Smoking at Bhutan Airports (PBH)

Bhutan’s only international gateway, Paro International Airport (PBH), is entirely smoke-free. The airport’s own facilities pages detail every café, shop and service in its small terminal — from the two boarding-gate cafés to the duty-free counter — and none of them is a smoking room, indoors or outdoors. Bhutan’s Tobacco Control Act bans smoking in most public places, and the airport’s grounds fall squarely within that.

For international travel through Bhutan, Paro (PBH) is the only option: the country’s sole international airport, set in a mountain valley west of the capital Thimphu.

How Bhutanese Airport Smoking Works

Bhutan’s Tobacco Control Act, first passed in 2010, restricts smoking broadly:

Smoking is banned in most indoor and outdoor public places and on public transport, which covers the airport terminal and its grounds
Hotels, bars and similar venues may set aside their own smoking rooms at the owner’s discretion — a provision for hospitality premises, not transport facilities
A July 2021 amendment legalised the sale of tobacco products through authorised micro shops and groceries, reversing the original nationwide sales ban; it did not relax the public-place smoking restrictions
No vaping facility is published at the airport, the same as no smoking area is published

Paro International Airport (PBH)

Bhutan’s only international airport, famous for a landing approach between steep valley walls. Paro Airport is entirely smoke-free — the small terminal’s published services, from its two boarding-gate cafés to its duty-free shop, include no smoking room, and the outdoor apron and forecourt fall under the same public-place ban. The airport handled just under 190,000 passengers in 2023.

Tips for Smokers at Bhutan’s Airport

There is no smoking area anywhere at Paro Airport, before or after security, indoors or outdoors
Since 2021, cigarettes can be bought legally at authorised shops in Bhutan; that does not change the smoking ban itself
Plan to wait until you have left the airport grounds if you need to smoke
No vaping facility is published either — the airport has no smoking area of any kind

Bhutan Airports Compared: Indoor, Outdoor & After Security

Airport	After security	Indoor room	Outdoor area
Paro International Airport (PBH)	–	–	–

Last updated: July 11, 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

Can you smoke at Paro International Airport (PBH)?

Paro International Airport is entirely smoke-free — no smoking room or outdoor area is published anywhere on the airport grounds, and Bhutan’s public-place smoking ban covers the terminal both indoors and outdoors.

Is there a smoking area at Bhutan's main airport?

The airport’s own facilities listings cover every café, shop and service in the small terminal without naming a smoking room, consistent with Bhutan’s broader restrictions on smoking in public places and on public transport.

Are e-cigarettes and vapes allowed at Bhutan's airport?

The airport publishes no vaping facility, the same as it publishes no smoking area. Treat vaping as unavailable at Paro, the same as cigarettes.

Can you buy cigarettes in Bhutan?

Yes — a July 2021 amendment to the Tobacco Control Act legalised the import, sale and purchase of tobacco products through authorised micro shops and groceries, reversing the original 2010 nationwide sales ban. Smoking in public places, including the airport, remains restricted regardless of where the tobacco was bought.

What is Bhutan's tobacco law?

Bhutan’s Tobacco Control Act, passed in 2010, bans smoking in most indoor and outdoor public places and on public transport, with an exception letting hotels, bars and similar venues set aside their own smoking rooms at the owner’s discretion — a provision aimed at hospitality premises, not transport facilities like the airport.