Nepal Tourism Board

E-Newsletter - January 7, 2005



Nepal witness 9% growth in visitor arrivals in 2004

Visitors arriving to Nepal by air in 2004 reached a total figure of 288,356, showing an increase by 9% compared to last year, 2003. The growth was contributed by an increase of 13% amongst non-Indian visitors despite the marginal decline in Indian visitors by 1%.

On the other hand, arrivals in December 2004 declined by 14% with a net loss of 25% visitors traffic from non-Indian segment while the Indian arrivals grew up by 7% in comparison to the same month last year. This was indicated in the figures released today by the Immigration Office, Tribhuvan International Airport. A total of 22,242 visitors came to Nepal during the month of December.

Compared to last year, the year-end of 2004 however has performed positively in totality. The only countries with negative growth are Japan (-10%), New Zealand (-8%), Sri Lanka (-1%) and India. The higher growths are observed from France (20%), Italy (41%), China (31%), Spain (43%), Australia (21%), Taiwan (26%) and Canada (31%). Arrivals from the U.S has grown by 5%, UK by 10%, Germany by 8% and Netherlands by 20%.

The first eight months of 2004 showed a continuous growth in visitors' arriving to Nepal. The first quarter in particular grew by 50% where as the second quarter went up by 25%. But after the street protest in the capital on September 1st, against the aftermath of Iraq incident, the arrivals started to recede. The various blockades, protests, demonstrations and closures as well as travel advisories of some tourist generating countries damaged the arrival trend in the second half of the year. Both the market segment started to decline but Indian market gradually picked up and even increased in December. The year 2004 would have ended up very positively in tourist arrivals had the incident of September 1st not occurred. Since such incidents are rare and unfortunate, 2005 is expected to perform easy double-digit growth in the light of increasing travelers' confidence to Nepal and increasing air links from various countries.

In order to understand the changing image and preference towards Nepal as holiday destination among the Indian visitors, Nepal Tourism Board carried out a survey among the departing Indian visitors in December 2004. It was observed that Indian visitors still have high regard for Nepal as holiday destination where as the Indian media had a great influence among them to portray Nepal's image. There was a great influence of repeat visit and recommendation from friends and family to travel to Nepal. Easy accessibility, warm & hospitable people and pilgrimage still remain as major attractions for Indians to travel to Nepal.

Highlights: International Visitor Arrivals (by air) for the year 2004.

· India down 1% to 86,328 visitors
· UK up 10% to 21,202 visitors
· Japan down 10% to 1,7596 visitors
· US up 5% to 17,525 visitors
· Germany up 8% to 16,635 visitors
· France up 20% to 15,806 visitors

Visitors arrival up in Lumbini
The number of tourists visited Lumbini reached 37892 in 2004 showing an increase by 35.07% in 2004 compared to last year, according to data provided by Information Centre of Lumbini Development Trust(LTD). The visit of Nepalese and Indian Nationals was not counted in this figure. In 2003, only 28053 tourists visited Lumbini. The record shows that the tourists and pilgrims from 70 countries visited Lumbini in 2004. The LTD has cited that the main reason for surge in tourist arrivals in Lumbini is the rapid development of Lumbini Master Plan project components; promotional activities of Lumbini by LDT/HMG Nepal. The Second World Buddhist Summit 2004 is another landmark event which has helped promote Lumbini internationally. The unwavering support provided by His Majesty's Government is another reason for up in tourist arrivals in Lumbini, says LTD. The outstanding contribution of Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) and Tourism for Rural Poverty Alleviation Programme (TRPAP), Monastic Zone and Tourism Entrepreneurs also played key role in the promotion of Lumbini, says LTD release.
The highest number of visitors in 2004 was from Sri Lanka which is 12,217. The number of pilgrims from Thailand, South Korea, Japan and Myanmar are 7735, 3365, 2724 and 2115 respectively. Visitors from new 11 countries like Afghanistan, Latvia, Peru, Laos, Guatemala also visited Lumbini in 2004. Similarly, the visitors from the countries like Uruguay, Tanzania, Serbia, Palestine, Nigeria, Lebanon, El Salvador who visited Lumbini in 2003 did not visit in 2004, says the release.

NTB & NTV signed MoU for tourism promotion

A Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) was signed here January 6, 2005 between Nepal Tourism Board and Nepal Television to promote domestic tourism and to create awareness about tourism in general and tourist destinations in particular inside the country. Tek Bahadur Dangi, CEO, Nepal Tourism Board and Durga Nath Sharma, General Manager, Nepal Television signed the MoU on behalf of their respective organisation to strengthen the tie between NTB and NTV for promotion tourism. According to MoU, programs that promote and encourage domestic tourism shall be produced and aired on partnership basis between NTB and NTV under the banner of 'Desh Darshan'. This apart, NTV will host studio based talk/interaction/conference program on tourism and will feature three documentaries of 30-minute each featuring new destinations, tourism program, trends/achievements and challenges in tourism field.

It is agreed that NTB and NTV will work together to disseminate tourism news about Nepal through various international news agencies that NTV is tied up. Destination promotion documentaries will be exchanged between NTB, NTV and these international agencies.

As per MoU, NTB and NTV shall jointly promote various local/national festivals, religious celebrations and fairs which are being supported and promoted by NTB.

Chitwan Festival in the offing

Chitwan festival-2005 is scheduled to be organized from January 9-16 in the banks of the Narayani river. The festival is expected to draw two hundred thousand visitors and make a transaction of Rs. 90 million. Narayangarh Chamber of Commerce and Industry, District Development Committee (DDC)- Chitwan, Bharatpur Muncipality, Ratna Nagar Muncipality and Ratna Nagar Chamber of Commerce and Industry are jointly organizing the festival. The festival is being organized since 2053 in every alternative year.
The festival has emphasized on cashing the potentialities of Chitwan in the sectors of agriculture, tourism and information and communication technology (ICT).
Various programs like rafting, boating and jet boating in the Narayani river, elephant race competition and elephant riding will be organized to promote the internal tourism. Cultural programs, presentation- representing lifestyle of various indigenous people, picture and sculpture exhibition, food festival, dog show and cultural show with the message of peace are some of the highlights of the festival.
With the aim to impart the message that Chitwan is a safe place for tourists, the festival will also promote products that have export potentials.



CAAN enter sixth year
The Sixth Anniversary of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) was observed on December 31 in Kathmandu. Commending CAAN for its achievements, Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation Deep Kumar Upadhay said CAAN would be given autonomy in the near future. "CAAN must work efficiently to ensure safety as small incidents could attract the whole world’s attention," he said.

Addressing the function Rajesh Raj Dali, Director General of CAAN said that air travel is a necessity rather than luxury because roads do not link 19 districts in the country and it is the only form of transport.

Bhim Kumari Buda Magar, Assistant Minister for Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said that CAAN had the responsibility to ensure that the private agencies went to the rural places, which would help to improve the condition of the rural people.
Dr. Bhoj Raj Ghimire, Secretary at the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation said that the work of CAAN and the ministry had given rise to the necessity to let CAAN function autonomously.

Quotable Quotes

The Independent UK asked the travel expertsto name this year's top destinations under the banner of Where to be, what to see in 2005. Here are the comments of two travel experts who mentioned Nepal in their interviews. These interviews were appeared in The Independent Online Edition(UK) on January 01, 2004.

Steven Berry, a veteran climber and the owner of Himalayan Kingdoms, UK's leading adventure-company

Travelers are also looking at trekking beyond the Himalaya and the Andes. There are increasing opportunities to go walking in countries such as Laos and Cambodia, where people have only ever really gone to see the sights. We hope things will improve in Nepal, though all our trips went off without incident this autumn.

Piers Pickard, deputy editor, 'Wanderlust'

Something that I'm sure will take off this year is adventure travel with children. It's becoming far more common, and for travel agents it's a big area of business. Twenty years ago, mum and dad went off trekking in Nepal. Now they've got two little nippers and they're discovering they can still go.


Feature of the Week
Gap Year Opportunity in Nepal

By Geri Ottaviano


Admittedly, I was pretty terrified to come to Nepal, but I now believe it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The warnings put out by the US Consulate and other governments are a little worrisome right now, but in 5 weeks here, I didn't encounter a single Maoist or really scary situation, and I did a lot of travelling. As a pre-med student and EMT in America, INFO Nepal gave me the opportunity to learn and observe in a rural developing world environment, in conditions unlike any I had ever witnessed. The people who run INFO Nepal are some of the friendliest, most caring and understanding people I have ever encountered - they take care of you when you get ill (Nepalese food is fantastic, but expect a little, umm, adjustment period for your stomach), they listen to you when you're homesick, and they truly make you a part of their family. I finally made it to Ganganagar, a small village in Chitwan, where I stayed with a really amazing family who taught me everything they knew about cooking Dal/Bhat, making exceptional tea, doing laundry in the well, churning butter, making straw mats, and being extremely generous and welcoming. At first, I was a little uncomfortable with the lack of privacy in the village (everywhere you go, Nepali people will stare at white people, expect it and get used to it), but then the fascination wears off and you can really immerse yourself in the culture. I worked for an hour a day with ten hard-working senior students in the Ganganagar library, where we worked on making their English sound fluent, but my real purpose in Chitwan was volunteering at the doctor's office in Patihani. The importance of rural health posts became clear to me immediately - even though there was a lack of diagnostic equipment and sterility in the office, the doctor did an incredible job with what he had. Hundreds of patients would go untreated if not for him, as the next closest medical treatment is 16 km away in Narayanghat, and the only method of transport many people have is tying their child up in a shawl and riding their bicycle to the doctor's office. I don't think you can come to a country to volunteer expecting to make huge changes in a short period of time - and I don't think you should. The Nepali culture is amazing, and I wouldn't change it for the world. But if you can teach all the kids one new word per day in English, if you can make sure that all your patients get fresh needles, your contribution will be invaluable. As a side note, if you're going to be working in a health post with INFO, some useful things to bring are your own stethoscope, latex (or non-latex) gloves, antibacterial soap/sterilization fluid or equipment, and any posters/references you can find on Nepali words for anatomical terms. Sometimes, the language barrier can make you a little lonely, and sometimes you'll long for the luxury of a hot shower - but if you open your heart, and make the effort to understand the circumstances of Nepali life, you'll find no better country to fall in love with. Though I leave Nepal in two days and I'm so excited to go home to my boyfriend and family in America, I will DEFINITELY be back to Nepal - I'm very sad to leave. The relationships I've formed here, even in a short time, I will remember forever, and my time here has strengthened my resolve to do more volunteer work abroad.

(Appeared on Jan 02 2005, Courtesy: www.pressbox.co.uk)
Upcoming Events


Life through the Lens
Photograph by Kishore Kayastha
Date: Till January 15, 2005
Venue: Indigo Gallery
Tel: 4413580
E-mail: indigo@wlink.com.np


1st All Karate Open International Championships
Date: 5-15 Jan 2005
Venue: Kathmandu
Organised by Nepal Kwanmukan Karate Do Association

Workshop on Religious Programme Presenters in electronic Media
Date: 11th to 12th Januaray 2005
Venue: Nepal Tourism Board

Chitwan Mahotsav 2061
Date: 9-16 Jan 2005
Venue: Narayangadh
Organised by DDC Chitwan, Chamber of Commerce and Industries-Narayanghat and
various organizations

6th Nepal Open Paragliding Championship
Date: January 19 to 21, 2005
Venue: Pokhara.
Organised by Trekking Agents Association of Nepal West Regional Chapter

Pokhara Marathon
Date: February 18, 2005
Venue: Pokhara
Organised by The Ex-Sportsmen Forum
Tel: 061 520 751


For tour arrangement and more details:

Shakti Travels & Tours P.Ltd
Shakti Treks & Expeditions P.Ltd
P.O.Box 913,Lazimpat,Kathmandu,Nepal
Tel:00977-1-4428552,4428691 Evening 4428590 and 4415185
Fax:00977-1-4428691
Mobile;9851026424 - (24 hours)
E-Mail:shakti@travels.wlink.com.np
E-mail:info@shaktitravel.com
www.shaktitravel.com
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