Lepchajagat is a small village near Darjeeling which has turned into a tourist village in the recent past. The village is located on the Ghoom – Mirik road just 8 km from Ghoom and about 14 km from Darjeeling town.
The primary attraction of Lepchajagat is its view of the Kanchenjunga range along with that of Darjeeling town. The surrounding area is very peaceful and is an ideal place for tourists interested to visit a less visited destination. Yet due to the proximity of Darjeeling town, you can easily do the local sightseeing of Darjeeling and yet stay away from the crowded tourist town of Darjeeling and enjoy nature in its pure form.
Orientation
Lepchajagat is a very small village. The village is spread on both sides of the main road known to connect Ghoom with Mirik. The road is known as Rishi road. The village is spread over a 100-meter stretch on the highway. All the houses and lodges are located on both sides of the highway. There are just two places that are not right on the road. One is the forest department-managed Lepchajagat forest bungalow, which is about 100 meters away from the main road and located amidst trees. The other is the Sunrise point which is the highest point of the village and the best place for viewing the surrounding area, this point is also about 100 meters from the main village.
Getting there
From Bagdogra or NJP, you can reach me here either via Mirik or via Ghoom. Ghoom is 8 km away whereas Mirik is about 30 km. From NJP or Bagdogra, Lepchajagat is about 75 kms via Ghoom. Darjeeling is about 14 km away and Kalimpong is about 53 km. If you plan to travel in a shared vehicle, take a vehicle bound for Darjeeling and get down at Ghoom. From here you will get regular local shared vehicles travelling towards the Sukiapokhari area. It takes about 15 / 20 minutes to reach Lepchajagat from Ghoom.
Where to Stay
There are several accommodations at Lepchajagat which are all referred to as homestays. However, they can be considered lodges rather than homestays. Typically these are budget accommodations that offer rooms with attached toilets and basic amenities. The forest bungalow has much larger rooms compared to the private accommodations offered here. However, the maintenance and service of the forest bungalow have remained an issue. Most of the lodges have 8 to 20 rooms. The rooms are let out on an all-meals inclusion basis and the tariff quoted is always on a per-person basis rather than on a per-room basis. The food offered is typical Bengali preferences as the guests here are mostly Bengali tourists from Kolkata and the surrounding area.
