By Air :
The most convenient way of entering Bhutan is by Druk Air (National Carrier) or Tashi Air (Pvt. Airlines), Airbus A319. As flights can be delayed due to weather conditions (particularly during the summer months), it is advisable to allow 24 hours before any onward connection. The following stations are connected with Druk Air / Tashi Air Flights:

• India (Kolkata, Bagdogra, New Delhi, Gaya, Mumbai, Guwahati)
• Nepal (Kathmandu)
• Thailand (Bangkok)
• Bangladesh (Dhaka)
• Singapore

Both airlines flies several times a week between each destinations, but flight timings and frequency vary according to season.
Kindly check their websites :
– Druk Air www.drukair.com.bt
– Tashi Air www.bhutanairlines.bt

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By Land :
Arrival/departure through the south-western border town of Phuntsholing, south- central border town of Gelephu and the south-eastern border town of Samdrup Jongkhar.

The nearest airport to the south-western border town of Phuntsholing is at Bagdogra, West Bengal, about 4 hours’ drive away. Phuntsholing is a convenient entry/exit point for tourists wishing to visit the Indian states of Sikkim and West Bengal along with Bhutang.

Domestic flights:
Bumthang airport in central Bhutan and Yongphula airport in Trashigang in the East are now open.

The nearest airport to the south-eastern border town of Samdrup Jongkhar is at Guwahati, capital of the Indian state of Assam, about 3 hours’ drive away. Samdrup Jongkhar is a convenient entry/exit point for tourists wishing to visit the Indian states of Assam and other North Eastern states of India along with Bhutan.

Who Needs a Visa to Travel to Bhutan?

All foreign nationals (except Indians, Bangladeshis and Maldivians) require a Bhutanese visa to travel to Bhutan. All Bhutanese visas are issued only by Department of Immigration, Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs, Royal Government of Bhutan. Furthermore, Bhutan visa is issued only from head office of the Department of Immigration which is based in Thimphu- the capital city of Bhutan.

Visas are only issued to the tourists who have booked their trip to Bhutan with local licensed tour operators like us “Bhutan Film & Travel” Tourist visa applications should to be submitted by us and visas have to be obtained in advance for traveling to Bhutan.

Important Note: No  Bhutanese foreign missions or embassies  abroad grants Bhutanese tourist visa

How to Apply for Bhutanese Visas in Advance and How to Obtain it?

Bhutan visa clearance letter is approved by the Tourism Council of Bhutan after concerned tourists have paid the full tour cost and visa fees to the Tourism Council of Bhutan through us. A copy of visa clearance letter will be sent to the concerned tourists before their travel dates as it is important that tourists should have their visa clearance letter with them while boarding Drukair flights to Bhutan. Bhutan Film & Travel will ensures that a copy of visa clearance letter reaches the Druk Air office at the airports where the tourists board their flights to Bhutan.

The actual visa is stamped in your passport at the point of entry either at Paro Airport (if travel to Bhutan by air) or  at Phuentsholing / Samdrupjongkhar/Gelephu (if traveling to Bhutan by road) based on your visa clearance letter. You will then receive a visa for the period of your Bhutan tour in Bhutan.

Bhutan Tourist Visa Extension

If you would like to extend your Bhutan visa to stay additional days in Bhutan, we will process for your visa extension for you and the visa renewal fee is Nu.500 ( US$1 = Nu. 53 approximately as of 2013).

Information and Documents Required for Bhutan Visa Application

Bhutan Film & Travel will obtain your Bhutanese tourist visa once your Bhutan trip is confirmed by making full Bhutan tour payment and Bhutan visa fee of US$40 to the Tourism Council of Bhutan through us. Additionally, the following details are required for processing your Bhutan tourist visa prior to the date of your Bhutan travel. Your Bhutan visa will be sent to you before the start of your Bhutan tour.

• Your full name:
• Occupation:
• Nationality:
• Passport No.:
• Date of issue:
• Date of expiry:
• Place of Issue:
• Date of birth:
• Permanent address:
• A scanned copy of your passport ( in jpeg format)

Important Note: Passport Validity should be more than 6 months at the time of start of your Bhutan tour. 

The Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB) is an independent authority and highest decision-making body on all matters relating to tourism and its management in Bhutan. It regulates all tourism-related activities in Bhutan. All the Bhutanese travel agencies & Bhutanese tour operators are registered with them, and they also fix the daily Bhutan tour prices and Bhutan Tourist Taxes or Bhutan Government Royalty.

Daily Tour Rate during the High Season-March, April, May, September, October and November:

• For a group of 3 persons or above, the minimum tour price US$ 250 per night per person
• For a group of 2 persons, the minimum  tour cost is US$ 280 per night per person (daily tariff US $ 250 +surcharge US $ 30)
• For a lone traveler, the tour rate is US $ 290 per night per person (daily tariff US $ 250 +surcharge US $ 40)

Daily Tour Prices during the Low season- January, February, June, July, August and December:

• For a group of 3 persons or above, the tour cost is US$200 per night per person.
• For a group of 2 persons, the tour price is US$230 per night per person which is inclusive of surcharge of US$ 30 per night per person.
• For a single traveler, the tour rate is US$240 per night per person which is inclusive of surcharge of US$40 per night per person.

The above tour cost is inclusive of the following:

• Bhutan Government Royalty of US$65 per night per person
• Twin sharing hotel Rooms at 3 star hotels
• All Meals at 3 star hotels
• English speaking tour guides
• Refreshments (tea,coffee and snacks)
• All transfers and sightseeing/treks/tours within Bhutan
• Riding ponies and pack animals on treks
• Trekking equipment and haulage for trekking tours
• All entrance fees to museums and monuments
• All internal taxes and charges
• Mineral drinking water

The rates given above are applicable per tourist per night halt in Bhutan. On the day of departure, the local Bhutan tour operators / Bhutan travel agents’ obligation shall be limited to breakfast only. The following is not included in the daily tourist tariff:

• Visa fee US $40 each (must be paid in advance with tour cost).
• Airfares (optional)
• Travel insurance (recommended but not available in Bhutan)
• Single Room supplements US$ 40 per room per night  (optional)
• Other personal expenses, calls overseas, laundry, etc.

The best time to visit Bhutan are in Spring (March, April, May) and Autumn (September, October, November). A couple of big festivals (Tsechu) takes place during this time and weather is favorable. The Paro Tsechu in March or April and the Thimphu Tsechu in September attract large numbers of foreign visitors as well as locals. Tsechus are religious festivals of Drukpa Buddhism. The focal point of the tsechus are the sacred Cham Dances, these costumed masked dances typically are moral vignettes, or based on incidents from the life of the 9th century Nyingmapa teacher Padmasambhava and other saints. Most tsechus also feature the unfurling of a thongdrel (or thangka) – a large tapestry typically depicting a seated Guru Rinpoche surrounded by holy beings, the mere viewing of ‘   is said to cleanse the viewer of sin. The thongdrel is unrolled before dawn and rolled up by morning.If you can’t make it to one of these festivals there are smaller festivals somewhere in Bhutan almost every month.

There are also appeals and attractions during the Summer (June, July, august) and Winter (December, January, February) season. You won’t be missing out on the experience and satisfaction of visiting regardless of the seasons. Apart from festival activities that are set during fixed dates, there are also other events you can join in on which is all year long.  . Bhutan is really good to visit almost throughout the year. It will be a bit cold but the perks are you will not see many tourists! Feel like Robinson Crusoe.

We also have a multitude of tour itineraries which you can pick from regardless of the dates. If you miss out on the festivals on the high season don’t fret there is one every month.

Just take a look at the Bhutan festival calendar :

1. Festivals Calendar 2017
2. Festivals Calendar 2018 (Tentative)

Better yet to make your stay in Bhutan the most interesting and memorable one, we suggest you to combine your choice of tour itinerary with one of these festivals. Bhutan is really good to visit almost throughout the year. It will be a bit cold but the perks are you will not see many tourists! Feel like Robinson Crusoe.

Please keep in mind that most festivals fall during the peak season so you are advised to book your tour well in advance.

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Average Temperatures In Degree Celsius (High/ Low)

	Paro	Thimphu	Punakha	Wangdue	Trongsa	Bumthang	Mongar	Trashigang
Jan	9.4/-5.8	12.3/-2.6	16.1/4.2	17.0/4.3	13.0/-0.2	10.8/-5.1	15.5/8.2	20.4/10.5
Feb	13.4/1.5	14.4/0.6	19.6/5.3	19.0/7.8	13.9/0.4	10.0/-1.4	15.9/8.3	21.7/11.5
March	14.5/0.6	16.4/3.9	21.2/9.2	22.8/10.4	16.7/4.4	16.2/3.5	20.0/11.6	24.8/14.4
April	17.6/4.6	20.0/7.1	24.4/11.9	26.2/12.9	20.1/6.6	18.7/3.9	22.8/14.0	28.3/17.0
May	23.5/10.6	22.5/13.1	27.2/14.8	29.1/17.7	21.0/11.6	21.3/9.5	25.1/17.4	30.0/20.6
June	25.4/13.1	24.4/15.2	31.2/19.5	29.2/20.1	22.2/13.6	22.5/13.5	26.1/19.5	30.7/22.6
July	26.8/14.9	18.9/13.4	32.0/21.6	18.4/16.2	25.3/15.3	14.1/10.9	16.1/15.8	31.5/23.1
Aug	25.3/14.7	25.0/15.8	31.4/19.8	29.1/20.0	23.8/15.0	23.0/13.7	25.4/19.6	30.2/22.7
Sept	23.4/11.7	23.1/15.0	29.9/20.0	27.5/19.1	22.6/14.2	21.6/12.1	24.7/19.4	30.0/23.9
Oct	18.7/7.4	21.9/10.4	27.8/18.9	26.1/14.7	21.8/11.7	19.5/5.9	22.7/15.8	29.1/17.7
Nov	13.9/1.4	17.9/5.0	22.3/13.0	22.6/9.6	19.8/6.4	16.1/-0.5	19.9/11.2	26.1/13.6
Dec	11.2/-1.7	14.5/-1.1	15.0/7.9	19.1/6.3	18.2/2.5	12.3/-2.3	15.7/9.5	23.0/11.6

As per the directives of the Tourism Council of Bhutan, full payment shall be made in advance and in US dollars. The payment must be deposited directly into the Tourism Council of Bhutan’s bank account and in addition, Bhutan Film & Travel. will not receive payment from the Tourism Council of Bhutan until your trip has concluded and you have departed Bhutan. The payment shall be remitted by International Wire Transfer to the Account of BHUTAN NATIONAL BANK with the beneficiary company as Bhutan Film & Travel.

A remittance copy must be sent to us by e-mail so as to enable us to proceed with the arrangement of visa without delay. The Tourism Council of Bhutan will allow us to apply for your Visa Clearance with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs only after the receipt of tour payment.