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Nepal prays for return of tourists after earthquakes

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Nepal prays for return of tourists after earthquakes

Nepal is hoping to welcome tourists back to the country in time for the next trekking season in the autumn

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Nepal earthquake: What does the future hold for tourism? Photo: ALAMY

 Nepal is hoping to welcome tourists back to the country in time for the next trekking season in the autumn, with attractions being rebuilt and trekking routes in the foothills of Mount Everest reopening.

Following the recent devastating earthquakes that killed more than 9,000 people, most hotels and restaurants in Nepal shut down, tourism numbers fell significantly and thousands of porters were left out of work.

“It has been hard,” said Sujan Sijapati, operations manager for Intrepid Travel in Nepal. “The earthquake meant that the season finished early and we’ve already written off the coming month to focus on rebuilding for the coming season.”

Two trekking routes, including the popular Langtang trekking route, were closed and hotels damaged in the quakes on April 25, the worst natural disaster in the country since 1934, and its aftershock on May 12, which destroyed nearly half a million houses and left thousands without food or water.

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Earthquakes killed more than 9,000 people this year

The aftermath saw holidays cancelled for May, before spreading to the rest of the year. Relief and aid workers were soon filling the hotels left empty by tourists.

Kathmandu landmarks before and after quake, in pictures

There is hope for the next season however, with tourism experts and officials suggesting that the effect of the Gorkha quake will not be long term. Most trekking routes are still intact and could all be reopened by the autumn.

Several of the heritage sites damaged in the Kathmandu Valley are reopening this month, the Nepali Times reports, with Boudhanath stupa, Budanilkantha and Pashupatinath temples, among those that have been declared safe.

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Boudhanath stupa (Photo: Alamy)

 Meanwhile, the vast majority of hotels are apparently being restored as they did not suffer structural damage.

“People are keen for tourists to return – not just hotels and tour operators, but restaurants, gear companies, even those in remote areas rely on tourism. Now there is no work at all,” said Mr Sijapati.

What does the future hold for tourism in Nepal?

He explained that most tourism companies are privately owned by Nepalese people on a local scale, and so he expects they will have a tough time.

“People have been traumatised, but you can’t cry all the time. People are united to work together to overcome the national crisis. There is a strong sense of patriotism. Things are getting better and becoming more normal. Schools have opened. People are quite positive, they have started laughing and partying and voluntarily clearing debris. There is a strong sense of unity to rebuild Nepal.”

Monkeys outside of Pashupatinath temple (Photo: Alamy)

Monkeys outside of Pashupatinath temple (Photo: Alamy)

The UN’s World Food Programme revealed last week that thousands of out-of-work porters are being hired to deliver aid to the most remote parts of the quake.

Ang Tsering Sherpa, president of Nepal’s mountaineering association, said the scheme would “support the livelihoods of mountain communities who are facing great problems because of the quake”.

He said: “This is the time to help the Nepalese people. If you are serious about helping Nepal, don’t just give money, come to Nepal as a tourist.”

The Himalayas: Trip of a Lifetime

Independent assessments are being carried out to determine which trekking routes should reopen. Intrepid said it is working with independent safety experts and other government and industry organization to start an infrastructure assessment on areas like Annapurna.

Mr Sijapati said that travellers he meets on the ground in Nepal seem eager to help a country focused on rebuilding itself.

Intrepid has launched a million pound fundraising campaign that will see all profits from the company’s next season of Nepal trips donated to local and international charities working to rebuild it. The adventure travel specialist is also running three charity treks in the autumn, including one to Everest Base Camp.

Mt. Everest

Mt. Everest

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Source: www.telegraph.co.uk

There is enough room to make tourists visit Nepal this autumn: Andrew Jones, vice-chairman, PATA

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There is enough room to make tourists visit Nepal this autumn: Andrew Jones, vice-chairman, PATA

Andrew Jones is a vice-chairman of the Pacific Asia Travel Association (Pata). An experienced crisis management expert, he has worked as a key person in various countries that have suffered disasters like the 2002 Bali bombing, 2004 Thailand tsunami and 2014 Philippines typhoon besides Egypt and Japan. He highlighted the programmes and plans that helped these destinations to recover quickly. Pata has taken the initiative to help and support the bounce-back campaign for Nepal’s tourism industry. Sangam Prasain of the Post talked with Jones about Pata’s initiative to help rebuild Nepal tourism and the perception tourists have towards the quake-affected country. Excerpts:

Andrew-Jones-vice-chairman-PATAIs Nepal safe for travellers? What kind of message has been disseminated abroad? How do you assess the current and future scenarios?

I have visited Nepal several times. My first impression towards Nepal after the April 25 deadly earthquake was that the country had been devastated. The international media reports showed that everything had been destroyed. But when I arrived here, it was much better than I had anticipated. To be honest, I didn’t have any problems visiting the country. No dangers at all. In general, I don’t find Nepal unsafe to visit. There are many places in Nepal that have escaped the disaster, and there are many places to visit. But businesses are not normal yet. Like me, visitors need to know the reality that many places are safe to visit. We are not actually saying that the situation has become normal and come from tomorrow. But it’s going to be on the right track soon.

Can Nepal emerge as an attractive tourism destination from the devastation caused by the earthquake? How long will it take?

Except for a few places, every destination is intact. As tourism is a mainstay of the country’s economy and has created a big impact on the livelihoods of the people, Nepal should focus on rebranding and diversifying its products in a unique and sustainable way. We are also holding discussions with some branding experts to rebrand Nepal’s image. Bailing out the industry is challenging, but it is also an opportunity for Nepal to focus on sustainable tourism. It’s the right time for the government and the private sector to concentrate on good and quality infrastructure, particularly road networks and airports.

Obviously, good infrastructure is the driver of business as well as the country’s prosperity. Nepal currently should look for its traditional market segments like India and the European countries. Focused promotions in new markets like China could be a key to reinvigorating tourism. However, it’s too early to say how long Nepal will take to recover fully. But I am sure many people across the world are interested in visiting here, if they know the reality and feel a sense of safety and security.

When is the right time to invite tourists?

Yes, I would say September is the valid goal. The autumn season augurs well for Nepal’s tourism. There is a lot of work to be done to motivate tourists to visit Nepal. Some of the restrictions like the travel advisories and insurance policies of a number of countries are the factors that Pata is looking into currently. We are working on how such policies can be modified to encourage visitors to come here. Based on our initial assessment, there is enough room to make tourists visit Nepal this autumn. After all, Nepal needs business at this time.

So, how can Nepal motivate travellers to visit?

The best way is celebrities, high-profile people and the media. They are the medium to disseminate a positive message at a time when visitors are traumatized. Oscar-winning Hollywood actress Susan Sarandon has urged tourists to come to Nepal amid concerns that the nation’s vital tourism industry could be seriously hurt, and this is a gesture of goodwill to encourage others. After all, world-of-mouth promotion is the best strategy to promote tourism. Besides, social media can play an effective role to build the visitor’s confidence. Among several aspects, Pata is also considering or is in the process of bringing celebrities and high-profile people to Nepal.

How is Pata helping to revive Nepal’s tourism?

Pata is currently engaged in supporting the Nepal government and the private sector in both the technical and financial aspects. Our experts are currently assessing the tourism recovery initiatives in the aftermath of the earthquake. We need to be transparent to inform people which place is safe to visit. Safe and unsafe areas should be categorized and highlighted. Within a few weeks, we will have a clearer picture on such areas, and subsequently after some assessment, we will be working on a strategy—short, medium and long term—and recommend Nepal to act accordingly to bring Nepal’s tourism into the right and sustainable track. Besides, technical resources, we are collecting funds from various international organizations for the recovery process. Similarly, we have the Pata international travel mart in Bangalore this September. The mart’s major focus will be on engaging buyers and sellers to help sell Nepal’s destinations.

Tourism entrepreneurs are very worried and they have started offering heavy discounts and started to engage in price cutting. Is this a good sign?

Not at all. Instead of cutting prices and offering heavy discounts, the industry should maintain their quality and enhance the service level. If you adopt undercutting measures, it will affect your business greatly, and ultimately you will have to lay off your staff and that could make many people jobless. So discounts and undercutting measures practically do have adverse effects on the whole industry.

What role should the government play at this critical time? Don’t you think that earthquake-proof tourism infrastructures are the need of the hour?

The Tourism Ministry should be able to bring all the stakeholders under one roof. Not only the government, it’s time for everyone to join hands to promote Nepal. In fact, the April earthquake is a wakeup call. Its lesson learning for a country like Nepal because natural disasters could occur again and the country should be well prepared to tackle them. The aftermath of the quake has not only made things challenging, but also provided an opportunity for Nepal to do things in the right way. After all, Nepal, which relies heavily on tourism, has an opportunity to rebuild its infrastructure in a sustainable way.

Even investors are interested in investing in Nepal after the disaster because there is a window of opportunity here.

source: ekantipur

Pokhara hotels unaffected by quake

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Pokhara hotels unaffected by quake
Landmark-pokhara-hotel

Hotel Landmark Pokhara

Hotels and restaurants of Pokhara have not suffered any damage due to the earthquake of April 25.

Tourism entrepreneurs of the lake city say all hotels, ranging from five-star to tourist standard, are safe. Bharat Raj Parajuli, president of Paschimanchal Hotel Association Pokhara (PHAP), said the association has not received report of physical damage suffered by hotels in Pokhara so far. “Though the lakeside area wars a deserted look as there are not tourists, our hotels and restaurants are safe,” he added.There are around 400 hotels in the lakeside area. Among them, 300 hotels are affiliated with PHAP.

Following the earthquake, PHAP had asked its member hotels to submit report of physical damages caused by the earthquake. It has also directed its members to make assessment of the hotel structures from engineers.

“All our member hotels have already made physical assessment of their structures. None of the hotels have reported any damage. So we have concluded that all hotels here are safe,” he added.

Engineer Rijan Poudel, who made assessment of more than a dozen hotels, said he found no problem in structures of the hotels that he assessed. “I can say that these hotels are perfectly safe,” he added. “Even tall buildings are safe to stay.”

Hotel Landmark Pokhara

Hotel Landmark Pokhara

Sharada Mohan Kafle, an engineer with Pokhara Sub-Metropolitan Office, also said they have found no problem in hotel buildings. “Some big hotels have submitted applications to us, seeking our help for technical assessment of their buildings. Our engineers have not found any problem in buildings that they have assessed so far,” he added.

Tourism entrepreneurs say tourists will not have to worry about hotel buildings. “All the hotels in Pokhara are safe. Thus we have invited tourists to come here and stay without any tension,” Ganesh Bahadur Bhattarai, coordinator of Pokhara Tourism Recovery Committee, said.

source: Republica

25,000 tourists to Kailash affected

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25,000 tourists to Kailash affected

Around 25,000 foreign tourists planning to visit Kailash Mansarovar via Nepal have been stopped after the Chinese government blocked all the border points with Tibet citing the earthquake. Around 25,000 foreigners had booked for tour of Kailash Mansarovar through 38 tour and travel companies.

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No tourist, however, has cancelled booking until now, according to President of Kailash Tour Association Prakash Shrestha. Tourism entrepreneurs demand that the tour should be opened even by opening the Hilsa point of Humla. Shrestha says taking 25,000 foreigners to Kailash Mansarovar via Nepal will be a huge relief at a time when tourism sector has been ravaged by the earthquake. The entrepreneurs have informed the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, Department of Tourism and Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) but there has not been any breakthrough. “25,000 tourists are still ready to come once we give them time,” he adds.

China has closed border points in Tatopani, Rasuwa and other places stating there can be landslides. Shrestha says the entrepreneurs have urged the government to take initiative to allow tourists to visit Kailash Mansarovar by helicopters or on foot from Nepalgunj-Surkhet. Indian, Russian, Malaysian and other European tourists have booked to tour Kailash Mansarovar. Around 80 percent of tourists going to this area are Indians. Around 40,000 visit Kailash Mansarovar via Nepal every year.

The time from May-July is considered the main season to visit Kailash Mansarovar. Nepali tourism entrepreneurs make all arrangements for tourists to visit Kailash Mansarovar. Around 80 percent of these tourists remain in Nepal for 7-10 days while the rest 20 percent remain for 4-7 days. Tourists visiting Kailash Mansarovar spend the most after those coming for mountaineering.

Entrepreneurs claim that over 100,000 will get employment if these 25,000 tourists were to come to Nepal immediately. “The government must, therefore, facilitate it. Many hoteliers and tourism entrepreneurs will benefit if these 25,000 stranded tourists were to be brought to Nepal.

Tourism Ministry seeks help of Foreign Ministry

The Tourism Ministry has written to the Foreign Ministry urging it to take diplomatic initiative with the Chinese government to open the border with Tibet. Director General of the Department of Tourism said the initiative is being taken at the level of minister. “The road toTatopani has already been opened. We are trying to bring these 25,000 tourists to Nepal by any means,” he added.

Source: karobardaily

Nepal tourism appoints son of Edmund Hillary to promote Everest mission

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Nepal tourism appoints son of Edmund Hillary to promote Everest mission

After the Earthquake Nepal’s Everest missions has taken a back seat as people are weary to scale the peaks in fear of avalanches. The Nepal government on May 28, 2015 observed the international Everest Day marking the conquest of the world’s highest peak by Edmund Hillary and Tanzing Norgey Sherpa 62 years ago. The day was observed with intentions of reviving tourism in the country.

Peter-Hillary-son-of-Edmund-Hillary

In a bid to call back tourists the Nepalese Tourism Minister Kripasur Sherpa appealed to international tourists to visit the country. He assured them that there are still many safe and beautiful places which include heritage and cultural sites along with trekking trails that have remained intact despite the devastating earthquakes.

The minister looked for support from the private sector. He felt that together the public and private sector can rebuild the losses that Nepal has met with.

The mountaineering sector was suffering losses since 2013 when 16 mountain guides were killed in April 18. But the Earthquake in central and North-West Nepal was hit by the devastating earthquakes. The avalanche from the quake killed 18 people which had 5 foreigners and all expeditions had to be brought to a halt.The area is under grave threat owing to melting glaciers and continued avalanches. The country needs faith and support from international tourists and climbers to get things back in tempo.

Before the quakes thousands of climbers trekked the Everest each year providing employment to the Sherpas and bringing millions of dollars for the Government. If Everest mission should stop it would amount to grave losses for the government. So the government has appointed 19 goodwill ambassadors which include Peter Hillary, son of Edmund Hillary, Jamling Tenzing, son of Tenzing Sherpa, Junko Tabei, the first women Everest Summiteer from Japan and Reinhold Mesner, Italy, who climbed the Everest without oxygen for the first time. They will help promote tourism in Nepal.

Source: Travel And Tour World

Over 70% of glacier volume in Everest region could be lost by 2100

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Over 70% of glacier volume in Everest region could be lost by 2100

A team of researchers in Nepal, France and the Netherlands have found Everest glaciers could be very sensitive to future warming, and that sustained ice loss through the 21st century is likely. If greenhouse-gas emissions continue to rise, glaciers in the Everest region of the Himalayas could experience dramatic change in the decades to come according to a research published in The Cryosphere, an open access journal of the European Geosciences Union (EGU).

Instruments used to study the Mera Glacier region of the Dudh Kosi basin Credit: Patrick Wagnon

Instruments used to study the Mera Glacier region of the Dudh Kosi basin Credit: Patrick Wagnon

“The signal of future glacier change in the region is clear: continued and possibly accelerated mass loss from glaciers is likely given the projected increase in temperatures,” says Joseph Shea, a glacier hydrologist at the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development (ICIMOD), Kathmandu, Nepal, and leader of the study.

The glacier model used by Shea and his team shows that glacier volume could be reduced between 70% and 99% by 2100. The results depend on how much greenhouse-gas emissions continue to rise, and on how this will affect temperature, snowfall and rainfall in the area.

“Our results indicate that these glaciers may be highly sensitive to changes in temperature, and that increases in precipitation are not enough to offset the increased melt,” says Shea. Increased temperatures will not only increase the rates of snow and ice melt, but can also result in a change of precipitation from snow to rain at critical elevations, where glaciers are concentrated. Together, these act to reduce glacier growth and increase the area exposed to melt.

Glaciers in High Mountain Asia, a region that includes the Himalayas, contain the largest volume of ice outside the polar regions. The team studied glaciers in the Dudh Kosi basin in the Nepal Himalaya, which is home to some of the world’s highest mountain peaks, including Mt Everest, and to over 400 square kilometres of glacier area. “Apart from the significance of the region, glaciers in the Dudh Kosi basin contribute meltwater to the Kosi River, and glacier changes will affect river flows downstream,” says Shea.

Changes in glacier volume can impact the availability of water, with consequences for agriculture and hydropower generation. While increased glacier melt initially increases water flows, ongoing retreat leads to reduced meltwater from the glaciers during the warmer months, with greatest impact for the local populations before the monsoon when rainfall is scarce. Glacier retreat can also result in the formation and growth of lakes dammed by glacial debris. Avalanches and earthquakes can breach the dams, causing catastrophic floods that can result in river flows 100 times greater than normal in the Kosi basin.

To find out how glaciers in the region will evolve in the future, the team started by using field observations and data from local weather stations to calibrate and test a model of glacier change over the past 50 years. “To examine the sensitivity of modelled glaciers to future climate change, we then applied eight temperature and precipitation scenarios to the historical temperature and precipitation data and tracked how glacier areas and volumes responded,” says study co-author Walter Immerzeel of Utrecht University in the Netherlands.

Part of the glacier response is due to changes in the freezing level, the elevation where mean monthly temperatures are 0°C. “The freezing level currently varies between 3200 m in January and 5500 m in August. Based on historical temperature measurements and projected warming to the year 2100, this could increase by 800–1200m,” says Immerzeel. “Such an increase would not only reduce snow accumulations over the glaciers, but would also expose over 90% of the current glacierized area to melt in the warmer months.”

The researchers caution, however, that the results published in The Cryosphere should be seen as a first approximation to how Himalayan glaciers will react to increasing temperatures in the region. Patrick Wagnon, a visiting scientist at ICIMOD and glaciologist at the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement in Grenoble, France, says: “Our estimates need to be taken very cautiously, as considerable uncertainties remain.” For example, the model simplifies glacier movements, which impact how glaciers respond to increases in temperature and precipitation.

But the researchers stress in the paper that “the signal of future glacier change in the region is clear and compelling” and that decreases in ice thickness and extent are expected for “even the most conservative climate change scenario.”

The research team is composed of J.M. Shea (International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development [ICIMOD], Kathmandu, Nepal), W.W. Immerzeel (ICIMOD and Department of Physical Geography, Utrecht University, the Netherlands), P. Wagnon (ICIMOD and Laboratoire d’étude des transferts en hydrologie, Institut de Recherche pour le Développement, Grenoble, France), C. Vincent (Laboratoire de Glaciologie et Geophysique de l’Environnement, CNRS, Grenoble, France) and S. Bajracharya (ICIMOD). – ICIMOD

For more info : www.the-cryosphere.net