If you are traveling to Bhutan from UK (United Kingdom) you need to arrange another Asian destination as there are no direct flights from UK. You can try traveling to India first and then travel to Bhutan through Air, Road and railways, choice is all yours. Whichever ways you choose for traveling to Bhutan from UK it’s all part of the adventure. If you choose traveling to Bhutan from UK through road then there are two borders crossing open to foreigners, one in the west at Phuntsholing and the other in the east at Samdrup Jonkhar.
You can choose any of the directions but most visitors choose east to west. While traveling to Bhutan from UK you need to be sure to bring a copy of your Bhutanese visa with other travel documents while entering into Bhutan from India or any part of countries.
Before traveling to Bhutan from UK, makes sure you research well about places you want to travel in Bhutan. Bhutan may be a small country in the world but for travelers there are so many things Bhutan can offer. It is a land which is undiscovered and unknown to many. After you plan to visit Bhutan you need to calculate expenditure for travelling to Bhutan from UK. For you dollars 250 per person per night may sound expensive however it’s not. Your daily tariff rate includes accommodation to five or minimum three stars hotels, food, transport, a licensed tour guide and driver.
You only have to pay if you need extra services other than that you don t have to spare your single penny. If you are traveling to Bhutan from UK you will first encountered with the Paro Airport in Paro Valley where you will be received by your tour operator. The Paro valley is the only flat valley you will find in Bhutan. It is also one of the most tourist attraction places in Bhutan. You will find the famous tourist visited area ‘The Tiger’s Nest Monastery’ known as Takstang in that valley. In most of the social media sites especially instagram, twitter and facebook accounts of tourist who visited Bhutan you will see that people have taken pictures with The Tiger Nest Monastery as their background. Similarly, there are so many places you can visit.
Traveling to Bhutan from UK is not only about making your visit to places in Bhutan but also taking you to thrilling experiences of adventures like hiking, trekking, biking, rafting and kayaking in Bhutan. You should get ready to explore yourself the land of Bhutan. If you are fond of nature and wildlife then you should go and explore the virgin forest and have mind blowing experiences with nature. There are so many wildlife parks where you will see thousands of different species of plants and animals.
If your aim for traveling to Bhutan is culture and tradition of Bhutanese lifestyles then you must witness tshechu. Tshechu is an annual festival performed every year in Dzongs (fortress), monasteries and temples where Bhutanese people come to witness the mask dances and get blessing to purify their bad deeds. There you will find Bhutanese people dressed in their best national dress, which is gho for male and kira for female. If you think that traveling to Bhutan from UK will make you miss the city life then you are wrong. The capital of Bhutan which is Thimphu offers you the modern city life. The only difference you will notice is that Bhutan capital city don’t have traffic lights and dense city however there are all facilities of city life like shops, malls, restaurants, hotels, clubs, karaoke, bars and internet café.
Best season to visit bhutan
You can visit Bhutan from UK in any season you like, but the best season recommended for your visit is during spring season. If you visit Bhutan from UK during spring season which starts from March to May, the valley comes alive with flowers in full blossom. The climate is neither favorable with neither cold nor hot. However you may face problems of lack of accommodation since it’s a peak season so, many tourists rush to visit during this season.
If you visit Bhutan from UK during monsoon season which starts from June to September you will experience heavy rain falls and high humidity with very hot climate in southern part of Bhutan. This season is very challenging for travelers because roads in Bhutan are usually blocked by landslides and even rivers are very big where adventures like rafting and kayaking becomes dangerous for tourists. If you visit Bhutan from UK during autumn season which starts from October to November you will generally see sunny with some snow in higher elevations.
This is also a peak season as most of the festivals take place during this season and climate is also favorable mostly for hiking and trekking. If you visit Bhutan from UK during winter season which starts from late November to early March is a dry season with snow covered in higher elevations, you may experience snow or slight rainfall even in lower altitude regions. It is lean season so if you happen to visit Bhutan from UK during this season you will get discount of tariff rate of $200 per person per night with good accommodation and a place to enjoy all by yourself. Usually for solo travelers lean season is the best season for your visit.
While you visit Bhutan from UKhere are few things you need to keep in mind when you visit Bhutan:
- You should refrain from passing negative comments on religion, royal family and chief abbot.
- Always ask for permission without taking photographs as there are few things which are not meant to take pictures of.
- Dress modestly.
- Don’t enter temples and monasteries without permission.
- Don’t smoke in public.
- Don’t use plastic as use of plastic is banned in Bhutan
- Don’t wash or show objects in lakes as lakes in Bhutan are mostly considered as sacred.
- Pass clockwise to all temples, monasteries and prayer flags.
- Remove your shoe before entering inside temple or monastery.
- Use your both hands to receive anything.
If you are making trips to Bhutan from UK the Tourism in Bhutan offers you with amazing tour packages according to your taste and preferences. If you are cultural and traditional enthusiast you can book culture and tradition tour packages to places like Taktsang (The Tiger’s Nest), The Punakha Dzong, Ta Museum, Buddha park, Haa Valley and so on. For those of you who love adventures and nature, you can book trekking tour packages of 11 days Jomolhari trek which offers wide range of experience of landscape, flora and fauna with spectacular view of Mount Jomolhari. Same like that there are other trekking tour packages such as 9 days Drukpath trek, 12 days Yaksa trek, 18 days Merak Sakteng trek and 9 days Dagala thousand lake trek.
The other tour packages available are Honeymoon tour packages and holiday tour packages meant for couple and family to tour around the country. Trips to Bhutan from UK offer you a wide varieties of accommodation available in Bhutan ranging from three to five starts of accommodation services. The types of accommodation are hotels, resorts, farm stays and home stays which are rated accordingly to the National 5 star rating system. All tour operators in Bhutan are required to at least provide their guests with 3 stars of accommodations so those tourists are assured of warmth and comfort of accommodation. Trips to Bhutan from UK will not only take you to beautiful places in Bhutan but will also let you explore Bhutanese life styles. You will get to see Bhutanese culture and tradition in most of souvenirs where you will see good quality of lots of Bhutanese products that you will not find anywhere.
Trips to Bhutan from UK will make you to taste the Bhutanese foods which are very spicy as Bhutanese people cannot survive without chilies. In every dish you will find chilies. Some tourist don’t like chilies and they fear to eat Bhutanese foods however travelers should venture beyond the comfort zone and try something different. Despite being spicy Bhutanese dish are very delicious. Some of the popular Bhutanese dishes are Ema Datchi which is a mixture of chilies with local cheese. You will find this dish everywhere in Bhutan. Though killing is sinful in Bhutan but eating is not. You will find meats dishes like spicy chicken, Pork and beef with red chilies. If you prefer eating something apart from rice and curry then you can go for dumplings. In every Bhutanese restaurant you will find dumplings being served. The tea in Bhutan is very different from the milk tea and coffee. In Bhutan there is butter tea made out of butter, salt and tea leaves. However, you will get milk and coffee easily in Bhutan if you don’t like to taste butter tea.
Tour to Bhutan from UK is thought to be expensive with daily tariff rate of $250 per person per night. However, $250 is not only charged as a fee for traveling in Bhutan but it also includes accommodation, transport, and a licensed tour guide and entry fee. The government has placed $250 per person per night to maintain the policy of high value low impact tourism policy. This is to help preserve Bhutanese culture and tradition as well as conserve beautiful nature and environment of Bhutan. Tour to Bhutan from UK is worth the amount you are paying because Bhutan has so many things to offer you. Bhutan may be a small country but it cannot be stopped from being one of a wonderful tour destination in the world. While the world is moving towards material development and materialistic happiness, Bhutan still live like how it was a century ago. Development is just a small portion of spiritual wellbeing and happiness.
Bhutan Tourism policy of ‘High value low Impact’ is mainly aimed at sustainability whereby tourism must be environmentally and ecologically friendly, socially and culturally acceptable and economically viable. To maintain the tourism policy the $250 is charged per person per night for tour to Bhutan from UK. Bhutan can become the number one tourist destination but due to its strict tourism policy only few tourist can afford to visit Bhutan. You will see many undiscovered places and things in Bhutan if you happen to visit Bhutan. The tariff rate that you pay to for tour to Bhutan from UK will be worth paying after you see and discover Bhutan.
If you are tourists traveling with your visa passport then you need not worry about transportation. Bhutan flight from UK will be arranged by your tour operator. The different types of transportation available in Bhutan are roads, airways, rope ways and water ways in few places. However, to enter Bhutan there is only two ways that is airways and road ways. The road is Bhutan is very narrow and during rainy season it is very risky to travel. The best way to travel Bhutan is through Bhutan flight from UK. Though there is no direct flight to UK from Bhutan you can take Bhutan flight from Bangkok, Nepal and India. The Bhutan international flight travels to these destinations. Bhutan airline and Druk Air are two Bhutan flight from UK you can choose for traveling to Bhutan. Bhutan Airline operates flights to Kolkata and Bangkok. There is only one way to travel to Bhutan for tourists coming from other countries except Indians. However, tourists can travel to India, Bangkok and Nepal and from there they can take vehicles and trains to travel to Bhutan.
All tourists who wish to visit Bhutan from UK must get a visa for Bhutan and must book their holiday trip from the registered tour operator. The tour operator will take care of Visa arrangements for visitors. The tourists will get the visa for Bhutan from UK on arrival to the airport. The visa application requires a scanned copy of your passport with minimum six month validity. After the approval of e-visa, e-visa clearance letter is sent to you or your tour operator. You will get a copy of your clearance at immigration department, after your entry to the country. The visa for UK citizen is stamped into passport upon your entry. It is valid for till the day that is mentioned in the visa clearance letter.
There are so many places to visit in Bhutan depending upon your interest. If you are adventure lovers looking for activities like hiking, trekking, kayaking, mountain biking and fishing then Bhutan has it all. A holiday in Bhutan will offer you with best life changing thrilling adventures in unspoiled and unexplored environment. If you are hiker and climber you can go for a day hike or a grueling 31 days adventure to the virgin mountain of Bhutan.
You will get to see pristine lakes, glacier and some of the most endangered species in the world. If you are in love with river rafting or kayaking then you will not be disappointed by rugged, untamed waterways in Bhutan. The six major rivers which are selected for kayaking in Bhutan are Wang Chhu, Sunkosh, Puna Tsang Chhu, Mangde Chhu, Kuri Chhu and Dangme Chhu. These rivers cut through high valley and low plains to meet up with Brahmaputra in river. For those who love mountain biking they can enjoy on road as well as off road mountain biking. Most biking trips go through well paved roads while others trail on to dirt roads as well. You need not worry about traffic in Bhutan since Bhutan has no traffic even in the capital city of Bhutan. If you enjoy fishing then you should visit Bhutan to do fishing in crystal clear river of Bhutan.
If you are just in to see different places in Bhutan then you can go into central and western Bhutan. Most travelers skip Central Bhutan either due to lack of time or because of poor road conditions. It is mistakes made by travelers because if you miss traveling to central Bhutan then you didn’t see Bhutan at all. Some of the places in central Bhutan that you must visit are Punakha, Wangdue, Bumthang, and Trongsa. Punakha is the ancient capital city of Bhutan. punakha is very significant place as it is a place to stop and scroll around admiring the serenity and the landscape filled with mountains.
The beauty of Punakha Dzong is out of words as it captivates each and everyone who visit the dzong. It is built at the confluence of two sacred rivers Pho chu and Mo Chu. You will find the sparkling of white wash walls of Dzong on the reflection of river during sunny day. There are so many histories about the place about Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel who unified Bhutan.
There is also popular monastery especially for that couples who don’t have a child and want a child in blessing. Chimi Lhakhang monastery is very popular place for tourists. The Bhutanese consider the monk who travelled from Tibet after whom the monastery is built as the god of fertility hence childless couple come and visit the monastery. You would be amazed that where science fails the religion works. The monk is known as ‘Divine Mad man’ due to his weird philosophies.
Wandgue Dzong which lies in the hill top in the shape of sleeping elephant is another tourist visit places in central Bhutan. The dzong got burned several times however people and the government together worked hard to reconstruct the dzong due to so many histories and religious imporatance of the dzong. In that place you will find the valley of Black necked crane or Phobijikha Valley in Bhutanese term. This pristine valley is a small village with some homes spread far and wide with peace and calm environment. You will also see many types of species of plants and animals in that valley. The valley came alive when you get to see black neck cranes on the side of river banks. Not only black neck cranes but also you will see lot and lot of birds’ species.
Traveling further upward is northern central region in Bhutan which leads you to one of the fascinating valley of Bumthang. It comprises of four small valleys they are Tang, Ura, Choekhor and Chumney. You cannot miss the beauty of each valley which are added by the mountains, green farms, rivulets and small waterfalls on the way. Bumthang offers every kinds of traveling like hiking, spiritual experience, shopping with local souvenirs, short walks so and so. Some of the most visited monasteries in Bumthang are Jakar Dzong, Jambay Lhakhang, Kureji, Tamshing Lhakhang.
For people looking for hiking and trekking you can go through the Ura Valley, Tang Valley and also visit to the burning lake known as ‘Merbhar Tsho.’ Trongsa is another place in central Bhutan next to Bumthang where you can travel. You could spend as few days or upto several weeks traveling in central Bhutan and don’t miss the place as you won’t find a place like this in any other part of the world. So traveling to Bhutan from UK will be the most thrilling experience which you won t forget in your life.
“Traveling to small country like Bhutan will make you happy as you are in the land of Gross National Happiness.”
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