Indians can no longer travel for free to Bhutan

Bhutan has long been one of the most favourite destinations for Indian travellers for its idyllic beauty and mesmerizing landscapes. Apart from being just a stone’s throw away, Indians also do not need a visa to travel to Bhutan. Indians also did not need to pay any fee to travel to Bhutan.

However, all that is about to change. The Bhutanese Govt. has decided to end free travel for Indian passport holders.

Bhutan had recently announced that starting from July 2020, Indian tourists would need to pay Rs 1200 per person per day to travel to Bhutan. For children in the age group of 6 to 12 years, a fee of Rs 600 per child per day would be levied.

Bhutan had ended free travel for Bangladesh and Maldives too, along with India.

The new fee introduced by Bhutan is called a Sustainable Development Fee. The thought behind introducing this fee was to regulate the heavy tourist traffic that Bhutan faces every year.

Indian travellers have a reason to cheer. The SDF levied on Indian passport holders is much less compared to other countries.

Passport holders of other countries have to pay 65 USD (Rs 4,631) and a mandatory flat cover charge of 250 USD (Rs 17,811) per day.

The Sustainable Development Fee has been introduced by Bhutan’s National Assembly as part of the Tourism Levy and Exemption Bill of Bhutan, 2020.

Previously, Indians travelling to Bhutan had to carry just one of the two acceptable travel documents- Indian Passport or a Voter ID issued by the Election Commission of India. They did not need a visa, and neither were they required to pay any entry fee.

Indian tourists who were travelling by road to Bhutan had to get an Entry Permit. They could do so by showing a valid travel document at the Immigration Office of Royal Govt. of Bhutan at Phuentsholing.

Indian tourists travelling by air had to sow their travel documents and the Entry Permit at the Paro International Airport. The Entry Permit allowed Indian tourists only to travel to Thimpu and Paro.

If you are planning a trip to Bhutan, you should now be prepared to shell out more than earlier.

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