The Bhutanese Leading the way.
The Royal Highland Festival 2025 has been announced under the theme “Celebrating Highland Resilience and Prosperity.” The two-day festival, coordinated by His Majesty’s Secretariat, Gasa Dzongkhag, and various stakeholders, will take place on 23rd and 24th October in Laya.
As of 26th September 2025 a total of 190 tourists has confirmed their participation, with nearly a month still remaining before the festival.
This year’s theme highlights the enduring spirit of highland communities, resilient in the face of challenges, while embracing sustainable pathways to prosperity.
“The 8th Royal Highland Festival will present guests with an enriched experience, featuring vibrant cultural performances, traditional displays, and exhibitions of unique highland products from ten highland districts,” says Gasa Dzongda, Jigme Namgyal.
The organizing team underscored the role of highland communities as guardians of fragile alpine ecosystems, keepers of nomadic traditions, and custodians of a cultural legacy forged over centuries.
The highlands, revered as sacred landscapes believed to be protected by guardian deities, inspire communities to steward mountains, lakes, and valleys with reverence.
This sacred connection is at the heart of the festival, which embodies Bhutan’s approach to development by creating prosperity and opportunity while preserving the environment, culture, and essence of highland life.
Beyond cultural celebration, the festival has delivered tangible benefits. Last year, the event generated Nu 10–15 million in revenue for highland communities, creating space for highlanders to lead, participate, and showcase their knowledge, traditions, and innovations.
As Bhutan looks to the future, the Royal Highland Festival reflects a broader vision for highland development by balancing growth with ecological responsibility.
The highlands hold strategic, cultural, and ecological importance, making their sustainability a priority.
One of the highlights of the festival will be the Laya Run, held on 23rd October. Spanning 25 km from Ponjothang to Langothang, the route follows the pristine Mochu river and climbs into the hills of Laya, offering breathtaking views of mountains, valleys, and untouched highland wilderness.
Participants are advised to acclimatize to Laya’s 4,000-meter altitude, prepare for rough roads and trekking paths, and carry adequate water, energy snacks, and protective gear for sudden weather changes.
Held annually in Laya, one of Bhutan’s most remote yet picturesque villages, the festival brings together highland communities from 11 gewogs across 10 dzongkhags, including Laya, Lunana, Soe, Naro, Lingzhi, Merak, Sakteng, Dangchu, Sephu, Dungkar, and parts of Gasa.
For communities sustained by yak herding, the gathering of medicinal plants, and time-honoured cultural practices, the festival is both recognition and renewal. It is a reaffirmation that true progress lies not in leaving traditions behind but in carrying them forward ensuring that Bhutan’s highlands grow, thrive, and prosper without losing their sacred essence.
First initiated in 2016 under the Royal Vision of His Majesty The King, the Royal Highland Festival celebrates the unique heritage, resilience, and ecological wisdom of Bhutan’s highland communities, while providing them with economic opportunities and a platform to share their traditions with the nation and the world.
