Bangkok to Bhutan: How to Plan a Bhutan Tour from Thailand

Traveling to Bhutan from Thailand is often considered to be an expensive vacation, but with the cost of the tour covering everything you need, it is really easy to plan a trip to the Land of the Thunder Dragon from Thailand. In fact, once you have decided that you want to travel to Bhutan and have decided on your tour choice, there is actually very little you have to do. All tourists traveling to Bhutan are required to be on an organized pre-arranged tour, and once your tour is booked the travel agency make all the arrangements for you, including applying for your visa. So if you are worried about the extensive planning of such an epic trip, then worry no more.

How to Get to Bhutan from Thailand?

Getting to Bhutan from Thailand is easy and simple, as Bangkok’s Suvarnabhumi international Airport is one of the nine airports in five countries that have direct flights to the Himalayan kingdom. Flights to Bhutan are only offered by two carriers, both of which are Bhutanese airlines. The Bhutanese flagship airline, DrukAir, is the main airline offering flights to Paro International Airport, and is the oldest airline in the kingdom, part owned by the government. Bhutan Airlines, the newcomer to flights to Bhutan, is a privately-owned airline with permission to handle flights to Bhutan.

Both airlines offer direct flights to Bhutan, though Bhutan Airlines idea of “direct” is to stopover in Kolkata in West Bengal for 45 minutes to refuel. Bhutan Airlines offer daily flights from Bangkok in the peak season, though this is often reduced to 3-4 days a week in the low seasons of summer and winter. The Bhutan Airlines flights depart from Bangkok at 6:30am daily, and arrive in Paro at around 9:55am local time. A flight of around 4 hours 25 minutes, the economy tickets from Bangkok to Paro cost around 546 US dollars.

DrukAir has flights to Paro daily from Bangkok, with different flight departure times, depending on which day you are traveling. Flight KB153 departs at 5:00am on Monday, Thursday, and Sunday, while the indirect flight KB131, which stops over in Bagdogra for 40 minutes, departs at 5:00am on Tuesday and Saturday, and takes 4 hours 20 minutes.

The other two direct flights with DrukAir depart at 13:10 on Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Sunday, and at 14:30 on Tuesday. Direct flights take only three hours to reach Par International Airport, and the cost is the same for all flights, at 546 dollars per person for a one-way economy flight.

If you are not concerned about the time it takes to get to Bhutan from Bangkok, and are interested in making the trip cheaper, you can fly via Dhaka in Bangladesh, Kolkata in India, and Kathmandu in Nepal. Connecting flights via these three airports actually make the trip cheaper, costing less than 350 US dollars per person for one-way economy flights.

It’s easy to get Bhutan travel permit for Thailand citizens

Getting a permit to travel into and around Bhutan is easy for everyone, as the Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB) is promoting holidays in the kingdom as part of the economic growth of the country. Few tourists from around the world have restrictions on entering Bhutan, and for Thai tourists, there are no restrictions at all. On average, more than 4,000 Thai tourists travel to Bhutan for a holiday every year.

To get into Bhutan, you will need to book your trip with an approved and registered travel agency, who will handle all of your requirements for the trip. Once you have booked your Bhutan tour from Bangkok, we will make the application for your visa and travel permits, since personal applications for visas are not permitted by the Bhutanese government. Once your visa application is approved, we will forward the Visa Invitation Letter to you, so that you can book your flights to Bhutan with either DrukAir or Bhutan Airlines. You need the letter to make the booking, and cannot even book the flight without the visa approval from the TCB.

Your entry visa will be for the set period of your tour, and are normally issued for seven or fourteen days. However, the entry permit you will get at Paro International Airport on your arrival is only valid for travel in Paro and Thimphu, the capital.

Travel to the rest of Bhutan is restricted, and you will need to have the Restricted Area permit for travel to any other places in Bhutan that your tour is visiting. Checkpoints are located at major road junctions across the country, and police will regularly check foreign tourists for their permits. You also need a “temple permit” from the Ministry of Culture in order to enter any of the temples, Lhakhangs, and Dzongs across the kingdom.

All of these permits are actually done for you, and applied for by the travel agency before you even arrive in Paro, so you do not have to worry about trying to arrange them when you get here.

Travel Bhutan with Escorted by Personal Tour guide and Driver

All tourists to Bhutan are required to be on a pre-arranged organized tour of the kingdom, as independent travel is not permitted in Bhutan. This means that part of the tour package that is offered to international tourists includes the use of a personal tour guide and driver, with a private vehicle available for your use at all times. Unless you are in Paro or Thimphu, and just walking around the streets near your hotel to buy things, your guide will be with you wherever you go. While this may appear to be restrictive, it is a requirement, and is actually quite useful. Your guide is a local Bhutanese guide, who will know all about the history, culture, and local attractions that you will be visiting, so will be an invaluable source of information about the places you visit. He will also be handy when trying to buy things in Bhutan, and can help with bartering on purchases, as well as explaining the taboos of the Bhutanese Buddhist culture.

Having a personal driver is also an awesome experience. While traffic jams are completely unheard of in Bhutan, it is really nice to have someone else do all the driving. This way, you get to enjoy the amazing scenery of the local landscapes as you travel around the kingdom.

Additional information:

If you are planning a visit to Bhutan from Thailand, then the best times to travel are in the spring and autumn, from April to mid-June and late September through November. These are the peak times for Bhutan’s tourist industry, when the weather is at its best. Spring and autumn see a lot less rain than in the summer monsoon months, and are warmer than the cold winter months, with clear skies almost every day, pleasant temperatures, and amazing views of the Himalayas.

Winter is possible for visit to Bhutan, though some areas in higher elevations may be off limits due to snow. For most of the tourist destinations, though, it is easily possible to visit in winter, as they are not as cold as you might think. If you plan to visit in summer, be prepared for wet days, and bring your waterproofs. Most of the rain in central Bhutan does fall in the afternoons and evenings in the monsoon season, but there is a likelihood of all day torrential downpours, so be prepared.

In order to travel to Bhutan, you will need to meet the cost of the Minimum Daily Package (MDP), which is the amount of a single day of touring in Bhutan. In the peak seasons, the cost of the MDP is 250 US dollars per day, while in the low seasons, it drops to just 200 US dollars per day. While this may seem to be extremely high, you should bear in mind that this fee covers everything for your trip. From the hotel and all your meals, to the cost of the guide, driver, vehicle, entrance to attractions, permits, etc., the MDP covers it all. All you need is spending money to buy personal items and gifts.

Most Bhutan tours cover the main areas of Paro, the former capital of Bhutan, and Thimphu, the modern capital of the kingdom. However, while these areas are amazing and interesting, there is much more to Bhutan than just these two Dzongkhags (districts). Out to the west of Thimphu, lies a wealth of countryside that is just begging to be traveled. Central and Eastern Bhutan are ideal locations for those that want to experience some of the amazing treks this beautiful kingdom has to offer, or to experience the more authentic and traditional Bhutanese cultures that have lasted for thousands of years. Areas such as Wangdue Phodrang, Bumthang, and Punakha, are perfect for getting a better and wider experience of all Bhutan has to offer.

Conclusion

If you are planning a trip to Bhutan from Thailand, then you should first look at how to get here. While there are direct flights, they are not the cheapest, and it can be done at a lower cost by flying through other nearby countries. You will need a travel agency to arrange your tour, visa, and permits, and cannot travel to Bhutan independently. However, all that said, a trip to Bhutan, with its amazing mountainous landscapes and stunning verdant scenery, is one of the most amazing tours you can take, and will leave you breathless and eager for more.