Travel Information

Visiting Bhutan
The tourism industry in Bhutan is founded on the principle of sustainability, meaning that tourism must be environmentally and ecologically friendly, socially and culturally acceptable and economically viable. The number of tourists visiting Bhutan is regulated to a manageable level because of the lack of infrastructure.

The Royal Government of Bhutan recognizes that tourism is a world-wide phenomenon and an important means of achieving socioeconomic development particularly for a developing country like Bhutan. It also recognizes that tourism, in affording the opportunity to travel, can help in promoting understanding among people and building closer ties of friendship based on appreciation and respect for different cultures and lifestyles.

Towards achieving this objective, the Royal Government, since inception of tourism in the year 1974, has adopted a very cautious approach to growth and development of the tourism industry in Bhutan. In order to minimize the problems, the number of tourists has been maintained at a manageable level and this control on number is exercised through a policy of government regulated tourist tariff.

Accommodation
Hotels and tourist lodges in Bhutan are comfortable but not luxurious. Although recently a few luxury hotels have been established in Bhutan, visitors in general can expect a unique combination of traditional Bhutanese style together with modern services, but not international five-star luxury all over Bhutan! Clean and well maintained, most of the hotels are equipped with telephones, fax machines and long distance service. The food offered to the visitors is carefully prepared to suit the western taste combining Bhutanese food and western dishes.

Hotels and lodges are categorized by the Royal Government of Bhutan. International visitors will be accommodated in hotels only which fulfill the standards set by the government. Some of the more simple lodges have a special charm of their own, and convince with the traditional warm Bhutanese hospitality.

Responsible Tourism
The policy of low volume and high prices was created by a concerned, culturally sensitive, well educated and well traveled government, one that truly feels that this is the best approach for Bhutan. The sensitive and socially conscious traveler will accept these restrictions. Don’t enter temples and monasteries without permission. There are meditation cells near many monasteries; don’t disturb them. When you visit a dzong follow the guidelines and don’t try to enter a dzong without your guide.

Travel by Air
Today, Bhutan’s national air carrier, Druk Air, operates several flights per week from Bangkok, Delhi, Kolkata And Kathmandu to Paro. The modern Airbus A-319 jets carry passengers through one of the most spectacular flight paths in the world. A particular highlight is the stretch between Kathmandu und Bhutan, where one passes 4 of the 5 highest mountains in the world. Weather permitting; passengers will be treated to intimate views of Mt. Everest, Lhotse, Makalu und Kangchenjunga. Landing in the Paro Valley, surrounded by 4000 meter high mountains stretching across the west of Bhutan, means a visual landing is the order of the day.

Current flight schedules for Druk Air are available at www.drukair.com.bt
Flights are booked through Tour Operators who also arrange visas.

Passport
You need a passport to enter Bhutan and its neighboring countries. You should insure that it has lots of empty pages for stamps, especially if you are traveling via India or Nepal. If your passport has less than six months of validity left, it is worth getting a new one, because many countries in this region will not issue visas to persons whose passports are about to expire. Keep your passport safe. No country other than India has the facility for issuing a replacement passport in Bhutan. If you lose your passport, you must travel ‘stateless’ to another country to get it replaced. You should carry some additional form of identification and a photocopy of your passport to help in the event of such a disaster.

Visa Formalities
Most countries issue visas from their embassies abroad and stamp it in your passport, but not Bhutan. The Bhutanese visa process may appear complicated, but is actually quite straightforward once you understand it. Other than Indian nationals, all visitors to Bhutan require a visa. All visas are approved from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Thimphu and there is no point in applying for a visa through a Bhutanese embassy abroad. Visas are only issued to tourists booked with a local licensed tour operator, directly or through a foreign travel agent. Applications for tourist visas must be initialized by a Bhutanese tour operator. The operator submits the visa application to DOT in Thimphu. It, in turn, checks that you have completely paid for the trip and then issues an approval letter to tour operator. With this approval in hand, the tour operator then makes a final application to the ministry of Foreign Affairs, which takes up to a week to process the visa. It’s not necessary to fill in a special visa application form. Just provide the following information to the operator in Bhutan: your name, date and place of birth, passport number and its date and place of issue and date of expiration. If any item is missing the whole process is delayed. Double-check that the information you send is correct; if there are any discrepancies when you arrive in Bhutan, there’ll be further delays and complications in issuing the visa. When the visa clearance is issued by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it sends a visa confirmation number to the tour operator and to Druk Air. Druk Air will not issue your tickets to Paro until it receives this confirmation number and then rechecks the visa information when you check in for the flight. The actual visa endorsement is stamped in your passport when you arrive at one of the two ports of entry for tourists, either at Paro airport or (if entering by road) at Phuentsholing. When the visa is issued, you need to pay US $ 20 and present a passport photo with your passport number written on the back. You will then receive a visa for the exact period you have arranged to be in Bhutan. If some unusual event requires that you obtain a visa extension, your tour operator will arrange it. When you arrive in Bhutan, the visa officer will invariably be able to produce your approval form from the file and the visa will be issued on the spot. It’s helpful, however, to have the reference number or even a faxed copy of the visa authority available to aid the immigration officials and Druk Air to find your information quickly. Visas are issued for a 15-day period; extensions can be obtained in Thimphu at a cost of Nu.510.

Travel Insurance
A travel insurance policy to cover theft, loss and medical problems is always highly recommended. The cancellation rules for Bhutan are severe and inflexible. Trip cancellation insurance is almost essential. Most policies will cover costs if you are forced to cancel your trip because of flight cancellation, illness, injury or the death of a close relative. If you have such a problem, travel insurance can help protect you from major losses due to Bhutan’s prepayment conditions and hefty cancellation charges. Some polices specifically exclude ‘dangerous activities’, and these can include motorcycling and even trekking. Read your policy carefully to be sure it covers ambulance rides or an emergency helicopter airlift out of a remote region, or an emergency flight home. If you have to stretch out you will need two seats and somebody has to pay for them. Many travel insurance policies include repatriation and evacuation through the worldwide network of International SOS Assistance. You may prefer a policy that pays doctors or hospitals directly rather than you having to pay on the spot and claim later. If you have to claim later make sure you keep all documentation. Some policies ask you to call back (they suggest reversing the charges, an impossibility from Bhutan) to a center in your home country where an immediate assessment of your problem is made. It’s a good idea to photocopy your policy in case the original is lost. If you are planning to travel for along time, the insurance may seem very expensive – but if you can’t afford it, you certainly won’t be able to afford to deal with a medical emergency overseas.