Dochula Pass
A mountain pass on the road from Thimphu to Punakha, crowned by 108 memorial chortens built by the eldest Queen Mother, Ashi Dorji Wangmo Wangchuck. The Druk Wangyal Lhakhang stands beside them, and on clear days the view runs to the snow peaks of the Himalaya.
- Where
- Thimphu, Thimphu, Bhutan
- Grade
- Local gem
- Worth
- 10 points collected on site
- Coordinates
- 27.4900, 89.7503
Get the Dochula Pass stamp
Open LOQAH when you are at Dochula Pass. It checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp is yours: confirmed on site in gold and struck with the date. It goes into your Thimphu volume with your photos and a note.
Near Dochula Pass
Dobji Dzong 8.8 km
A dzong on a ridge above the highway from Thimphu to Haa, a few kilometres south of Chuzom, where the Paro and Thimphu rivers meet. It now houses a monastic school of about 35 monks and appeared in the 2003 film Travellers and Magicians.
Simtokha Dzong 9.8 km
A small dzong built in 1628 by Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyal, the unifier of Bhutan, and the first of its kind in the country. It stands on a ridge just south of Thimphu and now houses an institute for the study of the Dzongkha language.
Pangri Zampa Monastery 11 km
A Buddhist monastery just north of Thimphu that serves as a college of Bhutanese astrology. Monks here study the traditional calculations used across the kingdom to read the calendar and the stars.
Royal Textile Academy 11 km
An academy in Thimphu devoted to Bhutanese weaving, founded under the patronage of Queen Mother Ashi Sangay Choden Wangchuck. It trains weavers in the country's traditional craft and shows the textiles that sit at the heart of Bhutanese culture.
Tashichho Dzong 11 km
A great whitewashed fortress and monastery on the west bank of the Wang Chu at the northern edge of Thimphu. It was long the seat of the Druk Desi, head of the civil government, an office joined to the kingship since 1907; old British records called it Tassisudon.
Buddha Dordenma 12 km
A gilded bronze Shakyamuni Buddha 54 metres tall, seated on a ridge above the southern approach to Thimphu among the ruins of an old palace. Inside are 125,000 smaller gilded bronze Buddhas, and the work was completed in 2015.
National Library of Bhutan 12 km
Bhutan's national library and archives, founded in 1967 to preserve the country's cultural and religious heritage. Its main building in Kawajangtsa, above the Royal Thimphu Golf Course, is built in the style of a traditional temple and holds old Buddhist texts.
Dechen Phodrang Monastery 12 km
A Buddhist monastery at the northern end of Thimphu whose name means Palace of Great Bliss. It sits above the city at the head of the valley road and today serves as a monastic school for young monks.
More hidden gems in Thimphu
Questions
Where is Dochula Pass?
Dochula Pass is in Thimphu, Thimphu, Bhutan. The nearest other LOQAH stamps are Dobji Dzong (8.8 km), Simtokha Dzong (9.8 km), Pangri Zampa Monastery (11 km).
How do I get the Dochula Pass stamp?
Open LOQAH when you are at Dochula Pass and get its stamp. The app checks where you are once, at that moment, and the stamp goes into your Thimphu volume, confirmed on site, with the date.
I have been to Dochula Pass before. Can I still have the stamp?
Yes. Add it from Earlier trips in your Thimphu volume, with the date if you know it, or import your Google Timeline and LOQAH matches the places you were.
Collect your first stamp.
LOQAH is free on iPhone and Android, in India and 20 more countries, with more countries on the way. Stand at a place, collect its stamp, and keep every trip in a passport that grows.