Tourist Places Visit in Lachung, North Sikkim, Sikkim, India

Tourist Places Visit in Lachung, North Sikkim, Sikkim, India

Lachung town is located in the state of Sikkim on the Indian continent in the North Sikkim district. It lies in the Northeast part of Sikkim state. The geographical coordinates puts the place at 27.61667⁰N and 88.65⁰E. Lachung is 2700 meters above sea level. During the summer season the temperature ranges from 10⁰C to 20⁰C and in winter season the temperature ranges from -2⁰C to 10⁰C.

October to May is the most preferable period to visit Lachung.

History of Lachung

The people residing in Lachung, during ancient, were known as Lepcha People. The 9^th century saw the arrival of Buddhism religion in the region. Many Tibetans migrated to Sikkim in the 11^th century. In 13^th century one of the prince of Kham located in the Eastern Tibet migrated to Sikkim and settled down in the Chumbi Valley in Sikkim. Many books were written during this era mentioning the events that took place. In the year 1642, Phuntsog Namgyal, who was one of the descendants of the prince who migrated from Kham, was made the King of the entire Sikkim state. Between the years 1670 to 1788, Sikkim was invaded by Bhutan and Nepal forcing the King to go to exile in Tibet. In 1793 the exiled King returned back to Sikkim after a signing a pact with Nepal.

People & Culture in Lachung

People of Lachung are known as Lachungpas. Nepali, Lepcha, Bhutia, Hindi and English are the languages spoken by the people in Lachung, with Lepcha being the local language.

Cattle rearing are the occupation of the people in Lachung.

Food and Shopping Lachung

Restaurants in Lachung have a wide range of cuisines for hungry customers. The staple food in this region in Lachung is rice, potato and pork.

There are plenty of shops selling handicraft items, beautiful canvas paintings, Tibetan carpets and rugs and many more wonderful artifacts. There are also shops selling hand woven items and garments. Names of some well known shopping centers in Lachung are listed below

Old Market
Lall Market
New Market at Mahatma Gandhi Marg

Tourist Places in and around Lachung

There are few places with amazing landscapes of interest in and around Lanchen. Some of them are listed below:

The Lachung Monastery

This monastery provides a panoramic view of the surrounding hills covered by dense green forest.

Lachung River

This river is formed by the meeting of two rivers flowing downstream. Rafting is one of the adventure sports conducted by some tourism agency.

Mount Katao

Mount Katao is the most cherished place among tourist interest in sports activity that involves snow such as skiing, snowboarding etc.

Yumthang Valley near Lachung

Also known as ‘Valley of Flowers’, this valley is famous for twenty one different species of Rhododendron plants.

Shingba Rhododendron Sanctuary

Covering an area of 43 km², this sanctuary is home to a few endangered animals such as the snow leopard, tiger-civet etc.

Means of Commutation to Lachung

Lachung is well connected to various places in India via roadways, railways and airways.

The distance of Lachung, via road, from cities within the state of Sikkim and Neighboring cities are mentioned below

Lachen is located at a distance of 20 km
Mangan is located at a distance of 32 km
Darjeeling is located at a distance of 168 km
Kolkata is located at a distance of 759 km
Patna is located at a distance of 477 km
Aizawl is located at a distance of 664 km

Inter city transportation is facilitated by bus and taxis

The closest railway station to Lachen along with their distance are mentioned below

Jalpaiguri railway station in West Bengal which is located at a distance of 187 km
Siliguri railway station is located at a distance of 239 km
Darjeeling railway station is located at a distance of 97 km

Bagdogra Airport in Siliguri connects Lachung to the rest of the places in India via airways. The airport is located at a distance of 134km. There are regular flights from New Delhi, Kolkata and Guwahati to Sikkim.

Accommodation Options at Lachung

Lachung has many interesting tourist destinations. Hence to cater to the lodging facilities of tourist in Lachung there are three star hotels and resorts offering outstanding services with rooms such as luxury and deluxe priced at 2500/- onwards. There are hotels in Lachung where one can enjoy their stay at Rs. 450/- per day.