TRAVEL TIPS
As one of the most reliable Bhutan tour operators, we guide you on for a safe journey. Some mandatory points for your information:
Visa
With the exception of Indian travelers, all visitors to Bhutan need a visa. Visas are issued only when a confirmed booking through a Bhutanese or Tour Operator is made upon full Govt. fixed tariff paid in well in advance.
Entry
Bhutan can be entered either by Air or Land. The National Airline Druk Air flies from Bangkok, Delhi, Kolkata, and Dhaka & Katmandu. Entry by road is from India through the state of west Bengal that shares a border with Bhutan's border town Phuentsholing in the south-west.
Preventing Acute Altitude/ Mountain Sickness (A.M.S)
Avoid alcohol, sleeping pills or narcotics. They may decrease ventilation, intensify hypoxemia and make symptoms worse.
Avoid heavy exercise; mild exercise is okay.
Diamox® (acetazolamide) 125 mg. tablets taken twice a day is F.D.A. approved for prevention and treatment of A.M.S. Although it originally was released as a diuretic (water pill), it also helps you breath deeper and faster. This allows you to get more oxygen. Diamox is especially helpful with the sleeping problems and other symptoms of A.M.S.
Home oxygen will relieve symptoms. Home oxygen is safe, cheap and easy to use. It can be used at night when symptoms are worse and off and on during the day as symptoms dictate.
If nothing else works, you can return to lower altitude. Going down to Denver will always relieve the symptoms of A.M.S.
Acute mountain sickness is caused by a lack of oxygen when traveling to higher elevations. This usually occurs in individuals exposed to an altitude over 7,000 feet (2,100 m) who have not had a chance to acclimate to the altitude before engaging in physical activities. (rare below 12,000 feet) Mountain climbers, trekkers, skiers, and travelers to the Andes or Himalayas are at greatest risk. While individual tolerance varies, symptoms usually appear in several hours, with those in poor physical condition being most susceptible. Headache, fatigue, shortness of breath, nausea, and poor appetite occur initially. Inability to sleep is also frequently reported. In more severe cases thinking and judgment may become impaired. An uncommon but potentially fatal complication called high altitude pulmonary edema, caused by fluid build-up in the lungs, can also occur.
The symptoms of acute mountain sickness can be prevented or minimized by gradually ascending (less than 500 meters/day) over several days to give your body a chance to acclimate to the higher altitude.
Taking the prescription medication Diamox (acetazolamide) 250 mg three times a day has been shown to speed up the acclimatization process and can be taken shortly before and during the ascent. Do not take this medication if you are allergic to sulfa drugs. This medication is a mild diuretic and may work by changing the body's acid-base balance and stimulating breathing. Dexamethasone 8 mg once a day has also been shown to be effective. However, this steroid medication may have more adverse effects. Once symptoms occur, they usually improve over several days without treatment. However, if they become severe, they can be relieved with the administration of oxygen or descent to a lower altitude.
