The famed Silk Route (a part of the ancient trade route) passes through the picturesque hamlet of Zuluk in East Sikkim and goes all the way up to Nathu La Pass. 

Tourists take the 32 hairpin bends of the Silk Route from Rongli to Thambi Viewpoint for a bird’s-eye view of the winding route. In winters, the route is covered in snow, offering an added spectacle to the existing beautiful landscape. 

My group of friends took off on a weekend to Zuluk; our plan was to go up to Thambi Viewpoint in the morning and hopefully see snowfall as it was December.

Starting at 9:30 in the morning from Gangtok, it took us 6.5 hours to reach the Dil Maya Homestay in Zuluk, our stay for the night. The trip can be made in a day but we wanted to travel at a slow pace. We made an hour-long stop at Que Khola Falls in Nimachen, which falls on the way to Zuluk, just admiring the falls, drinking tea, and taking countless pictures.  

First Impressions

The road to Dil Maya Homestay offshoots from the main road and takes 2 minutes to reach the property. We reached at dusk, and with the heavy fog surrounding us, it was hard to make out our surroundings. 

As we got down from our vehicles, we were approached by our host who welcomed us warmly with a sanitiser in hand. After spritzing our hands, we were escorted to our rooms on the top floor of the 2-storey modern building. The newly constructed rooms were adequately furnished but lacked basic toiletries (definitely something they need to pay attention to for guest comfort). The rooms don’t come with room heaters but are available on request. 

The upper rooms of Dil Maya Homestay

Food

A few minutes after our arrival, we were served pakoras and tea (a choice between milk tea and black tea). Sadly, our group of Sikkimese diehard milk lovers found it quite disappointing; the pakoras were great though! 

Dinner was served buffet-style in the dining room in the adjacent building. The meal comprised rice, dal, potato and bean curry, chicken, and salad. It was a delicious meal minus all the fancy seasonings they put in restaurants. 

We were woken up the next morning with a tray of tea. As it was quite cold, we were given a call for every meal as soon as they were about to finish cooking to avoid reheating. Breakfast comprised rotis and aloo dum with mixed vegetable pickle. 

Dining hall; outside and inside view 

Property

By early morning, the fog had cleared, presenting a wonderful scene before us. With the hills in the background, we were able to see terraced farms, fish ponds, and neighbouring houses with their brightly colored tin roofs. 

After breakfast, we took a walk around the lovely property. You can spot small vegetable plots everywhere sprouting cauliflower and green leaves. There were also some lovely succulents in teacups. A few steps further down from the homestay was their private pond used for trout farming. 

Early morning view from the homestay

Hosts

The owner’s son and daughter-in-law were such nice people and very attentive to our needs. They were happy to oblige to any added requests such as making a bonfire.  

This is a pretty decent place if you’re looking for accommodation in Zuluk. For more details: Dil Maya Homestay

Other homestays in Zuluk:

Karma Homestay

Mukhia Homestay

Yangchen Homestay