Part Victorian holiday resort, part major tea-growing centre, DARJEELING (from Dorje Ling, "the place of the thunderbolt") straddles a ridge 2200m up in the Himalayas and almost 600km north of Kolkata.Darjeeling - the name is derived from the Tibetian word 'Dorje' which means the precious stone or ecclesiastical sceptre, which is emblematic of the thunderbolt of Indra, and 'ling' - a place, hence the land of the thunderbolt. The sceptre of Indra is believed to have fallen at a place where now stands the Observatory Hill. The town remains as popular as ever with holiday-makers from tha plains, and promenades such as the Mall and the Chowrasta still burst with life. in North Bengal, is about 650 kms from Kolkata. The Tibetan buddhist monastery, the Ghoom Monastery with a 15 - foot high statue of Maitreya Buddha, is the most famous monastery of the town. The greatest appeal for visitors has to be its stupendous muntain vistas - with Kanchenjunga, the third-highest mountain in the world dominating the northern horizon. Darjeeling soon became the most popular of all hill resorts, especially after the Hill Cart Road was built in 1839 to link it with Siliguri.

Tiger Hill
One really unmissable part of the Darjeeling experience is the early-morning mass exodus to Tiger Hill, to watch the sunrise. This incredible viewpoint (2585m) provides an unparalleled 360 degree Himalayan panorama, with the steamy plains bordering Bangladesh to the south, the Singalila Range with Everest beyond to the west, Kanchenjunga and Sikkim to the north, and the Bhutan and Assam Himalayas trailing into the distance to the northeast.

Kanchenjunga Hill
At 8598m, this is the world's third highest mountain. From Darjeeling, the best uninterrupted views of it are from Bhan Bhakta Sarani. The name Kanchenjunga is derived from the Tibetan Khang (snow), chen (big), dzong (fortress or treasury) nga (five) - big five peaked snow fortress, or big five peaked treasury of the snow. 

Ghoom Monasteries
More correctly known as Yogachoeling Gompa, this is probably the most famous monastery in Darjeeling and is about 8 km south of town, just below Hill Cart road and the train station near Ghoom. It enshrines an image of the Maitreya Buddha. Foreigners are allowed to enter the shrine and take photographs. As Ghoom is frequently swathed in mists, and the monastery is old and dark, it is often affectionately called Gloom monastery. 

Observatory Hill
Situated above the Windamere  Hotel, this viewpoint is sacred to both Hindus and Buddhists. There is a Kali shrine here and the multicoloured prayer flags double as trapezes for he monkeys. Watch out for them as they can be aggressive.

Air: The nearest airport is at Bagdogra, 90 km away from Darjeeling. Bagdogra is connected to important cities of the country by domestic airlines.

Rail: Gwalior is on the Central Railway's main Delhi-Bombay and Delhi-Madras lines. Among other major trains, the Taj and Shatabdi Expresses connect Gwalior with Delhi and Agra.

Road: New Jalpaiguri /Siliguri is the rail head for all trains, except the toy train running to Darjeeling. Siliguri is connected to Kolkata and other parts of the country by train.

Best season to visit Darjeeling is between March to May and September to November. Bring light woolen clothing during summer  and heavy woolens in winter.