Explore Sikkim by trekking along quiet footpaths linking village to village, the snow-capped peaks of the Himalayas glimmering on the horizon. Forget about generic hotel accommodation. Instead you will stay overnight with remote communities. Not any old homestay. But lovingly converted cottages – some centuries old.  

The idea is to explore one of India’s remotest regions away from the crowds. The emphasis is on immersion and comfort. Each cottage offers a hot shower, good food and a comfortable bed. Breakfast can be taken on the lawn with the noise of birdsong, dogs barking and the buzzing of honey bees – and not much else. Treks can be tailored to your appetite for adventure and a gentile incline. Your guides can narrate to you the history of Sikkim and the intricacies of the bold, bright Mahayana Buddhism practiced here.  

This is the way to explore Sikkim. Quietly, gently, in your own time, with local guides and enthusiastic hosts. Enjoy butter tea served to you by a young monk clad in saffron robes; wrap up against a brisk breeze at sunset; keep trekking to discover what lies beyond the next mountain, the next vail of mist …    

You will be following in the footsteps of botanist Joseph Dalton Hooker, who trod these trails in the 1840s right “up to the snows of the Tibetan border”. Hooker was making cuttings of herbs, tree ferns and wild orchids to transport back to Kew. During the day you will trek through fields of cardamom and forests of chestnuts trees. Your guide can point out to you the singular history and quirks behind the flora you pass. The mugwort, for example, used as a poultice for cuts. Or the yellow ball-shaped flower of the majito, the pollen of which was used as a lubricant for colonial rifle barrels.