First trip to Bhutan: Paro, Thimphu, Punakha and daily costs

Your own bookings or an operator's package

Since Bhutan reopened in September 2022, nobody has to buy a package. You can book every part of the trip yourself, but a guide certified by the Department of Tourism must be with you at all times, and you may stay only in DoT-certified hotels, homestays or campsites. A guide is also needed to enter dzongs and monuments. Self-drive cars cannot be hired in Bhutan. Visitors may bring their own car, with a guide and a vehicle charge. With a certified guide no route permit is needed for the western valleys; national parks still need permits, which are applied for online.

In practice there are two ways to put a week together. A licensed Bhutanese tour operator can arrange a private trip, including accommodation, guide and transport, and apply for the visa on your behalf. Packages differ in what they include. Byways Tours and Travels, Guided Bhutan Tours and Little Bhutan, all listed in the Department of Tourism's directory of licensed operators, publish such trips for two people on the Paro, Thimphu and Punakha loop. The other way is to book certified hotels yourself and hire a guide, driver and car from an operator; Guided Bhutan, for one, offers exactly that, but it quotes the guide, driver and car for your dates, group size and route rather than publishing a day rate. The directory at services.bhutan.travel lists every certified operator, hotel and guide. Guided Bhutan advises booking 4 to 6 months ahead for March to May, September to November and festival weeks, when Paro and Thimphu hotels fill early, and 2 to 3 months ahead at other times.

Certification is about the property, not its stars: the Department added one- and two-star categories to the three- to five-star hotels in 2023, and certified village homestays may host visitors too. Operators' standard packages usually start at three-star hotels, which is their choice rather than a rule.

The visa and the Sustainable Development Fee

Visitors other than Indian nationals need a USD 40 visa. Most must obtain it before travel; Bangladeshi and Maldivian visitors can also apply on arrival. The Sustainable Development Fee (SDF) is USD 100 per adult per night until 31 August 2027 for most visitors, USD 50 for children aged 6 to under 12, and free for children under 6. Indian nationals pay Nu 1,200 per adult per night, and the first 15,000 Bangladeshi visitors qualify for USD 15 or Nu 1,200 per person per day. A waiver also applies to visits of up to 24 hours within designated border-town zones. You pay both when you submit the application, for the nights you plan to spend in Bhutan, and a complete application is reviewed within five working days. You need a digital copy of your passport, a recent digital passport photo, your arrival and departure dates and a card; tell your bank beforehand, because some banks block payments to Bhutan. The visa allows up to 90 days from the date of entry.

For two adults paying the USD 100 rate, six nights and visas total USD 1,280. Travel insurance stopped being a visa requirement in April 2024, but the tourism board strongly recommends it. Passport validity, customs and the rules for Indian nationals are in the entry guide.

A first week: Thimphu, Punakha and Paro

The western valleys make a loop from Paro International Airport (PBH), Bhutan's gateway: east to the capital, over a high pass to the warm Punakha valley, and back to Paro for the hike at the end, when you have had five nights to get used to the altitude. Drukair and Bhutan Airlines fly to Paro from cities including Bangkok, Delhi, Kolkata, Bagdogra, Kathmandu, Dhaka and Singapore, so from Europe you connect in one of them. Bhutan Airlines' advertised one-way fares, checked on 2 November 2026, started at USD 246 from Delhi to Paro and USD 223 back, and USD 191 from Kolkata and USD 154 back; taxes or availability can change the fare. Flights in and out of Paro depend on the weather and can be delayed or cancelled, so leave a spare day before an onward long-haul flight. The route map shows the week; the 7-day itinerary has the day plan and hotels.

Every leg is by car with your driver and guide. Avoid road travel at night where possible, even with a driver, and in the monsoon, June to September, allow for landslides that can close roads for days.

• Day 1: your guide meets you at Paro airport for the drive along the river to Thimphu, 47 km and 1 to 1.5 hours. In the afternoon, the National Memorial Chorten (Nu 500), a white stupa about 33 m tall built in 1974 for the Third King, which Thimphu residents walk around from before dawn until after dark.
• Day 2: Thimphu. The giant golden Buddha Dordenma (free), seated above the city with the whole valley spread below it, then the Centenary Farmers' Market (Friday to Sunday). Visitors enter Tashichho Dzong, the fortress-monastery that holds the King's throne room, from 17:00 to 18:00, or 09:00 to 17:00 on public holidays (Nu 500), so keep it for the end of the day. Our Thimphu and Punakha guide covers the sights and their hours.
• Day 3: Thimphu to Punakha over Dochula, 74 km and 2 to 2.5 hours. The pass, at about 3,100 m, has 108 memorial chortens and, on a clear morning, a view of the snow peaks. The road then drops to the Punakha valley at about 1,250 m, among rice fields, where Punakha Dzong (Nu 500), the seat of government from 1637 until 1955, stands where the Pho Chhu and Mo Chhu rivers meet, its courtyards shaded by jacaranda trees.
• Day 4: Punakha. Chimi Lhakhang (Nu 500), the fertility temple built in 1499 on a hillock near Lobesa, about 10 km down the valley, is reached by a 20-minute walk from the road at Sopsokha on a farm track between rice paddies. The village houses on the way have large phalluses painted on their walls, and inside the temple a lama gives the fertility blessing with a wooden phallus linked to Drukpa Kunley, the Divine Madman. Later, cross the long suspension bridge over the Pho Chhu.
• Day 5: Punakha back to Paro via Dochula, 115 km and 3.5 to 4 hours, then Rinpung Dzong (free), the fortress above the town built in 1646, which houses the district offices and a monastery and whose courtyard holds the Paro Tshechu each spring. Above it, the round Ta Dzong, built in 1649 as a watchtower and a museum since 1968, holds the National Museum's collection of more than 3,000 objects, from thangka paintings to arms (Nu 500, last admission 16:00). End on Paro's main street of wooden shopfronts.
• Day 6: Paro Taktsang (Tiger's Nest), the temple that clings to a cliff face at about 3,120 m, some 900 m above the floor of the Paro valley, where legend has Guru Rinpoche arrive on a tigress and meditate in a cave; the first temple was built there in 1692, and the trail starts partway up, so the walk is roughly 6 km there and back and 5 to 6 hours with the visit. Entry is Nu 1,000; the Department of Tourism's 2023 list gives 09:00 to 12:00 and 14:00 to 17:00 but also says there is no lunch break, so start early and confirm the hours with your guide. Ponies can be booked to carry you up to the halfway cafeteria. Kyichu Lhakhang (Nu 500), one of the two oldest temples in Bhutan, by tradition founded in the 7th century, fits into the afternoon; the Paro and Tiger's Nest guide has the trail and Paro's sights.
• Day 7: the short drive to Paro airport and the flight out.

When to go

The tourism board describes autumn, from late September or early October to late November, as a season of bright, sunny days, feasts and festivals, and spring, from early March to mid-April, as generally dry, with the valleys in bloom. The monsoon brings rain from June to September, most of it in July and August, and can disrupt roads and services. From late November to March winter is crisp, clear and sunny, with frost and snow common above 3,000 m, which can reach Dochula. The tshechu festivals are a highlight of the year; our festivals guide has the tentative 2027 dates and the seasons month by month.

With more days, add Phobjikha first: the wide glacial valley below Gangtey monastery, 78 km and about 3 hours' drive beyond Punakha, where black-necked cranes winter; the first arrive in late October and most leave by mid-March. Haa, 65 km and 1.5 to 2 hours from Paro, fits a night at the end of the loop. Bumthang, in central Bhutan, is 212 km and about 8 hours' drive from Punakha, so it takes a full day each way or a domestic flight. For most visitors each extra night adds USD 100 of SDF per adult as well as the room, meals and car.

What a first week costs, all in

Guided Bhutan's Essential Bhutan Journey starts at USD 1,740 per adult, or USD 3,480 for two sharing a standard three-star room, for seven days and six nights. This is about USD 249 per person per day. The published price, checked on 2 November 2026, includes hotels, breakfast, lunch and dinner, a guide, driver and vehicle, entry fees, the SDF and visa.

The route matches the week above: two nights each in Thimphu, Punakha and Paro, with Tiger's Nest on day 6. Upgrades and itinerary changes are priced in a separate quote. Flights, travel insurance, tips, drinks and personal spending are extra; a complete all-in total depends on those costs.

Tipping is optional. Guided Bhutan suggests USD 10 to 15 per day from each traveller for the guide and USD 5 to 10 per day for the driver. Bhutan Telecom's Nu 200 tourist SIM provides 1 GB for seven days. The trip cost guide compares ways to budget for the trip.

Money: ngultrum, cards and cash

Bhutan's currency is the ngultrum (Nu, BTN), pegged 1:1 to the Indian rupee. Tour operators can quote in US dollars; keep spending money for drinks, shopping, tips and any fees outside your package. You can change money on arrival at Paro International Airport and at banks, larger hotels and authorised exchange businesses in Thimphu.

Cards work in town hotels and larger shops, and cash machines and banks accept Visa and Mastercard, but outside the towns you need cash: carry ngultrum, or US dollars in USD 50 and 100 notes, for tips, small shops and the valleys. On 2 November 2026, the Bank of Bhutan listed a buying rate of Nu 93.55 per US dollar for notes of USD 50 and above, and Nu 90.74 for USD 5, 10 and 20 notes. Bank of Bhutan's goBoB and Bhutan National Bank's MyPay wallet apps can be linked to an international card and are taken widely; monument gates take cash or goBoB. Limits on carrying cash in and out are in the entry guide.

SIM cards and data

Most hotels have Wi-Fi, but the tourism board recommends a visitor SIM for a more reliable connection. SIM cards are sold at the visitor information centre at Paro International Airport on arrival, at Bhutan Telecom and TashiCell branches and through authorised agents in towns, and you need a copy of your passport. Bhutan Telecom's tourist SIM costs Nu 200 for 1 GB of data and Nu 100 of calls and texts over 7 days, or Nu 300 for 2 GB over 14 days; its tourist eSIM costs Nu 1,100 for unlimited data over 7 days. A SIM can be booked ahead at bookyoursim.bt.bt.

Dzongs, temples and photographs

Dzongs are fortresses built for defence and administration, and many still house both government offices and monks. You enter them with your guide. In dzongs and temples, wear clothing that covers you from shoulders to knees, with long sleeves and covered legs in temples; take off your hat and, at the door of a temple, your shoes. Photographs are not allowed inside temples, monasteries and official buildings, so keep the camera for courtyards and outside walls. Walk clockwise around chortens and prayer wheels, keeping them on your right, as the Bhutanese do. Do not stand between people praying and an altar, and be discreet when photographing people at prayer or during a festival.

Entry fees on this route are Nu 1,000 for the Tiger's Nest and Nu 500 each for the Memorial Chorten, Tashichho Dzong, Punakha Dzong, Chimi Lhakhang, Kyichu Lhakhang and the National Museum; Rinpung Dzong and Buddha Dordenma are free, and children aged 6 to under 18 pay half while those aged 5 and under are exempt. They are paid at the gate in cash or with goBoB. Smoking is banned in public places, and visitors may not normally bring a drone. Handicrafts and other non-antique artefacts need an Export Permit for Non-Antique Artefacts; handicraft shops usually seal goods that may be exported.

Altitude, health and safety

The route climbs gently and then a lot: Dochula lies at about 3,100 m and the Tiger's Nest at about 3,120 m, while Punakha, at about 1,250 m, is a warm night lower down. Altitude sickness is a risk at those heights, and Germany advises seeing a doctor experienced in altitude medicine before final planning for travel above 2,300 m. Take insurance that covers emergency helicopter evacuation and repatriation: Thimphu's hospital has a reasonable emergency department, but its helicopter depends on availability and the weather.

Bhutan has very little crime. Keep away from stray dogs, which can be aggressive in packs in the early morning and evening, and go straight to a hospital for rabies treatment after a bite. The emergency numbers are 112 for an ambulance, 113 for the police and 110 for fire, and the Department of Tourism answers visitors on +975 17661974 (2300 from a Bhutanese phone). Check your own government's travel advice too.