This Charming BnB In Gangtok Has A Cafe And Bookstore, And Rooms Starting From INR 1,500

A lovely BnB, bookstore and cafe all under one roof in Gangtok, Sikkim. If you love, books, mountains, coffee and home-baked goodies, this is the place to to put down your bags.

The cafe is on the ground floor, above that is Rachna Books, a well-known store with a carefully curated collection of books, and on top of it all is Bookman’s BnB with its three cosy and comfortable rooms. You really do not need anything else – just stay put here and chill.Bookman’s two front-facing rooms have balconies. The third room is peaceful – great for those who are not early birds. All have attached bath, essential room amenities, TV, and electric blankets for when it gets too cold. They give you a basket in the room with candies and biscuits. The balconies would be great too relax in – the Bookman’s site mentions a small stream that flows nearby and attracts playful squirrels, chirpy birds, and butterflies of all sorts during the day. At night, tiny frogs, cicadas and the stream itself will sing you a lullaby. The rooms are from INR 1,500 to INR 1,900. Check them out here and here.

They have free WiFi from 10am to 10pm. And MG Road is just a 10-minute walk away – you can get taxis and buses here. There’s lots to do in and around Gangtok, depending on the time you have. You can check out the amazing Rumtek monastery, which houses schools, a few lodges and snack shops. It is half-an-hour away from Gangtok by car. Or take a trip to the surreal Tsomgo Lake. About 38 km from Gangtok, it derives its water from the melting snows of the mountains and remains frozen during winters. You can browse through, ancient scriptures and relics at the Namgyal Institute of Tibetology, built in traditional Tibetan architectural style with corner towers and colourful murals. If you are a trekking enthusiast, then choose from the many famed trails and routes around the capital. Adrenal junkies can go paragliding at Luing Resithang or river rafting on the Teesta.

When you get hungry from all the browsing, just walk downstairs to Café Fiction. The coffee beans here come from Darjeeling and they are roasted in-house, so you can have a fragrant cup while browsing through your recent purchase at the bookstore. Or try the local Temi tea with some of their freshly-baked cakes, brownies, muffins, waffles, cheesecakes or a plate of sandwiches.