Bhutan will now impose a “sustainable development fee” (SDF) on Indian, Bangladeshi and Maldivian tourists, making visits to the Himalayan nation more expensive. The decision has been taken to protect the ecology and environment of the country, amid a spike in visitors from India.
So far, tourists from the three countries had been exempt from a levy that other foreign nationals had to pay — $250 per person per day during the peak season, and $200 per person per day during the low season.
The low season is in the winter from December to February, and during the rains from June to August.
The new legislation, titled “The Tourism Levy and Exemption Bill of Bhutan 2020”, passed in Bhutan’s lower house on 4th February 2020, requires visitors from India, Bangladesh and the Maldives to pay a fee of 1,200 ngultrums (Rs 1200.17) per day, probably from July 2020 onwards.
As per Bhutanese newspaper Kuensel, Bhutan received over 2 lakh “regional tourists” in 2018. Regional tourists refers to tourists from India, Bangladesh,and Maldives.
The new levy, however, will not be applicable across Bhutan. To promote tourism in the less popular Eastern Bhutan, the SDF will not be levied on tourists travelling to 11 districts in the region. This exemption will be applicable until December 2024, after which it will be up to the new government to decide if it continues.
Also, while children below the age of five will be exempt, those between the ages of six and 12 years will have to pay a fee of Rs 600.
Though it is unlikely that this levy will reduce the number of regional tourists visting Bhutan, it will definitely make it more costly for the shoe string budget travellers most of whom travel by road from the Phuntsholing border.
No comments:
Post a Comment