been crowned. It has been damaged by fires, earthquakes, and floods multiple times and rebuilt each time; the current structure is largely a reconstruction of the 17th-century original. The Punakha Valley was selected as the site for the royal wedding of King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuc…