The worst part of a blog/w comments is that you can’t control where the conversation goes.

But sometimes the worst leads to the best. And sometimes…not.

T, I think, because you hate my devil advocating(rarely my goal these days), you took my first post too personally. On the other hand, I should have done a better job of saying, “Have all the Yes voters considered this?” and gone from there.

Dahab’s post, being that it is a first-hand account, articulates the issue quite well. Thus, I have nothing to add.

I do think it’s important to keep in mind what impact you’re having when you travel. There’s a fine line between exploration and exploitation, and that line is different for everyone. My own way of traveling responsibly is to always try to give my money to the local economy (hire local guides, not American/international companies, stay with locals when possible, eat at local restaurants, etc.), and to avoid visiting places where I feel like local communities are being exploited for commercial gain (I refuse to visit the “long neck” tribes in Thailand for this reason, though I understand others feel differently). I do believe that responsible tourism is possible. We saw a lot of examples on our trip of tourism that had a strong community development component. Bhutan is definitely trying to use tourism to raise the country’s standard of living (and it’s working, at least from what we saw). Tourists aren’t forcing themselves on the country; the government made a conscious decision to open its borders, and is doing a very good job of keeping tourism from becoming exploitive. There are many other great examples of community-guided tourism that seem to be win-win situations for both the tourists and the local communities.

Sorry for the super-long post. This issue just struck a nerve because it’s something I think about often, and am trying to resolve in my own head. In the end, I guess everyone just has to do what they’re comfortable with.

Splurge a little. The experience will be worth it!!!

I think the value that one brings to one self, to another country, and to the world in general through travel isn’t something very easily classified or even well understood until you yourself go out and do it. Not all situations can be approached from an academic standpoint.

Obviously, Bhutan sees some value in having visitors, otherwise they would not have opened their doors to them in 1974. This isn’t an invasion or an unwanted guest banging on the door and demanding entrance. I think it’s their right to pursue tourism in whichever way they wish, whether that be by opening their doors wider or closing them right back up. The traveler’s responsibility then is to respect their wishes. The changes happening in Bhutan are actually coming from the inside (witness the King’s decision to transition to democracy for one), and it’s not my right to tell them to stop or to demand that they maintain their traditions or whatever. I think one of the biggest problems of the developed world and its people is an attitude that we know what is best for the rest of the world and should tell others how to do things. Not everyone works in the same paradigms we do.

This is a complicated idea — the country is financially benefiting from your travel, demand is greater than supply so someone is going to take your spots if you don’t take them, you have very little control over Western expansion into the country, etc — but, personally, I’d feel wrong about being part of this intrusion.

Maybe if you more outlined how your intrusion benefits the people of Bhutan, I could be persuaded of the need. Even then, I don’t see you having an experience in Bhutan that leads you to convince people not to visit. Maybe you have such a great experience that you invest time in working for the continuation of responsible tourism(which seems to be the approach right now). Great tourism experiences, alas, lead to greater tourism experiences.

I guess a RTW trip is a selfish endeavor by nature. Your whole post is centered in what you and Jeff will get out of the trip into Bhutan, and the other comments seem to be feeding that monster. I didn’t vote because I don’t see it as a practical money issue. As you have outlined the idea(and that’s about all I know other than the GNH kernel which I had read about in the book “Deep Economy”), I don’t see what value your intrusion into the country adds to anyone but yourself(s). But, hey, maybe that’s the point.