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Airport → your hotel
Paro International Airport (PBH) is the country's only international airport, 6 km from Paro town and about 1.5 hours by road from Thimphu. The approach between 5,000-metre ridges is one of the most demanding in the world and only a few dozen pilots are certified for it — flights operate in daylight and good visibility only, so delays and cancellations are normal and you should never book a tight onward connection. There is no airport bus: a taxi to Paro town is about Nu. 500, to Thimphu Nu. 1,500–2,000. Nearly every package includes the transfer. Many Indian travellers instead enter overland at Phuentsholing (a 4-hour drive from Bagdogra/Siliguri), which is far cheaper but adds a full day each way. Verified Aug 2026.
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Ways to spend less
- The SDF is the trip's biggest single line after the flight, and it IS in the totals below — it is the "Sustainable Development Fee" card, not a transport charge. Indian nationals pay ₹1,200 per person per night; children 6-12 pay half and under 6 are exempt, neither of which the card models, so a family with young children is over-quoted here. The card also multiplies by DAYS where the fee is charged per NIGHT, so it runs one night high — ₹7,200 shown against ₹6,000 actually due on a 6-day trip.
- Enter overland at Phuentsholing instead of flying to Paro. Drukair and Bhutan Airlines have a duopoly on PBH and fares are high; a flight to Bagdogra plus a car to the border can save ₹15,000-20,000 a head, at the cost of two travel days.
- Indians do not need a guide in Thimphu and Paro — only beyond those two valleys and at Tiger's Nest. Hiring a car and driver locally (Nu. 2,000-3,000 a day) is much cheaper than a packaged guided tour if you are comfortable arranging your own days.
- Most monument entries are a flat Nu. 500 and children under 12 are free — the sightseeing itself is inexpensive. The money goes on the SDF, the flight and the hotel.
- The ngultrum is pegged 1:1 to the rupee and Indian rupees are accepted everywhere (₹500 and ₹2,000 notes can be refused — carry ₹100s and ₹200s). There is no currency conversion loss on this trip at all.
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The SDF — read this before you budget
Indian nationals pay a Sustainable Development Fee of ₹1,200 per person per night, mandatory and separate from everything else. Children 6-12 pay ₹600; under 6 are exempt. A 6-day / 5-night trip costs ₹6,000 per adult in SDF alone, and a family of two adults and one 8-year-old pays ₹15,000. This IS now included in the Cost Breakdown, as its own "Sustainable Development Fee" card. Two caveats: the card charges per DAY where the fee is per NIGHT, so it reads one night high; and it does not know about the half-price child rate. Treat it as a deliberate over-estimate. The rate is confirmed through August 2027. Note the car and driver most visitors hire (Nu. 2,000-3,000/day) is NOT costed here — see 'Getting around'.
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Emergencies
113 Police · 112 Ambulance · 110 Fire. Bhutan's hospitals are basic outside Thimphu and free treatment for visitors is limited; the nearest serious care is in India. Take insurance that covers helicopter evacuation if you plan to trek.
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SIM & data
B-Mobile and TashiCell sell tourist SIMs at Paro airport and in Thimphu for a few hundred ngultrum — Indian SIMs do NOT roam here for most operators, or do so expensively. Coverage is good in the two valleys and gone on the passes. Wi-Fi in hotels is slow by Indian standards.
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Best time to visit
March to May and September to November are the classic seasons — clear skies, rhododendrons in spring, festivals in autumn. October and November give the sharpest Himalayan views from Dochula. Monsoon (June-August) brings cloud, leeches on the Tiger's Nest trail and flight delays. December to February is cold and very clear, but Chele La can close in snow.
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Getting around
There are no trains and no domestic public transport worth using. Everything is by road, and Bhutan's roads are narrow, winding and slow — Paro to Thimphu is only 50 km but takes 1.5 hours. A car with driver is Nu. 2,000-3,000 a day and is how essentially everyone travels. Thimphu itself is walkable, and famously has no traffic lights anywhere.
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Entry for Indians
No visa is required. You need an Entry Permit, obtainable online in advance or on arrival at Paro airport or the Phuentsholing land border. Carry a passport valid 6 months OR a Voter ID card — Aadhaar and PAN are not accepted, and this catches people out every week. Children under 18 need a birth certificate or school ID with a photo. The standard permit covers Thimphu and Paro only; going further east needs it extended, which your hotel or driver can arrange.
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Food to try
Ema datshi — chillies stewed in yak cheese — is the national dish and is genuinely, seriously hot; kewa datshi (potato) and shamu datshi (mushroom) are the milder cousins. Red rice, momos, suja butter tea. Vegetarians eat extremely well here, and Indian food is available in every town, so this is one of the easiest international destinations for a purely vegetarian family.
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Altitude and the Tiger's Nest climb
Paro is at 2,200 m and Thimphu at 2,300 m — enough to leave you breathless on stairs for the first day. Take day one slowly. The Tiger's Nest is a 900-metre climb over about 3 hours each way and is the hardest thing most visitors do all trip: proper shoes, water, and an early start. Ponies go only as far as the halfway cafeteria.
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Dzongs have opening rules that catch people out
Tashichho Dzong in Thimphu is a working government building — visitors are admitted only after 17:00 on weekdays, and all day at weekends. Rinpung Dzong closes parts of itself without notice. Photography is forbidden inside all temples. Long sleeves and long trousers or a skirt are expected at every dzong; shorts will be refused.