Nepal bags best exhibit award in Adventure Travel Expo in Australia

Nepal has bagged the first prize in the category of ‘Best Exhibit’ in Adventure Travel Expo held in Melbourne, Australia, February 23-24.

Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) bagged the prize for artistically designing Nepal stand and effectively exhibiting Nepal as a preferred holiday adventure destination among the prospective Australian visitors and exhibitors during the Expo.

The delegation led Sushil Ghimire, chairman of NTB and secretary at Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation met and held discussions with NRNs in Melbourne on the their role in promoting Nepal and expressed full support and cooperation from the government and NTB in jointly promoting Nepali culture and tourism in Australia.

Nat’l Canyoning Rendezvous

Nepal Canyoning Association (NCA) in association with Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal (TAAN) is going to organise National Canyoning Rendezvous in Sindhupalchowk on February 28 and 29.

NCA is organising the event with an aim of promoting canyoning as one of the main adventure sports in the country.

The professional and amateur canyoneers will share their technical and practical skills and knowledge regarding canyoning during the two-day event, TAAN quoted president of NCA Karna Lama as saying.

NCA hopes the two-day rendezvous will help promote canyoning as one of the main adventure sports in the country.

The rendezvous will be organised at Jambu and Kavre falls on the banks of Bhotekoshi River.

Buddha’s birdplace Lumbini threatened by hazardous emissions of local industries, study reveals

The industries in the Bhairahawa-Lumbini road, the area along the highway between Bhairahawa and Lumbini in Rupandehi district, have a major impact on water, soil, air, flora and fauna, health and heritage of Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha, says a study conducted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Nepal, on behalf of UNESCO.

The study thus, recommends banning carbon emitting industries such as cement, steel and brick producing factories.

The study reveals that out of 57 factories in the region, 15 major industries, including 11 cement factories, two steel factories, one paper processing factory and one noodle producer, can be considered as hazardous for the environment in terms of their production processes and pollutant emissions.

The study also found that industrial operators are releasing untreated waste into the River Dano and its tributaries making the water sources unsuitable for domestic consumption and for wild animals.

Another negative factor highlighted by the study is excessive noise pollution caused by heavy industrial equipment by cement manufacturing plants. In addition, most of the cement factories are found not using regular water sprinklers in order to reduce the negative impact of fugitive industrial emissions. The study recommends installing monitoring stations to assess the volume and consequences of industrial emissions affecting quality of air, water and overall environment. In order to conserve the natural environment of the Lumbini area and to foster the livelihood of the local communities, the study also recommends classifying the area in several zones including a restricted and several buffer zones.

Finally, the study says that procedures for the review and approval of industrial evelopment projects should be established and that they should be accompanied by an evaluation of their impact on the environment. The study also argues that the local population has gained little from the nearby industries, considering that only 0.8% of the families are found to have benefitted directly.

People living nearest to the industrial sites, or working in the industries are at the highest risk of exposure to hazardous industrial by-products such as dust, contact with allergic substances and extreme noise pollution, all of which pose serious health risks.

NTB operates tourist shuttle buses during general strike

Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has operated shuttle bus service for the tourists on Tuesday during the nationwide shutdown strike called by CPN-Maoist.

NTB operated the buses along various routes in the valley in order to facilitate tourists with transportation service to reach their destinations.

The routes covered by the shuttle bus service included Airport to different hotels route, Soaltee Mode to the Airport via Jawalakhel route and the Everest Hotel, Thamel-Durbarmarg - Airport route and Lazimpat-Maharajgunj-Hotel Hyatt-Airport route.

Similarly, major hotels also operated the vehicles to help the tourists during the general strikes

Nepal participates in Italy tourism fair

Nepal participated in BIT 2013, one of the biggest tourism fairs in Italy, held in Milan from February 14-17.

According to Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), the Nepal stand remained fairly busy. "It seemed that the host of the Italians are more interested in Cultural tourism than the adventure as apparent amongst the other European countries.” according to NTB.

"BIT could be one the great bridge to reach among the Italians if pre and post promotional programs could be carried on synchronizing this event and seeing the prospect subject to interest manifested by the Nepali travel agents, if sky is the limit," said Aditya Baral, director of NRB, who was one amongst the others to participate in the fair.

Nepal promoted in 12th TITF in Bangkok

Nepal was promoted in the 12th Thai International Tourism Fair, TITF 2013 held at the state-of-the-art Queen Sirikit International Convention Centre, Bangkok from February 14-17.

The four-day consumer fair organised by the Thai Travel Agents Association saw an overwhelming footfall of 850,000, organisers said.

Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) participated in the fair along with four trade companies -- Global Holidays Tours and Travels Pvt. Ltd, Asia Explore Adventures & Travel, Divine International Explore & Treks Pvt. Ltd and Kathmandu Group of Hotels.

“Nepal's booth attracted a large number of Thai visitors, most of whom were Buddhists. The booth received an excellent proportion of queries and we saw a prospect of increase in number of arrivals from Thailand in the coming seasons,” NTB said.

TITF is organised twice every year to cash in on two major holidays in Thailand, which fall on March-April and October.

TITF is the largest consumer fair in Thailand and among the top ten in the ASEAN region.

Nepal participates in West India sales mission

Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) along with six Nepali private sector participants successfully organised sales B2B missions in three cities - Indore in Madhya Pradesh and Surat and Rajkot in the state of Gujrat recently.

In each city, NTB and the tour operators presented the wide range of tourism attractions, products and services to the potential tour operators.

Nepali tour operators and all prominent tour operators in the respective cities took part in the B2B sessions in order to renew the old connections as well as to initiate new business relationships. Similarly a good number of local media were present in the events, said NTB.

“Nepal received an encouraging response in Indore and Surat. The event in Rajkot was attended by more than 90 tour operators and media, a remarkable turn out for a small city like Rajkot.”

Namche Bazaar

Namche Bazaar village is located on crescent shaped mountain slopes that offer stunning views of the mountains across the valley. It is a grueling 3 to 4 hour climb up from the river to Namche, and at 3,500 metres, it is possible to suffer altitude sickness here. Therefore, it is advisable to spend at least two nights in the village to acclimatize.

Traditionally the village was a trading post, with locals bartering yak cheese and butter for agricultural goods grown at lower altitudes. However, after Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay's successful climb of Everest in 1953, the dynamics of the village changed forever as climbers and trekkers soon followed in their wake. At first the groups came in a trickle, but in the 60s and 70s this turned into a torrent, and being located at a confluence of trekking trails, Namche was best served to meet their needs. In addition, as Namche is the first place on the Khumbu trek that is above altitude sickness threshold, most travelers prefer to spend at least two nights here in order to acclimatize. Still, despite the village's popularity with trekkers, geographical restraints have contained its growth, and it remains a small settlement with no more than 60 dwellings.

Namche has prospered from the tourist trade, and according to government statistics it is the wealthiest district in Nepal, with 7 times the average national income and twice that of the capital, Kathmandu. In addition to an abundance of hotels, the village also boasts three small museums, a stupa, monastery, several cafes (locally known as bakeries) and many well stocked stores.
Namche has several official money changing facilities, and as it is the only place in the region to offer this service (besides Lukla), travelers should ensure that they have sufficient cash for the remainder of their journey before leaving the village. NB: The rate of exchange in Namche is much lower than in Kathmandu, and so it is advised to only use the facilities in Khumbu as a last resort or for changing small amounts of money.

Imja Tse Peak - 6183m

Imja Tse, better known as Island Peak, is located towards the eastern end of the Nepalese Himalaya.  First named Island Peak in 1951 by the distinguished British mountaineer, Eric Shipton, he claimed it resembled ‘an island in a sea of ice’.  It was initially conquered  in 1953 by a British team preparing for an assault on Everest; in fact Tenzing Norgay was a team member on the first ascent.

Island Peak is a favourite of mountaineers, requiring little prior mountaineering experience.  It should only be tackled though in the company of a highly trained mountaineering guide.

Davis Falls

Davis Falls is one of the popular tourist destinations of Nepal. It is known as Patale Chango in Nepali. The Gupteshwar Cave is located near this fall. The waterfall gets its water from the Phewa Lake. The Davis Falls is a unique waterfall around 2 kms from the centre of Pokhara city. This falls flows directly into a narrow and deep canal which has no ends. The name of the waterfall is related to different stories. Some say that the name was given to this waterfall because a tourist named David fell and died in this waterfall.

On the other hand the local residents call it Devi in Nepali which means immortal God. This waterfall is also known as Davy's fall, Davis' fall or David's fall. The scenic and natural beauty near the falls is extremely impressive. It is an exciting place to spend a day and enjoy nature.

Nepal participates in Mumbai travel-trade fair

Nepal participated in India’s largest international Travel and Trade Fair (TTF) that took place in Bombay Exhibition Centre, Mumbai, from 8 to 10 February 2013.

Hundreds of visitors during the three days fair inquired about the Lord Pasupatinath Temple, Manakamana, Muktinath and other holy places, said Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) in a statement.

“The younger visitors were more enthusiastic about soft adventure like trekking and leisure. They also expressed their desire to visit Nepal in near future, and asked about the frontier formalities.” said NTB.

Similarly, the board also distributed its promotional collaterals such as traveler’s information, adventure attraction brochures, national parks, pilgrimage sites, posters on Pasupatinath Temple, Bhaktapur, Janaki Temple, Rara Lake, Mt. Everest, information and religious DVDs, and typical nepali souvenirs.

More than 900 exhibitors from 26 countries participated in the event, said NTB.

Far Western trade, tourism fest from March 4

Far Western Industrial Trade Fair and Kanchanpur Tourism Festival 2013 is schdueld to start from March 4 in Kanchanpur.

Kanchanpur Chamber of Commerce and Industry in association with Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry along with other partners in the district are joinly organising the event with an aim to promote agriculture and tourism industry in the area, said the organisers in a press meet on Monday. It will run till 14 March.

The main focus of the event will be agriculture and forestry, automotive, ayurvedic and herbal products, food and beverage, furniture and furnishings among others of the local area.

Similarly, the trade fair and tourism festival will also have the stalls focusing on employment generation, increase in the services of banking and financial institutions, information and technology, said the organisers.

Pottery Square

Bhaktapur’s two Pottery Squares are world renowned, and so are the many potters that can be seen working there on their traditional wooden wheels. The first Pottery Square is located at Talako, some 500m to the southwest of Taumadhi Square, on the way to the Trolley Bus Terminal.

Here visitors will find potters giving shape and size to lumps of black clay, and earthenware they make ranges from such household goods as pots and jars to cheap souvenir items as animals and birds. As pottery in Bhaktapur is a family job, visitors may chance upon the entire family doing their parts of work. Right within the complex is a two-floored temple that houses an ornate image of Ganesh, erected in a very traditional way.

The pagoda dates back to the 14th century. Bhaktapur’s second Pottery Square is located to the east of the Dattatraya Square. Here also, visitors will see the ancient city’s wellknown craftsmen sunk in what they have inherited from their ancestors.

DATTATREYA TEMPLE

Constructed by King Yaksha Malla, the Dattatreya Temple is found in the Dattatreya Square. This is an imposing structuring towering three stories high and is said to have been built from a stem of just one tree.

The Dattatreya Temple is an important structure in Nepal. It is a testament to the history and the toughness of its people since it has survived not just the test of time, but several calamities as well. This includes the 1934 earthquake that brought down dozens of other ancient buildings in the Kathmandu Valley.

55-WINDOW PALACE

Built by Jitamitra Malla, the former king, the 55-Window Palace was used as the official royal family residence until 1769. The palace was originally finished in 1427. During the seventeenth century, the palace was revamped. Today, the palace has been converted into a National Gallery and it houses several pieces of art.

The 55-Window Palace gets its name from its balcony designed with a total of 55 windows. This is considered by many as a woodcarving masterpiece because of its uniqueness and elegance.

Bhaktapur Durbar Square

Bhaktapur or Bhadgaon which lies 14 km east of Kathmandu. The meaning the Bhadgaon is “city of devotees". It is the home of medieval art & architecture and still retains its rich medieval aroma. A city of farmers is also known for its pottery and weaving. It is the most charming and

the best preserved of the valley’s three cities. The intricately carved temples, alleyways and timeless atmosphere of this place are simply intriguing. The major sightseeing places in Bhaktapur include Durbar Square, the Golden Gate, Palace of 55 windows, Bell of the barking dogs, Nyatapola Temple, Bhairavnath Temple, Dattatraya Temple, Pujari Math etc;

Bhaktapur Durbar Square is an assortment of pagoda and Shikhara-style temples grouped around a fifty-five-window palace of brick and wood. The square is part of a charming valley as it highlights the idols of ancient kings perched on top of stone monoliths, the guardian deities looking out from their sanctuaries, the wood carvings in very place - struts, lintels, tympanums, gateways and windows - all seem to form a well orchestrated symphony.

Myagdi produces 19 met tonnes of honey

Myagdi district produced 19 metric tonnes of honey this year, state-owned news agency RSS reported.

According to the District Agriculture Development Office, the district produced 19,000 kgs as against 17.5 metric tonnes last year.

Office Technical Assistant Bhoj Bahadur Thapa told RSS farmers of Daduwa, Jyamrukkot, Toripani, Wakhet, Patlekhet, and Paudwar, among others have kept 3,800 beehives in the district.

Kathmandu 4th cheapest city in world

Kathmandu has been ranked fourth on the list of least expensive cities to live in, according to the latest Worldwide Cost of Living Survey from the Economist Intelligence Unit.

While South Asian locations dominated the cheapest cities to live in, East Asian now now make up 11 of the world's 20 most expensive cities. No U.S. city made the top 20.

Tokyo bagged the title of most expensive city as it overtook over from the Swiss city of Zurich, which dropped to seventh from the top last year. Australian cities were among the biggest movers in the top 10 most expensive cities.

The Venezuelan city of Caracas rose 25 places to ninth, making it the most expensive city across the Americas. According to the survey, the Canadian city of Vancouver is the most expensive location in North America, at position 21. Los Angeles and New York City tie at 27th as the most expensive U.S. cities.

The Worldwide Cost of Living survey is released twice a year by the EIU and compares hundreds of prices across 160 products and services, including items such as food, drink, rentals, utility bills, schooling costs and household supplies.

Top 10 expensive cities

1. Tokyo, Japan (+1 place)
2. Osaka, Japan (+1)
3. Sydney, Australia (+4)
=4. Oslo, Norway (+1)
=4. Melbourne, Australia (+4)
6. Singapore (+3)
7. Zurich, Switzerland (-6)
8. Paris, France (-2)
9. Caracas, Venezuela (+25)
10. Geneva, Switzerland (-7)

Top 10 least expensive cities

=1. Karachi, Pakistan
=1. Mumbai, India
3. New Delhi, India
4. Kathmandu, Nepal
=5. Algiers, Algeria
=5. Bucharest, Romania
7. Colombo, Sri Lanka
8. Panama City, Panama
9. Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
10. Tehran, Iran

Tiger population count begins nationwide

The government on Monday launched a three-month-long count of tigers across the country, officials said.

As part of the programme, tiger population is being counted simultaneously in all reserves: Chitwan National Park, Bardiya National Park, Sukhlaphanta Wildlife Reserve and Parsa Wildlife Reserve and the adjoining Chiuriya range. The Department of National Parks and Wildlife Conservation (DNPWC) said that the census would help make data on tigers more uniform and standardised.

Trekking entrepreneurs optimistic about new trails

Although the growth rate of trekkers slowed in 2012, entrepreneurs are optimistic about business prospects in the upcoming season as they have been receiving encouraging enquiries and bookings on newly developed trekking trails.

Mohan Lamsal, who just returned after participating in Travel and Adventure Show 2013 in US, told Republica that enquiries on newly developed trekking trails were overwhelming.

Trekking Agencies´ Association of Nepal (TAAN) unveiled four trekking trails - Nagi-Narchyang (Myagdi-Parbat), Dhorpatan (Myagdi-Baglung), Panchpokhari (Sindhupalchowk) and Lower Solu (Solukhumbu)-in 2011.

Similarly, the association explored new trekking routes in Taplejung and Lower Manslu region in 2012. The year also saw the launch of Guerrila Trek. The trek includes some of the trails used by Maoist guerrillas during decade-long insurgency. It can be started from Beni of Myagdi or Chaurjahari of Piuthan or Holeri of Rolpa.

Lamsal, who is also the general secretary of TAAN, said enquiry about new routes particularly the Guerrilla trek was encouraging. “We are overwhelmed with enquires that we have been getting. Some operators have already handled groups on some of the new trails,” added Lamsal.

Mahendra Singh Thapa, president of TAAN, said bookings for trekking in Manaslu region are very encouraging. “The other fast selling trekking package is Nagi-Narchyang trail in Myagdi,” he said. Thapa expect the trails to attract more visitors once the promotional campaigns are launched.

“We are not being able to launch the new trails effectively as we have been failing to mobilize TIMS Fund for the purpose as the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) is yet to get a CEO,” he said, adding that the growing attraction of trekkers toward new trails is a positive sign at a time when the growth rate of European and American tourists is declining.

Though most of the newly developed trails lack necessary infrastructure, entrepreneurs say they were attracting adventure seekers. “Most of the established trekking areas have good lodges, but the presence of road has made the route polluted and shorter,” Lamsal said, adding that tourists seeking camping trek prefer less traveled routes as they were quiet and more adventurous.

According to data maintained by TAAN, a total of 87,247 trekkers took TIMS cards from TAAN Secretariat in 2012.

TIMS card is mandatory for trekkers heading to different trekking trails in Everest, Langtang and Annapurna regions.

Tourist Arrivals decline for the first time in 3 1/2 yrs

The tourist arrivals reached 35,330 with 15.9% of decline in January this year compared to the same month last year, Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) said citing figures released by Immigration Office, Tribhuvan International Airport.

Major source markets have recorded negative growths in tourist arrivals in the first month of 2013. In the SAARC region only Pakistan has recorded positive growth of 5.8%. India which constitutes the major market of Nepal, has recorded negative growth of 26.1%. Arrivals from Bangladesh and Sri Lanka have also registered negative growth by 62.6% and 42.6% respectively, NTB said citing the data.

According to the data, arrivals from Asia (other than South Asia) have also recorded negative growth of 16.4% in aggregate with mixed results. The visitor's arrivals from China have decreased by 40.3%. However, the arrivals from Japan, Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and South Korea have also increased by 16.8%, 10.3%, 4.3%, 42.6% and 11.2% respectively.

An overall negative growth of 15 % has been observed from the European markets with arrivals from major generating markets such as Germany, France and the Netherlands down by 12.2%, 38.2%, and 29% respectively. However, the arrivals from the UK has increased by 6.6% compared to the same month last year.

Tourist arrivals from Australia, New Zealand and USA have registered growths of 27.3%, 25%, and 13% respectively. A negative growth of 27.4% has been recorded from Canada in January 2013 compared to January 2012.

A total of 45,667 foreign tourists departed from TIA in January 2013. The number of Nepalese arrivals stood at 69,442 while 91,281 Nepalese departed from TIA in January 2013

Red panda spotted for first time in Jumla

A red panda was found in Jumla for the first time last week, District Forest Office has said.

The endangered mammal had till date been found only in the eastern part of the country in areas such as Taplejung, Lantang National Park, and neighbouring areas of Assam, Sikkim and Bhutan, Radio Nepal reported.

Chandanath locals spotted the animal and reported the sighting it to the District Forest Office. The animal has been safely kept at the office, officer Bharat Bahadur Budthapa told the state-owned radio. The animal will soon be released into the wild, said Budthapa.

The animal had been selected as the official mascot for the 5th National Games