Bhutan to impose fee for visitors from Maldives, India, and Bangladesh


Maldives
PUBLISHED June 15, 2019

In an attempt to curb overtourism, Bhutan may soon levy a fee on visitors from India, the Maldives and Bangladesh.

While the country already imposes $250 (Rs17,000) on international tourists, The Fourth Bhutan Pay Commission report has recommended levying a Sustainable Development Fee (SDF) of 500 Ngultrums (Rs500) on what the country calls regional tourists. They include Indians, Bangladeshis and Maldivians, who did not pay a fee to enter earlier. Besides the fee, the government will introduce a cap on the number of tourists and foreign vehicles entering the country, along with standardizing low-budget hotels.

With the number of tourists visiting Bhutan rocketing in the past three years, reports state that the country affected by mass tourism has become "overcrowded and noisy". Many tourists complain about the unavailability of hotels rooms often occupied by tourists who enter for free. In 2017, 1,70,000 tourists visited Bhutan. This number rose three times to 2,02,290 in 2018, according to Bhutan Tourism Monitor.
Comments

Please login to Comment


NEWS ARCHIVE