Bhutan has no embassy in Paris and no flight from Europe, and neither matters: the visa is arranged online by your tour operator, and the way in is a short flight from Asia. This page explains a Bhutan trip from France, Belgium or French-speaking Switzerland. It is in English for now; a French version of this site is planned.
How to get there
From Paris, Lyon, Brussels or Geneva you fly first to one of the cities that Drukair and Bhutan Airlines serve. Delhi is the most direct for most travellers. Bangkok and Dubai are the alternatives, and Kathmandu makes sense if Nepal is part of the same journey. The flight from Kathmandu to Paro passes Everest on a clear day. Our page on getting to Bhutan has the full list.
Spend a night in the connecting city each way. Aircraft use Paro only in daylight and clear weather, and a departure is sometimes held over to the following morning, so a tight connection to a long-haul flight home is a risk not worth taking. An overnight stop in Delhi means entering India, which requires an Indian visa: check before you choose.
Visa and the nightly fee
French, Belgian and Swiss citizens need a visa approved before travel. It costs US$40. We make the application when you book, and need only a scan of your passport, valid for six months after the trip, and a photograph. Each visitor also pays the Sustainable Development Fee: US$100 a night for adults, US$50 for children aged 6 to 11, nothing for children under 6. Our prices, in US dollars per person, include both.
Time difference
Bhutan is five hours ahead of France in winter and four in summer.
Festivals, dzongs and food
Many French-speaking guests plan around a festival: the masked dances of a tshechu, held in the courtyard of a dzong, are the country’s great public occasions. Paro Tshechu is in spring and Thimphu Tshechu in autumn, and our article on how to choose a festival compares them with the smaller ones. Bhutanese food is its own subject, built on red rice, chillies and cheese: see what to eat in Bhutan.
How long to stay
Nine to fourteen days is usual. Nine days take you from Paro to Bumthang by way of Punakha and Trongsa on the Heart of the Himalayas journey. Eleven days, on Kingdom in Full, add the Haa valley. Walkers should read the treks compared.
When to come
Spring and autumn are the seasons, and the Toussaint holiday falls in the clearest weeks of the year. July and August are the monsoon. February is cold and bright, with few other visitors. The best time to visit Bhutan is set out month by month.
Money and practical things
Bring US dollars in clean notes, the easiest currency to change in Bhutan. The supply is 230 volts. The slim two-pin Europlug fits many sockets; the larger French plug often does not, so pack an adaptor. Insurance is no longer a condition of the visa, but take it, with cover for cancelled flights.
Travelling from somewhere else?
We have written the same kind of page for travellers from the USA, the UK, Australia, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia, Germany, India and Bangladesh and the Maldives.
Ask us
Tell us your dates and where you are flying from, and we will reply within 24 hours with a route, an outline of the days and a price. Send an enquiry, or start from a tailor-made trip.
Visa and fee checked against the Department of Tourism on 12 October 2026, and the cities with flights to Paro against Drukair on 3 October 2026. Airline timetables change with the season, so check the days before you book.