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Entry Points to Bhutan
 By
Air
The easiest way for visitors to enter Bhutan is by air
on Druk Air, Bhutan's national carrier and the only
airline operating in Bhutan. Druk Air's fleet consists
of two British Aerospace jets, BAe 146s, which are
specially designed for Bhutan.
Flights to Bhutan are available from Bangkok in
Thailand, Katmandu in Nepal, Delhi & Calcutta in India,
and Dhaka in Bangladesh several times each week. Latest
flight schedules are available on request.
On clear days the flight into Paro offers spectacular
views of the Himalayan mountain range, including Mt.
Everest, Mt. Kanchenjunga, Chomolhari, Kula Kangri and
many other peaks of the Himalayas. Paro Airport, located
in the mountains, is subject to the vagaries of nature,
and weather conditions sometimes prevent flight landing
and take off. Druk Air itself has an impeccable safety
record, without a single mishap since its inception in
1983. We can book your air-seats in and out of Bhutan
well in advance, avoiding last-minute rush during the
peak tourist seasons of Spring and Autumn.
 By
Road
Tourists wanting to combine a visit to Bhutan with
Sikkim & Darjeeling (or other places in India) can enter
Bhutan by surface through the border town of
Phuentsoling. This is the only other entry point to
Bhutan other than flying into Paro airport. In the
reverse order visitors can fly into Bhutan and exit by
surface to India through Phuentsoling.
For those travelling to far Eastern Bhutan there is a
option to exit out of the country through the border
town of Samdrup Dzonkar to Guwahati Airport in Assam of
India. Only exiting out of Bhutan is allowed from here
not entry. From Guwahati there are flights available to
Calcutta and Delhi.
Air Tickets
Druk Air, the national carrier of Bhutan, is the
only airline that fly in & out Bhutan's Paro airport.
Air tickets will be issued only after your visa is
approved by the Home Ministry of Bhutan. To expedite
this procedure, it is essential that you send us all
passport information required to apply for your Bhutan
visa (see below). The air-tickets cannot be issued until
the visa is approved - and this process takes a week or
more.
Tourist Visas
Tourist visas have to be approved prior to your
arrival in Bhutan. With prior approval visas are then
issued only on your arrive in the country, either at
Paro airport or (if by road) at Phuentsoling. Once your
are ready to confirmed your tour arrangements we will
apply for your visas. We need the following details in
order to start applying for visas.
01 : Your full name (as it appears in your passport) -
02 : Permanent address -
03 : Occupation -
04 : Nationality -
05 : Passport number -
06 : Date of issue and expiration of passport -
07 : Date and place of birth -
The actual visa is stamped in your passport only when
you arrive in Bhutan. 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 period of
your stay in Bhutan. We will process visa extensions for
you if they become necessary.
Accommodation
In the major towns such as Thimpu, Paro, and
Phuentsoling, comfortable hotels await the visitor,
while in smaller towns, modest, but adequate, hotels,
lodges and guest houses are available. Your tour agent
should ensure that the best available accommodations are
arranged for you. The Tourism Authority of Bhutan (TAB),
regulates hotel standards and all travel regulations in
Bhutan. The cost of the accommodations are included in
the tour cost.
Food and Drink
Traditional Bhutanese food is hot and spicy. For our
visitors, however, Chinese, Indian, and Continental
fares are served. The more adventurous can try the local
delicacies like the tasty, but fiery, ematatshi, the
national dish of Bhutan, made with red chillis and
cottage cheese. Meals are normally served buffet style
in the hotels. On trekking tours, we serve simple but
nutritious and tasty dishes, freshly cooked by our
trained cooks. The daily tour cost includes all meals
while in Bhutan as well as other services, including
trekking arrangements, as required. Your only extra
expenses will be mineral water, liquor, laundry,
souvenirs and optional tips to the guide, driver and
hotel staff.
Transport
We use comfortable and safe Japanese cars, jeeps,
vans and coaches to transport our guests. The cost of
transport is already included in the daily tour cost.
All our drivers are fully trained in safety and are well
experienced in driving in Bhutan. You will find that you
are more comfortable driving through the winding hilly
roads of Bhutan, where sane driving prevails, and
drivers are unusually courteous to each other, unlike in
some of the neighboring countries.
Guides
All tourist groups will be accompanied throughout
their stay in Bhutan by an English-speaking guide and
have a vehicle and driver at your disposal at all times.
All of our guides are trained by the Tourism Authority
of Bhutan (TAB) and licensed by the Government. Our
trekking guides and cooks undergoe an additional
mountain guide training, including safety and first aid
instruction. TAB has received assistance from the
Austrian Government in the form of trainers and funds to
establish the training programs for tourist guides |
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