Bhutan to allow 100% FDI for 5-star luxury hotels

Hundred percent foreign investment will be allowed in the construction of five-star hotels in Bhutan on a selective basis to overcome the shortage of financial capital in the domestic market and up the quality of services pro­vided to tourists visiting Bhutan.

However, in the four-star hotel category, as sug­gested by the hoteliers, the government agreed that foreign investments will be allowed up to 70%, in order to create opportu­nities for the local entre­preneurs. Continue reading Bhutan to allow 100% FDI for 5-star luxury hotels

Bhutan Revises Tourism Policy

The government and the stakeholders agree on an ambitious plan to bring in 100,000 high-end tourists by year 2012.

Bhutan will be sold as a high quality and low impact tourist destination which draws visitors throughout the year by building the necessary infrastructure, setting high benchmarks for delivery of services, diversifying products, and ensuring that its benefits reach a larger segment of the population.

The consultative meeting between the stakeholders of tourism and the government in Thimphu yesterday decided on numerous reforms that will take the industry forward in the years to come. Bhutan will be positioned as a responsible, unique, authentic and quality destination anchored on GNH philosophy with minimum negative impact on natural and cultural heritage. A nine-pronged approach will be adopted to bring in 100,000 tourists by 2012. These include developing an additional 2-3 circuits, promoting new products and defining Bhutan’s brand identity, value proposition and market to target audience. Aviation capacities will be built internationally and locally with domestic helicopter/airline services commencing soon to key destinations.

Continue reading Bhutan Revises Tourism Policy

Happiness and Hazelnuts

Daniel Spitzer digs into Bhutan’s soil to make a profit and sustain livelihoods

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Courtesy: Article by David A. Andelman, Forbes Asia:Feb 05, 2010
Daniel Spitzer’s first shipment of 3,000 hazelnut trees arrived in Bhutan in December, each thumbnail-size and packed in 60 Pyrex petri dishes. The refrigerated plantlets headed straight for a hilltop laboratory-nursery just ten minutes from the airport. When they reach nearly 3 feet tall, they’ll be planted on a hilly tract in the remote eastern province of Mongar. Three years into the project, with six more ahead before marketable nuts begin dropping, it represents the first major foreign direct investment in Bhutan’s history and the realization of a dream the 53-year-old American entrepreneur has been nursing for three decades. Continue reading Happiness and Hazelnuts