Just as we were to walk out the door on our way to Bonaire we received an email from Druk Air informing us that the flight to Bhutan has been cancelled. Not even delayed, it has been completely removed from the schedule. Normally a cancelled flight would be OK but since it is the flight that gets us into Bhutan and we can only enter Bhutan on a specific day due to their tourist requirements, the email created a bit of angst. Panic might be more to the point.
Two hours later we had found that we could get from Bagdogra to the Kolkata airport and could catch another flight and still be in Paro, Bhutan on the date required. Instead of letting things sit for 10 days, while we were away, we contacted Druk and booked the alternate flights. After some reflection Debbie and I thought we may be able to overland it to the Bhutan border. We arrived back home, did some research and we think that the overland route is a better option.
No one can travel in Bhutan without a travel guide so we had to contact the tour company to arrange to be picked up at the border and we had to get hold of Druk Air to get a refund on the air tickets. We have done so over the phone and by email and neither of our proposed changes seem to be problematic. That said, neither party has contacted us to confirm the new plans.
This new route should provide us with some interesting scenery that we would not see from the air and my past experience with long distance cab rides in SE Asia is that you can stop when you want and take in the surroundings. In a way, the cancelling of the flight, rather than being a pain, will turn out to be a opportunity to get more out of our trip.
Our habit on past trips has been to book accommodation for the day we arrive after a long plane trip. On this trip we are going to pause 1/2 way to our destination and try to get some rest rather than jet for 24+ hrs. Last night, we researched hotels around the airport in Frankfurt. We booked a room on line in the Ibis Frankfurt Airport Hotel for one night on the trip to Bhutan and one night on the return trip. One of the reasons we picked this hotel is that it has a free shuttle to/from the airport. Hope it all pans out. Over the next short while we will spend time puzzling a few pieces of the trip together.