Moments Over Destinations
Small groups. Local guides. The Eastern Himalayas at the pace they deserve.
9
Destinations across the Northeast
4–8
People per group, always
100%
Local guides, born here
Every permit
Handled for you
You wake at 6am...
But instead of rushing with a group of 40, you're sitting quietly with a local family. They're explaining how they've grown tea here for three generations. The mist is still thick. Your phone has no signal.
This is what we mean by moments. Not Instagram checklist items. Not “been there, done that.” Just moments. The kind you don't forget and can't quite explain.
That's what we spend months designing for you.
A morning at Temi Tea Estate, Sikkim
What it actually looks like.
6:00 am
North Sikkim, 14,000 feet
The engine is off. Your guide points to a ridge without saying anything. A herd of yaks moves across it in the early light. The lake below is still in shadow. Nobody else is here.
2:00 pm
Meghalaya, Khasi Hills
No plan for the afternoon. The trail branches. Your guide says he knows a place. Twenty minutes later you are standing above a gorge where a root bridge has been growing for five hundred years. You cross it. The roots flex under your feet.
8:00 pm
Bhutan, Phobjikha Valley
Dinner at the farmhouse. Ema datshi on the table. Wood fire in the corner. Your host's daughter is doing homework at the other end of the room. The cranes came in at dusk. You realise your phone has been off since afternoon.
Why We Built ClearEast Trip
I grew up in the tea gardens near the Bhutan border. I spent my childhood climbing mountains that felt endless, drinking tea with farmers, learning stories that nobody wrote down.
Then I moved to Bangalore. Years of corporate life. Good career. Meaningful work. But somewhere, I lost the thing that mountains had taught me: how to be still.
One trip back home, my mother asked: “Are you happy?” I wasn't. Not really.
I quit my job. Started designing journeys for people like my past self. People who have everything except the one thing they actually need: time to be somewhere. ClearEast Trip is one year old. This is still the only thing I want to do.
“Every person I take to the Northeast comes back a little quieter. That is the only review I care about.”
— Growth & Operations, ClearEast Trip
What Makes Us Different
Three principles guide every journey we design.
4 to 8 people. Always.
You are not sharing your guide with thirty strangers. The group is small enough that the itinerary can flex when something worth staying for happens. And it will.
Guides who live here.
Not trained staff from a city office. People who grew up in these hills, know the families and monasteries by name, and have relationships no booking platform can replicate.
No checklist.
We design journeys around mornings, not monuments. An unplanned two-hour conversation with a tea farmer is worth more than five scheduled sights.
Bhutan: The Happiness Route
6 Days / 5 Nights
₹85,000 – ₹1,10,000 per person
4–8 people
March–May, September–November
Six days moving through Paro, Thimphu, and Punakha, the three valleys that hold most of Bhutan's history and all of its heart. Tiger's Nest, a dzong at golden hour, a farmhouse stay, and enough empty time to actually feel something.
Itinerary
Arrival in Paro
Land at Paro airport, one of the most dramatic arrivals in the world. Settle in, acclimatise, evening walk through the old town.
Tiger's Nest
Early morning start for the hike to Paro Taktsang. We go before the crowds. Three hours up, time at the monastery, three hours down.
Drive to Thimphu
Morning drive to the capital. Visit the weekend market, the National Memorial Chorten, and the dzong at dusk.
Punakha
Drive over the Dochu La pass (3,100m) with views of the Himalayan range on clear days. Afternoon at Punakha Dzong.
Phobjikha Valley
Drive to the glacial Phobjikha valley. Hot stone bath in the afternoon. Walk among the black-necked cranes at dusk.
Departure
Morning at leisure in Paro. A slow breakfast, a final walk, and your flight home carrying something you can't quite name.
What's Included
- ✓Sustainable Development Fee (SDF) included
- ✓All accommodation (heritage guesthouses)
- ✓All meals (traditional Bhutanese cuisine)
- ✓Licensed Bhutanese guide throughout
- ✓All transportation within Bhutan
- ✓Visa processing assistance
- ✓All entry fees and experiences
Our Destinations
Carefully curated places across the Eastern Himalayas
When to go.
The Northeast has distinct travel windows. Each season opens a different set of destinations.
Oct – Nov
Autumn
- Nagaland
- Bhutan
- Sikkim
- Meghalaya
Post-monsoon clarity. Best for mountain views and tribal festivals.
Dec – Feb
Winter
- Kaziranga, Assam
- Dooars Wildlife
- Mizoram
- Arunachal Pradesh
Peak wildlife season. Rhinos, elephants, and one-horned giants at their most visible.
Mar – May
Spring
- North Sikkim (Yumthang)
- Arunachal Pradesh
- Darjeeling
- Bhutan
Rhododendrons cover Yumthang Valley. Gurudongmar Lake clear. First flush Darjeeling tea. Sela Pass open.
Travelling at a different time? Most destinations have a shoulder season worth exploring.
How It Works
Five steps from first question to departure
Reach Out
Send us a WhatsApp message. Tell us where you want to go, when, and who is coming.
We Listen
One conversation covers your timeline, budget, interests, and what kind of travel actually suits you.
We Plan
We work from our curated journeys or build one around your group. Either way, it fits you, not a template.
You Travel
Your local guide meets you at arrival. Every permit, transfer, and experience is handled. You just show up.
You Return
Back to your regular life. But something has shifted. The pace of it feels different. That tends to last.
What Travelers Say
What people remember most
“The rhino was six metres away and didn't care about us at all. That indifference was the most humbling thing I've ever experienced in wildlife.”
Rohan K., Delhi
Assam Journey, January 2024
“We went in November. The Black-necked cranes had just arrived in Phobjikha. Our guide knew where to stand so we weren't in the way. Two hours watching them. No one else around.”
Rahul M., Mumbai
Bhutan Journey, October 2023
“The root bridge trek was the hardest and most beautiful thing I've done. My legs hurt for two days. Worth every step.”
Priyanka S., Mumbai
Meghalaya Journey, November 2023
From Our Journal
Thoughts on travel, philosophy, and the art of paying attention
Most journeys begin with a 10-minute conversation.
Tell us where you want to go, when, and who is coming. We handle everything from there.
We usually respond within a few hours.