Travel to Bhutan and its capital Thimphu

Up to the present, one can only fly into Bhutan with DRUK AIR, the national Bhutanese airline: departing from New Delhi, Kalkota (Calcutta), Kathmandu, Bangkok, Dacca, Yangon. Every visit to Bhutan will lead to the capital Thimphu. It would be an error to judge Thimphu as typical for this Himalayan country which is still very much characterizes by its Buddhist tradition and religion.

Thimphu has taken an awe inspiring development during the last 20 years: in 1987 it counted about a mere 15.000 inhabitants, today about 60.000 inhabitants crowded in the same space. The narrow Thimphu valley, altitude ca. 2500 meters, offers little additional room for new houses; therefore many old one storey houses are being replaced by four storey buildings. Regrettably, this leads to the traditional Bhutanese architecture suffering a considerable set back. Especially severe is, at present, the air pollution caused mainly by the exploding motor vehicle traffic.

But the moment the visitor gets acquainted with the impressive Thimphu monastery-castle (Dzong) where H.M. the King and His Holiness the Je Kempo have their offices, or with the serene temples, chorten and monasteries in the outskirts of Thimphu, he is reconciled. And this even more as soon as his tour leads him or her through the wonderful mountainous landscape of the interior of Bhutan.