Naksel Boutique Hotel & Spa

We stayed at this beautiful hotel in Paro with Gate 1. The rooms were extremely spacious and extremely comfortable. The hospitality was great. Staff were very attentive. The food was good. They had a buffet and an Alla carte menu. Their ginger tea was particularly delicious. I would love to stay there again. We did not use the spa facilities. I would give it five stars.

We stayed in 3 hotels during our Bhutan holiday. I will rank this hotel as the second during the whole trip. It’s a nice hotel , maybe coming from the last hotel we stayed in , the bar was set a little high. However, the longer we stayed, the more I grow to like this hotel. We were upgraded to the suite that is right above the lobby. This is fantastic for us. Easy for us to go to the restaurant and also the spa. Especially when it is cold in the morning and at night. The suite was huge for the 2 of us. Nevertheless, we appreciate the gesture. The decor is cabin like. Maybe I more in line with the Bhutanese decos. The restaurant is a simple setup. Feels more like a cafeteria . The food is good. The service is good especially from the front desk. Only ‘problem’ if you can call that. Is the smell of food is pretty strong in the room. I guess it’s the price to pay for being near the cafeteria. Overall, great stay.

The Naksel Boutique Hotel is in the hills outside of Paro, with great views of the Paro valley across to Tiger's Nest. We had a super deluxe room which was large and comfortable. The room was very clean, however the hotel is reasonably dated and in particular the beds and bed linen could do with a refresh.

We took advantage of the complimentary archery and darts for some fun, and the bar area is a nice place to sit and enjoy a drink. The restaurant staff were very happy to adapt the food for our dietary requirements, with the Indian and Bhutanese food from the a la carte menu excellent. The staff were all friendly and welcoming.

Really loved the hospitality and attention to small details by each and every member of the hotel. Mr Bishnu, Mrs Youden, Mr Gyendup and all others. Felt like home! Super property and very courteous people to make you feel so cared about throughout your stay!

Highly Recommended!

Much of the experience of staying at the Naskel Resort was very good, with attentive staff in the main building and a good restaurant.
Our stay got off to a bad start thanks to staff inattention. Our luggage had been taken to our room and we were invited to ride up the hill to the ‘cottage building’ where it was in a golf buggy. The driver stopped near and just told us to find it upstairs. Everywhere else in Bhutan we had been shown to our room and had everything explained. The room was cold despite the heating system apparently being set at 28C. After an hour of calls and visits when the system was explained and was indeed faulty, we moved to another room where the heating was working (in the room if not underfloor heating in the bathroom). How silly to be so inattentive! The heating system is obviously not as robust as it should be and in the bathrooms it doesn’t seem to work at all, there’s even a small notice about it.
Also, they have umbrellas for guests to use getting to the main building in wet weather, but that’s where they keep them, they don’t put them in the rooms, so you get wet going to get one!

A gem of a hotel albeit a little outside Paro on a hill overlooking Paro Valley
Location and views were great
Rooms were a good size and very clean
Food was excellent for a buffet especially the local and indian cuisine
Staff very good
Didnt use the wide ranging facilities as always on the road visiting the xecllent sights around the town ( Tigers Nest/Paro Fort). Make sure you do a hot bath after climbing the Tigers nest - it helps with recovery!

Hands down one of the most beautiful and luxurious stays in Bhutan, that we had the pleasure of experiencing.

In the local language, Nak-sel means forest. And true to its name, Naksel is a beautiful forest lodge / resort complete with wooden villas and chalets. Warm, cozy rooms and large bathrooms with extremely effective underfloor heating. Each room was beautifully furnished with local, handwoven rugs. Extremely large and comfortable beds and a wi-fi router in the beautiful balconies.

The food was amazing on both days - dinners and breakfasts.

The resort is located about 15 mins away from the Paro town centre in the serenity of woods. The zen moments were furthered by a beautiful spa, heated swimming pool, steam and sauna facilities. Perfect for a relaxing evening especially after the Tiger’s Nest monastery hike.

Would highly recommend staying here.

We enjoyed our stay at Naksel after fixing a few issues. The property is beautiful - expect a steep walk to your room but golf carts are available to take you if you are tired from hiking. The spa is wonderful - fabulous warm pool and great massages. The food was dependent on how many people staying - our first night the buffet was limited and just local food. We would have preferred an a la carte menu which we didn't know existed until asking. They can cook almost anything if you ask but there may be an additional charge. We also had some issue with lighting and heat in our room but nothing that was too much of an issue. I would stay here again and recommend that you ask the staff for anything you need or want. For instance, there is a beautiful fireplace room behind the gift shop that we had to ask to use and ask to light the fire. I think when it is busier they have more amenities going.

We suffered through a Two-night stay in three different rooms and not one was fit for habitation!

The Hotel is well outside of town and a bit of a challenging drive through the local village, construction, and narrow roads ending at an appealing wooden structure built into the side of the mountain.

This is all part of the charm – The charm ends once you are checked into the room!

A few hours after checking into the first room we lost heating a necessary requirement in early March. Twice that night the engineer would arrive and reset the heating, indicating another occupant had adjusted their thermostat which would shut down the heat in all four units.

We awoke at 4:00 AM again with no heat and a cold room.

Again, the heating was reset – Only to last less than a couple of hours.

All the hotel would do is indicate there is nothing we can do except provide you with electric space heaters which did not heat the large room and apologize, “Sorry for the inconvenience”

Our guide and tour company next battled on our behalf to get us another room which only happened when they threatened to move us to a different Hotel.

Room number two, had central heating and heated floors. This time the opposite occurred. The bathroom floors were so hot we could not stand on them in slippers or bear feet, the heating unit just pumped out continuous heat. After leaving the exterior doors open for two hours the temperature in the room was still 29.0!

The hotels solution was to spread towels out on the washroom floor so we did not burn our feet!

With the help of our guide and tour operator we would move late at night to yet a third room.

The third room had no issues with heating. However, my husband while sitting on the toilet turned to get paper and the toilet tipped over and he fell off unto the floor.

Embarrassing, undignified and horrified do not describe what could have been an injurious incident.

All the hotel would say was, “sorry for the inconvenience”.

See photos of a toilet that was not attached to the pipe or the floor!

Not one of the three rooms were fit for habitation & we believe the hotel was fully cognizant of this, yet greedily crossed their fingers and rented the rooms out hoping tourists would just accept the conditions for one or two nights while the hotel profited!

This hotel caters to tour groups who take over the hotel – Not being part of one of the large tour groups we were left to fend for ourselves and watch the large tour groups be served cooked breakfast eggs while our order went unfilled even though ours was submitted first!

Greedy ownership and a hotel not fit for habitation all the while masquerading as a four-star property!

“Sorry for the inconvenience is not an acceptable response!”

Shame on you Naskel – Not only have you tarnished our perception of your resort & Country, you have tarnished your good name and that of the Country of Bhutan whom you also represent!

We spent a relaxing three days here in conjunction with a visit to Tiger's Nest. An elegant, environmentally connected resort on a hilltop within the woods.

In Bhutan, tourists are required by law to have a driver and tour guide. If you haven't arranged this on your own, the lodge may assist. A four-wheel drive vehicle helps climb the rustic road.

The provided breakfast choices included Bhutan dishes as well as many for travelers wishing to have familiar continental-style choices. Lunch on request is made to order. An evening buffet has abundant choices, or requests may be tailor-made.

The spa was expansive, offering many styles of massage treatments. I elected a 90-minute deep-tissue massage that was professionally executed with skill in a sunlit room. A painted floral rock with a tiny mountain painting inside a keyhole was below my head under the massage table, just one more example of joy and attention to detail. Prices at the resort are in US $ with prices reflecting similar US properties. My massage was $90 US $ or about $1 per minute in February 2025. Rooms range from about $200-400.

Rooms have in-floor radiant heat reflecting energy efficiency. Many rooms have a private patio.

A fireplace room features mountain views. The lobby and bar have many seating areas conducive to conversations.

This is a little dated property but still very beautiful - very iconic, with incredible views of the himalayas.

The rooms are very spacious and service was impeccable - in every way, whether it be room service, or spending time in their lounge or meals. Above and beyond service.

Some things, though, left a little to be desired. The rooms were very hot - despite getting it reduced multiple times. We really enjoyed the heated floors but night got too hot. The road up to the property is in a really bad shape - 15 minutes of a bumpy ride. Also, the spa prices are exorbitant!

I stayed here on my last 2 nights in Bhutan. Especially coming from quite a basic hotel in Haa, this was heaven! After my hike up to Tiger's Nest, it was so nice to come back to this hotel to unwind.

The staff at the front desk are very friendly and helpful, but the ones in the restaurant not so much.

The Spa is quite expensive though by any standards

What a peaceful, lovely place! It's at the end of a bumpy rural road, up in the foothills, surrounded by birdsong, forest, crisp fresh air and expansive views all the way to Taktsang. The grounds, common areas, and rooms are well kept and comfortable. The restaurant has excellent meals, both a la carte and buffet style for the small groups. Service is excellent, especially a mention to Ms. Rinzin Choden, the assistant manager, who went out of her way to take me to a shop for traditional clothing where I had some beautiful Kira made. The spa was excellent - I enjoyed the therapeutic hot stone baths as well as several Thai massages which were professionally done.

Rooms were large and well appointed, with comfortable bedding, AC/heat units, hot showers/baths, and a sitting area. Upstairs rooms have a better view. Rooms in the 100's are furthest up the hill, if you are affected by altitude request a room lower down near the main building.

I was on the 4 nights 5 days Bhutan tour early this month during monsoon season with my family. This hotel was booked by our travel agent in Bhutan upon our request. I was looking for bit more decent place as I didn't liked much last hotel I stay in my last trip 2018. As I was searching for better 4* hotel this camp up very well. We stay at this hotel for 2nd and 3rd July 2024. Our room was 403 and 404.

Room was spacious, clean and with nice view of Garden and Taksang(Tiger nest) in Horizon. We were given higher floor room they much nicer then ground floor. We had one dinner and one breakfast. Food was great even it limited option. Staff were very attentive and polite. Our stay end up really comfortable and satisfying. There was indoor heating swimming pool. We enjoyed first night. We were only family using pool. No other tourist as it was monsoon season. We liked the quietness. It was bit of drive from city center of Paro. Full of nature and quietness. It turn out to be best hotel during our Bhutan trip. I highly recommend this hotel for those traveler looking for bit of luxury and bit further from the city center. Thank for your great hospitality. I will definitely use it again for clients and if If return back to Bhutan in future.

Extremely well maintained, clean and well designed boutique hotel situated at the base of a beautiful forest.
Lovely views from the room. Awesome landscape and superb service.
The food is very tasty and the staff very friendly. Keza took me for a 1 hour nature walk which was exhilarating.

Naksel was both our first and last accomodation in Bhutan, and it was the perfect bookend to a wonderful trip.

The hotel is set high up a hillside on the outskirts of town, this provides with you stunning views across the valley, including Tiger's Nest and Jomolhari Mountain. The smaller cabins circle the main building, which houses the family room, business centre, lobby kitchens etc. The grounds themselves are beautiful, carts are available if the mild hills prove too steep for luggage.

We stayed in the family room and it was simply gorgeous. Floor to ceiling windows make the most of the view, with a large living area and beds available for my family of four. The room was large, but cosy and warm - which wasn't the case everywhere in Bhutan. The heated tiles in the bathroom were an especial treat, as was the huge bathtub after a long day hiking.

Food at the restaurant was a nice mix of Bhutanese, Western and Indian styles. It was always generous - extremely so! - and the quality was good.

We enjoyed a hot stone bath to relax at the spa.

However the best thing about Naksel is the service. Staff are incredibly helpful, friendly, attentive, thoughtful. We were taken up for an impromptu archery lesson one afternoon, the bar man treated me to some of the local spirit, ara, one night. Everyone was so friendly. I always felt cared for. When we come back to Bhutan I will definitely stay here.

I was in Bhutan for 10 days and wanted to finish the trip with a better hotel near the Tigers Nest and that is why I selected the Naksel. This was my choice rather than the suggested hotel from the guide. I’m not quite sure how it gets its 4* star rating or what quite qualifies it to call itself luxury and boutique.
It reminds me of 1970s ski lodges with a lot of pine and it does have that old-fashioned feel about it. We were greeted with a lukewarm drink upon arrival and I was disappointed to find that the security lock to the bedroom was broken and that the room safe opened with a standard default number. That means anyone could open your safe if they had access to your room.
The double bed in the bedroom was very small despite having adequate room for a larger one. The toiletries in the bathroom were of a budget quality and certainly didn’t reflect what the hotel was trying to achieve. The pillows on the bed were of a cheap foam and not particularly comfortable. There was only one toilet roll in the bathroom which ran out.
The bar area was pleasant with a nice terrace outside with good views, however there were no cushions or blankets on any of the chairs. You would struggle to sit out there in the cool weather. There was also a nice room on the terrace with a log burner but it was hopeless trying to use it as the fire was never lit. There also no fresh flowers anywhere or complementary fruit etc which is unusual for a hotel that calls its self 4* star and luxury. The nuts that were served with my apéritif prior to dinner were the standard that you would probably feed your hamster.
This was the only place in my 10 day trip where all the prices were quoted in US dollars which is strange for a country that wants to maintain its own identity. It was also adds another 10% service and 10% tax to all bills.
It called itself a spa but the spa was slightly away from the hotel and nothing was included in the room rate. Usually a steam room or sauna would be included in your price.
The restaurant was alright but unfortunately breakfast finished by 9 am . There was also no fresh fruit on one of the days and the jams available were the cheapest catering ones you could ever find.
It would be so easy to improve this place but until then I would say somewhere else on my next trip.

We had a very comfortable stay here. The food was good. The staff was extremely helpful and went out of their way to assist us when we had a problem..highly recommend this place. View from the resort and landscape within is excellent

Nak-Sel Boutique & Spa offers superlative service. From the moment I arrived until I departed, each aspect was flawless. I was greeted with a wonderful warm apple cider, escorted to my room and given a helpful resort overview. The restaurant team went truly above and beyond to tailor meals to my dietary requirements (vegetarian and no dairy). On my final morning, when I asked if the smoothies were available with soy milk, the team especially acquired soy milk for my smoothie. I had what is described as a superior room: it was very well-appointed and serene. Nak-Sel was a sanctuary. I also indulged in the Nak-Sel "signature" spa treatment and I highly recommend this for those who wish to luxuriate in a Bhutanese hot stone bath followed by a traditional Bhutanese massage. Of the places I stayed in Bhutan, Nak-Sel was my absolute favourite.

A unique setting in the mountains with wonderful views. The deluxe rooms offered a lot of privacy. Excellent service. Since the resort is out of town, the best place for dinners is at their expensive hotel restaurant.