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Reaching Bhutan by road:

The nearest airport to Bhutan in India is Bagdogra Airport in West Bengal. Indians usually take a road trip to Bhutan from Bagdogra. We also did the same. From Bagdogra, you can take a taxi or a shared cab or a bus to the border of Bhutan.

Earlier, before the COVID lockdown, Indian vehicles could enter Bhutan with a road permit. But now, there is an additional charge per day levied on Indian vehicles entering Bhutan. Which is INR 4500/- per vehicle per day for four-wheelers entering Bhutan from India, for the duration of their stay in Bhutan at the time of this writing. Do verify the latest charges if you are planning to drive to Bhutan. Also, charges are different for 2-wheelers and heavy vehicles. 

So, most of the Indian vehicles now drop tourists on the border town of Jaigaon, right before entering into Bhutan. From there, a Bhutanese vehicle picks the tourists up and takes them to Bhutan.

To reach Bagdogra to Jaigaon by road takes around 4 hours to 5 hours.

So, if you are going to Bhutan through this route, try to start early in the morning. Take an early morning flight so that you reach Bagdogra by noon. And you comfortably cover the distance from Bagdogra to Jaigaon by evening. We did the same.

Obtaining the entry permit and entering into Bhutan by road:

From Jaigaon, one can cross the India Bhutan Gate and complete the immigration formalities before proceeding further into Bhutan.

At the border of India and Bhutan, right beside the gate, there is an immigration office. You enter the office building from India, and complete the formalities to obtain the permit. And when you exit from the building, you find yourself in Bhutan.

In the meanwhile, your luggage will be loaded in the Bhutanese vehicle that you would have booked for the tour. And the vehicle will cross the road and wait for you on the Bhutan side.

I have written this separate post on what all documents are required for Indians visiting Bhutan. And the whole process of obtaining the permit, explaining it clearly. Since, some rules around tour packages for Bhutan from India have changed post covid, do read that post to understand the whole scenario.

Note: When going from Bagdogra and returning, it’s good to book a local Indian cab till Jaigaon. And a Bhutan cab for the complete round trip of Bhutan from the border. When you return, the Bhutan vehicle will again drop you at Jaigaon. And from there you can hire an Indian vehicle for your onwards journey in India, ex., for Bagdogara airport. 

Reaching Bhutan by train:

There is no rail network in Bhutan! Being a Himalayan country, it’s very difficult to lay and maintain rail network here. Hence, Bhutan has not invested into one. The nearest railway station is Hasimara in India. You can reach here via a train from Siliguri and some other major stations of India. But from Hasimara, you will have to hire a cab from here to Jaigaon and continue onwards accordingly. Siliguri on the other hand is a major train station in India, which is well connected from rest of India. So, you will get a train easily upto Siliguri town and from there you can take a cab to Jaigaon.

Reaching Bhutan by air:

The only international airport in Bhutan is Paro International Airport. It is a very small airport, with a very small runway. And very limited flights operate here. From India, a few flights are operating from Delhi. And then other flights are there connecting Bhutan to the rest of the world. But a flight to Paro is often very costly. Having said that, if you decide to fly into Paro, you will be completing your arrival formalities and permit documentation at the Paro International Airport.

What are the documents required for visiting Bhutan:

The residents of India, Maldives and Bangladesh don’t require any visa to enter Bhutan. Others need to apply for a visa. I am not aware of the visa application process. As being an Indian, I just required a permit to enter Bhutan. The permit stamp is done on the passport. And the following documents are required to visit Bhutan from India, Maldives or Bangladesh :

• A passport valid for at least next 6 months
• Government ID proof – voter Id card or Aadhar Card
• In the case of minors, if they don’t have a passport then a Birth Certificate is required

Our agent also asked us to carry 4 passport-size color photographs each, but they were not asked for anywhere. I have detailed out this complete process of obtaining the Bhutan travel permit from India.

Where to stay in Bhutan

If you are traveling by road, the first night of your stay in Bhutan, you will be staying in Jaigaon as you will reach here by evening most likely. Jaigaon is a town on the Indian side, on the India – Bhutan border. We stayed at Hotel Sheetal Residency in Jalgaon, just 200 meters from the India – Bhutan gate. Basic rooms and in-house restaurant. But it’s location was excellent. And a lot of shops nearby where you can find everything from food to umbrellas to medicines – whatever you may need for your onward journey.

You can also book Hotel Satyam, which is another decent option to stay in Jaigaon.

What are the general travel guideline changes for travel to Bhutan post covid:

The travel guidelines to visit Bhutan have changed a little post covid. When Bhutan reopened it’s border to tourists in September 2022. I have tried to capture the changed guidelines in my Bhutan travel guide as per my experience.

• Taking a guide is a must for Indians as well as foreign nationals visiting Bhutan. The guide will accompany you wherever you visit in Bhutan. Earlier it was not a mandate, barring at some sightseeing places like forts and temples.
• Indians visiting Bhutan have to pay an SDF (Standard Development Fee) of INR 1200 per day per person (for everyone above 5 years of age). Earlier this was not the case. Foreign Nationals have to pay US Dollars 160 per person per day at the time of this writing.
• Four Wheeler Vehicles from India entering Bhutan have to pay a fee of INR 4500 per day per vehicle for the duration they will be in Bhutan.
• The entrance fee to most of the sites has been hiked after the lockdown has opened. In most places it is Nu 500 per adult and Nu 250 per child older than 5 years. Entry is free for children below 5 years of age.

What is the best time of the year to visit Bhutan?

As per our Bhutan travel guide, Bhutan is almost a year-round destination, barring the monsoon months when heavy rains cause frequent landslides in the area. However, the months of April and May are considered the peak season in Bhutan. It is spring season then. And the country comes alive with fresh greenery and blooming flowers at this time of the year. But, to experience the beauty of Bhutan in winter, when it gets covered in snow, one can visit from December through February. January is the coldest month in Bhutan. It snows and the temperature drops to sub-zero at places. But this is also an off-season due to the harsh weather, which means you get much better deals at much lower prices. The months of October and March form shoulder seasons.

When we visited Bhutan in April first week, Thimphu and Paro were still quite chilly in the evening and morning hours. While Punakha was quiet warm in the day and pleasant in the evenings.

If you want to coincide your visit with one of the festivals of Bhutan, then you can visit as per the below festival timings. However,  our Bhutan travel guide suggests that do check the exact dates of the festival in the year you are traveling, for, they follow the lunar calendar. And hence, not fall on the same date of English Calendar every year.

Festivals of Bhutan:

• Thimphu Tshechu festival which is also the National Festival of Bhutan is held on the 10th day of the 8th month of the lunar calendar. In the year 2023, this festival will be celebrated from 24th to 26th September.
• Jambay Lhakhang Drup is celebrated in October – November. It is a fierce festival of energetic celebrations including dances, mask performances, fire performances etc.
• Wangdue Phodrang Tsechu is also celebrated in the Wangdue Phodrang region in the October – November period
• Punakha Drubchen is a festival celebrated in Punakha in February or March. It recreates the memories of the war with Tibet and celebrates Bhutan’s victory over Tibet through performances commemorating the same.
• Paro Tshechu Festival is celebrated in March or April. We just missed it by a day 🙁 when we reached Paro, it was the last day of the festival. Near the city center, huge fare is held, People dance, eat, shop, rejoice, re-enact scenes from legendary tales, and enjoy themselves to the full. Even on the last evening of the festival, there was so much crowd and the whole atmosphere was so charged up.
• Haa summer festival is celebrated in the month of July, wherein the nomads of Haa Valley celebrate their lives. And the tourists also get a chance to mingle with the locals and celebrate.

What currency works in Bhutan

One Indian Rupee = One Bhutanese Ngultrum (Nu)

Indian currency is widely accepted in Bhutan. US Dollars are also accepted. Particularly, if you go shopping for expensive items like gold, then US Dollars are preferred. And cash is accepted everywhere. We didn’t pay through card or any other means anywhere but only cash. So, just to be on the safer side, we converted around 15k INR to Nu in Jaigaon. Also, the same agent who arranged our whole travel helped us with currency exchange as well. However, at times, it can be a problem to use very high-value Indian notes in Bhutan. For INR 500 notes are not that well accepted everywhere. So, if you plan to do with Indian currency in Bhutan, then carry smaller denominations of notes with you.

What kind of mobile and internet connectivity works in Bhutan:

• Wifi was available in all the hotels that we stayed in Bhutan. Although the speed was not very great at ours though.
• My husband who uses Airtel, got his international roaming enabled for Bhutan. At the time of this writing, Airtel had a package of INR 3000/- for 10 days.
• I took a local tourist sim with one-week validity for INR 330/- which had mobile data of 1.5 GB and some talk time. From a shop in Phuentsholing, the border town on the Bhutan side, right after crossing the gates. And the documents required to obtain this sim were my passport copy and the Bhutan travel permit copy.

Overall, our Bhutan travel guide suggests that you enable international roaming in at least one phone when you are traveling with family or in a group. And when traveling solo, you should enable it. Because if for some reason you will need to do some transactions where a message through your sim card is expected, you can do that only when you have enabled international roaming.

For us, we had to alter our travel plans and change the dates of our airline tickets for some reason, which needed some digital payment. Which in turn needed OTP on one of our phones. Since, Abhishek had international roaming enabled, we were able to do the same without any hassles.

What to pack for a trip to Bhutan

Actually what to pack for Bhutan depends on which time of the year you are traveling to Bhutan. As per our Bhutan travel guide, really heavy winter wear is required if you are traveling in the months of December, January and February. In these months you should carry good boots which can help you travel on snow, heavy winter jackets, layers of woollen cloths, caps, gloves, etc. When we traveled in the first week of April, these are the basic things we carried with us –

• 2 sweaters (woollen) each for kids
• 1 moderate jacket each for all of us
• 1 heavy jacket for kids – just in case it got suddenly cold
• 2 full sleeve t-shirts for everyone
• 2 half sleeve t-shirts for everyone
• 4 pairs of socks, 5 pairs of undergarments for everyone
• 1 woollen cap for everyone
• full cover bottom wear and full sleeve nightwear
• umbrella (as it may occasionally rain in these months)
• Trekking / hiking shoes
• Medicines, particularly for altitude sickness and motion sickness
• Some snacks and munchies that the kids like – just to satisfy their taste, Otherwise you have plenty of options in Bhutan.

What is the language spoken in Bhutan:

Bhutanese, English and Hindi are widely spoken in Bhutan. Most of the people understand Hindi well, and are able to converse in Hindi. While the travel guides in Bhutan receive training in different languages like Chinese, Spanish, French etc. while doing their certification for becoming a guide. So, if you don’t understand Hindi, English or Bhutanese then you can always ask your travel agent to provide you with a guide who knows the language you understand. Both our driver and our guide were very well versed in English as well as Hindi. So, it was a breeze to communicate while in Bhutan.

What kind of food is available in Bhutan

Some of the main cuisines of Bhutan that you will get in most of the restaurants include Ema Datshi, Shakam Paa, Jasha Maru, Puta, Suja, Goen Hogey, Dumplings and Shakam Datshi. I will soon dedicate a separate post on the cuisines available in Bhutan. In short, most of the Bhutanese dishes are bland, healthy and good for the mountain climate. I found very less junk food options in Bhutan.

General tips on visiting Bhutan as per our Bhutan travel guide

• Carry an umbrella with you when visiting in the summer and spring months, as it rains all of a sudden in Bhutan
• You must wear good trekking shoes, particularly for trekking to Tiger’s Nest. As it is a moderate trek and general walking shoes might not suffice.
• Use packaged water bottles while in Bhutan.
• Dispose of the waste properly in designated waste bins, There is heavy fine for littering in Bhutan.
• Our Bhutan travel guide says that it is a must to carry motion sickness medicines for winding Himalayan roads
• Take enough stops when traveling between places to further combat motion sickness
• Keep your passport and permits with you all the time. There are designated check posts where these documents will be checked as you travel through Bhutan.
• If you are traveling with your kids, make sure to carry all their general medication with you as you will not get the same brand in Bhutan. (Happened with us)
• Most of the shops close early in Bhutan., around 9:00 pm
• Tipping the hotel staff, guide or driver is not a norm in Bhutan but it is a good gesture.