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Help Nepal: take a holiday there

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Help Nepal: take a holiday there

A recent event hosted by the Nepal Embassy in Bangkok makes it clear that the country needs visitors to aid recovery

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Local artists arrive for a ritual dance as part of the opening of Bhaktapur to tourists at Darabar Square, Bhaktapur. EPA

Following the earthquakes that brought death and destruction to Nepal on April 25 and May 12, the government of Nepal recently assured visitors that Nepal is once again safe and ready to welcome tourists.

Out of 75 districts, only 11 are affected and only three trekking routes remain closed.

“While the damage from the earthquake was extensive, the vast majority of the country was unaffected. The safety and security of visitors is one of the government’s top priorities, as re-establishing the tourism industry is vital to Nepal’s recovery,” stressed Nepal’s ambassador to Thailand, Khaga Nath Adhikari, at the recent “Nepal is Safe: Visit Nepal, Help Nepal” event held at the Holiday Inn Silom Hotel in Bangkok.

Major tourist sites such as Lumbini, Kathmandu Valley, Chitwan National Park and Sagarmatha National Park have not been affected. Popular tourist activities such as trekking, kayaking, ziplining and mountaineering are still operating. The only exceptions are the three trekking routes of Langtang, Manaslu and Gaurishankar, which remain closed.

A strict examination process by expert committees has determined the safety of all affected areas. Any roads or structures that are not safe have been identified and are closed to the public, added deputy ambassador Dornath Aryal.

Thousands of Thais visit Nepal every year. The country does not want this to change and thus is enthusiastically promoting all that Nepal has to offer, such as the unique cultural diversity, beautiful natural scenery and the wide range of outdoor pursuits.

To encourage visitors, many hotels, attractions and agencies are offering discounts, sometimes of up to 50 per cent to help businesses recover. Even the visa office will be working overtime to try and ensure same day visa processing to make visiting Nepal as easy as possible.

The government’s push to promote tourism in the country comes after the earthquake that killed 8,789 and destroyed 511,390 houses and resulted in an estimated loss of 81.25 billion Rs (Bt26.8 billion) for the tourism industry. A second quake on May 12, while not as powerful as the first, is estimated to have killed more than 100 people.

“Despite concerns over continuing aftershocks, these pose no danger and do not indicate any further risk. While tourism will obviously assist with the economic recovery of Nepal, it is also hugely important for our country to return to normal to facilitate the psychological recovery of the its people,” the ambassador said.

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Source: nationmultimedia.com

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All heritage sites in Valley to reopen today

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All heritage sites in Valley to reopen today
Patan-Durbar-Square

People walk in Patan Durbar Square as pigeons fly, in Lalitpur, on Friday. The heritage site reopened for visitors on Thursday. Photo: Bal Krishna Thapa/ THT

The Department of Archaeology has informed that all heritage sites of the Kathmandu Valley will formally reopen for the general public from Monday.

Tourists and general public were prohibited from entering the heritage sites after the structures of Seven Protected Monument Zones of Kathmandu Valley World Heritage Property were fully or partially damaged in the April quake.

The seven protected monuments zones include the durbar squares of Hanuman Dhoka (Kathmandu), Patan and Bhaktapur, Buddhist stupas of Swoyambhu and Boudhanath and the Hindu temples of Pashupati and Changunarayan.

Pashupatinath

Durbar squares of Patan and Hanumandhoka were reopened for the general public on June 11 after the completion of debris management. The debris of other heritage sites is being managed to formally reopen them for the general public on Monday.

Earlier, the government had decided to reopen all the heritage sites on August 17 but the DoA, the Department of Tourism and Nepal Tourism Board collectively rescheduled the reopening of the remaining heritages sites from Monday to spread positive message to foreign tourists willing to visit the heritage sites of Nepal.

Suresh Suras Shrestha, Under Secretary at the DoA, said tourists will be given guided tours at the heritage sites for their safety. Tourists are forbidden to cross the security lines. Signboards placed in the heritage zones will guide the tourist to take a proper walking route to observe the structures.

Patan-Durbar-Square1

“Tourists are prohibited from roaming around the heritage sites in person. A group of tourists should be formed along with local guides to provide them information about the ruined structures and survived monuments,” he said. Tourists going for a tour to severely damaged Changunaryan of northern Bhaktapur and Swoymbhunath will be strictly managed. The tourists and visitors will be allowed to visit only the safe premises.

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According Shrestha, severely damaged Changunaryan is still not that safe for tourists and public visit though. Most of the structures around it are on the verge of collapse amid constant aftershocks.
The Department of Archaeology   has requested the Department of Tourism and Nepal Tourism Board to make arrangement of security personnel on the premises of the heritages sites to prevent any untoward activities and ensure the security of the visitors.

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Nepal trekking routes condition – update

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Nepal trekking routes condition – update

Here’s the latest from our team in Nepal on the current state of many of the trekking routes and climbing areas. Overall, it’s a very positive message.

Nepal-trekking-updates

Dolpo – All the trails are intact. This area didn’t even feel the tremor of the earthquake. Just a few days ago a group flew to Phoksundo and walked back down to Juphal. Some private groups are still trekking from Juphal to Jomsom. Tarak Shahi, our contact in Juphal, says he has bookings at his lodge for this monsoon. All the locals are busy in Yarsa Gumpa harvest and traveling to high mountains to collect Yarchagumba (an aphrodisiac herb which earn them a fortune).

Dhaulagiri Circuit – No damage to the trekking trails, Karma Gyalze (one of our senior Sirdars) contacted the Tea house owner at Italian base camp and the Trans Himalaya lodge in Marpha. Similarly, Sirdar, Lhakpa ‘Tomato’ has checked on the trail from Beni-Darbang-Italian base camp, where there is no evidence of damage or changes to the trail. The locals who run little tea shops at Italian BC have just came down to villages for their off-season break.

Phu Naar – No damage to the trekking trails, but there is a section in-between Koto and Metha through the woods which is prone to rock fall. This appeared after the second earthquake, with locals warning of precaution moving across this section. BB Rai through local contacts confirmed that trail to Phu – upper route – Kangla pass – Manang are fine.

Annapurna Circuit – Mingma collected information through a lodge owner, Amrit Gurung, of the Thorong La lodge at Besisahar. The trails in this area are fine, though some sections are prone to landslides when descending to Jomsom via Tilicho Lake.

Annapurna Sanctuary – Mingma collected information through lodge owners at Chomrong, Bamboo, Himalaya, Deurali and Machhupuchare Base Camp. The trails are fine, with lodges running as normal. The owner of the Mountain View lodge reported that at least 2 to 3 groups were heading towards Machhupuchare BC every day.

Annapurna foothill trek – The owner of the Green View lodge in Ghorepani told us that the Annapurna foothill trek was accessible, the trails from Demuwa-Thulo Chaur-Jogikuti-Ghorepani-Tada Pani–Ghandruk and Nayapul are fine, with locals travelling from Ghorpani, Ullare to Jaljale to collect grasses for cattle, wild mushroom and dry wood almost everyday.

Mustang – Trails in this region are fine but most of the monasteries were damaged in the quake and a few collapsed. As per Ram Bista, a lodge owner at Lo-Mathang, the King’s Palace in Chharang and Lo-Mathang also suffered some damage.

Everest Base Camp – Local guide, Chogba, reported that the trail from Jiri –Shivalaya-Junbesi-Thaksindo–Kharikhola–Paiya- ukla or Phakding is fine, with the locals travelling along this every day. The trail near Phakding was blocked by a landslide about 20 metres wide, but the locals have already made a new trail which avoids it. The trail from Monjo to Namche is fine. Tenzing, the previous monk of Tyangbuche Gompa and the owner of Rivendale and Gomba lodge, said that a few lodges are damaged in Phakding, Monjo, Namche, Tyangbuche, Debuche, Pheruche, Dingbuche and Lobuche, but most of them have been rebuilt and are ready to business.

Mera Peak – Gyalzen TT and Dawa Tamang have contacted the locals in Khare. They said that there is no damage to trails but a few tea houses suffered damage. Rebuilding is in progress and all affected lodges are expected to be in working condition for the autumn season.

Island Peak – Conditions are fine, with a few people having climbed the mountain since the earthquake.

Kangchenjunga – Karma (Chinese) has contacted the locals in Yamphudin. The trail from Gopetar to Yamphudin and across the Sele La to Ghunsa is fine. Mingma also talked with Chungdak Sherpa, a lodge owner at the Kangchenjunga Guest house in Ghunsa. He said that the route above Ghunsa to Pangpema was fine, as was the route down to Taplejung and Suketar. The locals have been travelling back and forth along this as usual.

Rolwaling – no update as yet.

Manaslu – no update as yet, though reports are that much of the trail has been affected by the earthquake.

Langtang – as has been widely reported, the Langtang Valley was devastated by the earthquake. It is difficult to imagine trekking being possible here for some time to come.

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Source: www.jagged-globe.co.uk

Tourism-reliant Nepal to seek assurances Everest is safe after quakes

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Tourism-reliant Nepal to seek assurances Everest is safe after quakes

Nepal will ask international experts to assess the safety of Mount Everest trekking trails in an effort to convince tourists it is safe to return after two devastating earthquakes closed most routes.

A trekker stands in front of Mount Everest, which is 8,850 meters high (C), at Kala Patthar in Solukhumbu District May 7, 2014. REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar

A trekker stands in front of Mount Everest, which is 8,850 meters high (C), at Kala Patthar in Solukhumbu District May 7, 2014. REUTERS/Navesh Chitrakar

The quakes, on April 25 and May 12, killed almost 9,000 people and shook mountains triggering avalanches that killed scores of climbers and guides. Experts say catastrophic landslides could be triggered during this monsoon season that begins in mid-June.

Tourists fled the Himalayan nation after the first quake and hotels and trekking companies said they have suffered heavy cancellations ahead of the autumn.

Tourism, including trekking and climbing permit fees, contributes about 4 percent of Nepal’s gross domestic product.

“After the earthquakes, many trekking groups started raising questions about the safety of hikers,” said Tulsi Prasad Gautam, the head of Nepal’s tourism department. “Their cost of insurance also began to rise. Therefore, we are undertaking the study to increase their confidence.”

Geologists from Europe, Japan and Singapore have shown an interest in conducting the studies, said Ramesh Dhamala, president of Trekking Agents’ Association of Nepal.The main focus of the assessment would be in the Annapurna and Everest regions which attract 70 percent of trekkers, officials said.Nepal has been urging tourists to visit if they want to help it recover. The country is one of the poorest in the world and many depend on tourism for their income.Climbing on Mount Everest is closed for the second climbing season in a row after Sherpas refused to rebuild broken paths across a deadly glacier and mountaineering companies said it was too dangerous to ascend.

Langtang valley, Nepal’s third most popular trekking destination, remains closed after the quake triggered a catastrophic landslide that buried hundreds of people in one village in the valley.

In a sign of the dangers ahead of this monsoon season, heavy rains triggered a landslide killing at least 13 people, including children, and dozens were missing in the Taplejung district in east Nepal on Thursday.

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Source: reuters.com

Sell Nepal, it needs us, says Exodus

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Managing director Pete Burrell urges the trade not to ignore Himalayan country devastated by earthquake.

Don’t stop selling Nepal – it needs trekkers. That was the heartfelt message to travel agents from Exodus managing director Pete Burrell at a client event in London last night. He said he was “very hopeful” Nepal would be open for business after the monsoon season ends in September and that Exodus would run a full programme of trekking and cycling tours with one exception. “We’re not returning to Langtang village yet because a whole community was near destroyed, and it would be wrong to go back there immediately. But we will go back there in the spring because they need the trekking income.”

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The company’s clients have so far donated in excess of £230,000 for the relief effort. Burrell said he was very humbled by the response and the company was determined to use the money wisely: “We do feel a huge responsibility to ensure the money is spent in the most direct way among the people who deserve it.”

He said the adventure tours operator would target Nepalese staff affected by the quake “because they have touched the people who travel with us”.

The first devastating earthquake took place on April 25, hitting 7.9 on the Richter scale. Another followed on May 12, at 7.3, and there have been hundreds of smaller aftershocks. “These are having a deep psychological effect on the Nepalese people,” he said.

The death toll stands at 8,000 with thousands more injured, and 400,000 buildings have collapsed.

Burrell explained there was no point in rebuilding until after the monsoon so phase one of the relief effort was focused on donating tarpaulin and other supplies to give people shelter, food and cooking utensils. “Houses collapsed and possessions were buried.” Phase two will be the rebuild, using local builders, and phase three will support medical camps for remote communities.

Burrell flew to Nepal eight days after the earthquake to support staff and assess the damage. He described the scale of devastation in outlying villages as being like “a war zone – something out of a World War Two movie after a bombing raid”.

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Source: ttgdigital.com

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Nepal Safe Destination for Travel

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A recurring question, perhaps fueled by poor journalism or by out-of-date advice from Governments,  is ‘Is it safe to travel in Nepal ?

The short answer is yes, it is very safe in fact. Nepal feels more safe than most other countries around the globe, possibly due to the the religious nature of the people and their natural kindness. When Nepal shook under the impact of a 7.8 magnitude earthquake on April 25 followed up by a scourge of a series of powerful aftershocks, the country’s tourism industry was struck with a jolt of an equal magnitude.

Chitwan National Park

“We have found more than 90 percent of hotels that we monitored safe to accommodate tourists,” Kosh Nath Adhikari, senior divisional engineer of DoT, said. “Of the eight five-star hotels in Kathmandu, six have received green stickers while New Baneshwar-based The Everest Hotel has received red sticker. We are yet to assess the buildings of Hotel Yak & Yeti. “The five-star hotels, which have been declared fit to accommodate guests, are Radisson Hotel Kathmandu, Hotel Shangri La, The Malla Hotel, Hotel Annapurna, Hyatt Regency Kathmandu and Soaltee Crowne Plaza.We must be able to tell them that yes we have suffered collapsed structures, but still we have many places where you can visit,” Baral said. Pointing out that Lumbini and Pokhara remained intact,

Baral emphasized the only two trekking routes in Manaslu and Langtang areas suffered the impact of natural calamity, but many other trek routes are safe. “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.”

Tourism is critical to Nepal’s economy. The World Travel and Tourism Council reports that the industry contributed 8.9% to Nepal’s gross domestic product in 2014, supporting 1.1 million jobs. Before the earthquake, Nepal was the 26th fastest-growing tourism economy out of 188 countries. Most importantly, in the long term, it is essential that people travel to Nepal again in the future and contribute to its recovery by spending generously.

I recently spoke to .Dipendra Adhikari Tourism Entrepreneur and he said this season has ended early .He added we shouldn’t loose hope and we should be prepared for the Autumn season. For decades, tourism has been one of the pillar industries of Nepal and the main source of its foreign exchange reserve. No Doubt ,After things return to normal, Nepal should make more efforts to attract more tourists, who have become one of the largest groups of globetrotters and spenders in recent years.

After All Tourism is for All and It is a most promoting Industry ,we should not let this industry with a way ,Always need the unified vision and Action to establish this industry forever.

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Source: www.ajeybharat.com

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