Bhutan Travel Guide

Bhutan has one of the most restrictive visa policies in the world, and travel to the country is highly regulated under the government's "High Value, Low Impact Tourism" scheme. In accordance with this, virtually all nationalities require a visa to enter the country, except citizens of India, Bangladesh, and the Maldives.

The currency of the country is the Bhutanese Ngultrum, denoted by the symbol "Nu." (ISO code: BTN). It is fixed to the Indian rupee at an exchange rate of 1:1, and small Indian rupee bills (₹200 or less) can be used interchangeably in Bhutan. (This is one-way only, since ngultrum are not accepted in India.) Banknotes come in denominations of 1, 5, 10, 20, 50, 100, 500 and 1,000 ngultrum.

Addresses

Bhutan does not have addresses, though streets in the bigger towns, such as Thimphu, have been designated names, which come before the suffix lam, meaning street or road. As an example, the main street in Thimphu is Norzin Lam. Monasteries are called by their specific names, followed by the word for monastery or temple in Dzongkha - Lhakhang or Goempa (Gompa). As an example, Khurjey Lhakhang is a famous monastery in Jakar.

Bhutan is a linguistically diverse country, with many languages spoken throughout the country. Dzongkha, a member of the Tibetic language family, is the national language of the country and the mother tongue of most people residing in Western Bhutan.

Much of what is considered good manners in South Asia is applicable to Bhutan.

Tshechu is the largest religious festival in Bhutan and is celebrated in the late summer and autumn throughout the country (see city articles for local information), though Thimphu Tshechu is the most famous and attracts around 30,000 people. The highlight of the tshechu ceremonies is the masked dances by monks, which were developed according to precise instructions given by past Buddhist masters. According to Buddhist philosophy, all experiences leave an imprint in the mind stream that produces…