The tiny country of Bhutan is tucked away between India and China, up in the Himalayan Mountains. For many years the country isolated itself from the rest of the world and received no visitors. However, this changed in 1974 when Bhutan’s government opened its borders to travelers for the first time. Fast forward to now, and the tiny country is investing in ecotourism in order to care for its biodiversity and history.

Bhutan is an ecotourism destination of note

In recent years, ecotourism has begun growing as a sustainable way to travel. However, when a government of a country is keen to support eco-friendly travel, this is a great step in building a sustainable and green ecotourism industry.

When Bhutan first opened to travelers in 1974, only 287 people visited. However, in 2018, the number of visitors skyrocketed to almost 280,000. Despite this, Bhutan has been aiming to keep the number of visitors at a sustainable level. Meanwhile, to do so, the country restricted visitors to traveling on a prepaid, guided tour. This way, all the earnings went back into this amazing mountain kingdom.

Here, tourism has an emphasis on the Asian nation’s history, where visitors can see sacred Buddhist sites. Meanwhile, on the nature side of the equation, visitors can head to the wildlife parks, home to many unique species, including the takin, red panda, Himalayan black bear and the Tibetan wolf. Moreover, visitors can have the opportunity of hiking ancient and historic trails.

Bhutan reopens after the pandemic

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Bhutan once again closed its borders to international travelers. However, on September 23, the country reopened, and this time visitors didn’t need to be part of an organized tour to visit. However, travel to Bhutan got a whole load more expensive.

Currently, the country is revamping its tourism model and instead of paying a daily fee of US$200 on an all-inclusive tour package, Bhutan has come up with a different plan. Now, visitors will need to pay a daily Sustainable Development Fee of US$200 – $250. On top of this, extra costs like accommodation, food and transport are also required and are no longer included.

For anyone keen on visiting this amazingly beautiful and historic country, the following is what you need to know about what you will pay and where the money ends up.

Daily fee structure

When Bhutan reopened to tourism on September 23, the former Sustainable Development Fee rose from US$65 per day to US$200 per day for most travelers. This plan adds even more revenue to the country’s important developmental projects.

So far, the government has confirmed that the increased fee will be put towards offsetting the country’s carbon footprint from tourism. It will improve the country’s carbon-neutral infrastructure and train workers in the tourism sector while supporting Bhutan’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Why did this happen now?

According to Dr. Tandi Dorji, Chairperson of the Tourism Council of Bhutan, the pandemic allowed them to reset. It allowed them to rethink how the tourism sector can be best structured. Moreover, how it can be operated so that it not only benefits the country economically but socially as well. He added that, in the long run, their goal is to create high-value experiences for visitors. However, it will also offer well-paid and professional jobs for Bhutan’s citizens.

It must be borne in mind that, besides the US$200 daily fee, travelers will need to pay for food, accommodation, transport, fees for guides, and entry to sites. While previously, the Bhutanese tourism model was high-value and low-impact, the new model takes the idea to new heights.

However, this obviously means that only those travelers with a large budget, happy to spend more for the pleasures of eco-friendly travel can afford it. However, at least they won’t have to share all the wonders of Bhutan with crowds of other tourists.

Readers can find out more about the tiny Asian nation’s ecotourism and sustainability from the WWF website here.