Darjeeling & Sikkim » About Darjeeling

Darjeeling is a popular hill station in northeast India at an elevation of 2,134m, hemmed in by Sikkim in the north, Nepal in the west and Bhutan in the east. Darjeeling district is now known by the official name ‘Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council’, with three major hill towns - Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Kurseong, all of which are very well-liked tourist sites.

The district's verdant hills and fertile valleys are steeped in color and are interspersed with vast stretches of lush green tea gardens. Presiding over all these is the 8,586m Mt. Kanchanjunga looming over the northern horizon, giving a magical aura to the land that entices thousands to its environs and leaves all the senses reeling.

Heavily influenced by British India, Darjeeling still retains legacies of its colonial past. The toy train service is one of the most striking examples of this. It runs through the lush green hills emitting white steam scarcely distinguishable from the wisps of fog swirling all around the place. There is always a bite in the mountain air of the little hill station, but if the sun is visible, it is pleasantly warm.