This is a trip report on our 7 days to Bhutan during September 2019! We went as a group of 3 pax, and booked the trip through Druk Asia, travelling between Paro, Thimphu, and Punakha. It also included an overnight at Bumdra camp, that we were very excited for!
The 7 days, was in fact more like 6 days, as the last day was just an early morning flight. Anyways, more detailed account in following blog posts:
Cost Breakdown for 7 Days in Bhutan
| Flight – DrukAir Singapore <-> Bhutan | SGD$ 1360 |
| Tour Package | SGD$ 2156 |
| Travel Insurance | SGD$ 43.45 |
| Pre-trip Total | SGD$ 3559.45 |
| SIM Card (2GB) | 300 Nu |
| Food | 310 Nu |
| Souvenirs | 9250 Nu |
| Misc Spendings – Laundry – Donations | 2520 Nu |
| Tip | ??? |
| During Trip Total | 12,540 Nu ~SGD$ 246.80 |
Bulk of the spending was done during pre-trip preparation: ie. booking of the tour package and the flights, as well as the travel insurance. During the trip, that wasn’t much to spend on, other than extra food and beverages you wanna try, and hotel services, and souvenirs of course. you wouldn’t need to spend too much, except mostly on additional donations to temple, hotel services, and of course, souvenirs.
While tour package provided meals that already included drinks like tea, coffee, and etc, other beverages are then chargeable like beer, canned drinks. Definitely nice to try! We, however, didn’t venture to eateries where local goes.
Travel Insurance for Bhutan
When buying your travel insurance, do take note to check through your insurance if it covers the altitude for the regions you are going. Most travel insurance may only cover up to 3000m.
As we booked ourselves for a hike to Bumdra, which is situated at 3800m, we shopped around and finally found NTUC Income Insurance. Its slightly more pricey than the norm, but it suited our needs.
Souvenirs
Edible souvenirs to purchase could range from lemongrass products, Bhutanese red rice, liquor like peach wine, local alcoholic drinks, and cordyceps! Do ask your guide to take you to a local supermarket where you can find cheaper deals for food and drinks.
Not to forget too, local handicrafts like scary masks, yarn scarves, thangkha paintings, and etc.
If you intend to buy expensive souvenirs (ie. thangkha painting and cordyceps), bring more cash and don’t rely on their ATM machines and credit card machines. Sometimes, they simply don’t work, which was what happened to us.
Tipping in Bhutan
Tipping is rather subjective – some say its not compulsory and blah blah, but it is sort of expected, especially for the tour guide and driver that accompanied you on your trip throughout.
I would advise, to consult the travel agency that you had booked, with, and ask them what is the normal rate to tip at. Additionally, if you went on trekking that also included cooks or horses, it would also be nice to tip them as well.