If the recommendation of the Fourth Pay Commission(PC) remains as proposed, then the regional tourists visiting the country will have to pay the Sustainable Development Fee (SDF). The Pay Commission recommended the introduction of SDF for regional tourists considering the increasing number of such tourists visiting Bhutan.
The Pay Commission is recommending Nu 500 per tourist as the SDF.
The Tourism Council of Bhutan (TCB) said they have been considering the option prior to the Pay Commission’s report. A fee for regional tourists surfaced as part of the TCB’s ongoing discussion on implementing regulations on regional tourists.
“Presently regional tourists are not regulated so they are not getting the best experiences. The first reason to regulate regional tourism is to give the best tourists experience to the regional tourist themselves. International tourist who pays dollars are regulated and they get the VIP treatment. They get to stay in a good hotel, they get personal guides and they get transports. So same thing we want to give them by regulating,” Dorji Dhradrul, the Director General, of TCB, said.
The council is also proposing other interventions such as using licensed Bhutanese tour guides and operators, and processing their permit online. Presently these services are optional for regional tourists.
The council will also make a concrete proposal on managing and regulating regional tourism during the next council meeting expected to be held in July this year.
“Without guides, there is a lot of problem especially for themselves. It is for their own safety, security and services. Even while visiting some important places, without a guide they have no idea where they are. So they are missing so much,” Dorji Dhradrul said.
Currently, regional tourists do not require permit fee for their entrance to the country. The Bhutan Tourism Monitor report 2018 also revealed that regional visitors increased by over 10 per cent last year as compared to 2017. Of it over 94 per cent were from India.
Meanwhile, the PC is also recommending the government to look into the possibility of enhancing the SDF of US$65 for international tourists. The fee has remained unchanged for the last four decades.
