Kathmandu, May 11

The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter is all set to host the Himalayan Travel Mart (HTM) in Kathmandu from June 1.

Organising a press conference today, PATA informed that all preparations for the four-day tourism event has been completed.

“HTM is a much hyped tourism event in Nepal and aims to redefine adventure tourism of the country and establish Nepal as a gateway to the Himalayas,” said Suman Pandey, chairman of PATA Nepal Chapter, adding that the mega tourism event also aims to give momentum to the tourism sector that has been witnessing sluggish growth after the devastating earthquake.

According to Pandey, the event will be of international standard and will draw domestic and foreign tourism fraternities. “The HTM is ‘buyers-sellers meet’ where buyers and sellers who have interest in Nepal and the Himalayan region will come together, discuss and reach a business deal,” added Pandey.

Organisers informed that more than 200 international buyers, sellers and tourism experts from Nepal, India, Bhutan, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Myanmar, Europe, North America, South America, Australia, New Zealand, Russia, Asia and Gulf countries will participate in the event.

As a part of HTM 2017, PATA Nepal Chapter is also organising International Blogger and Media Conference in the Capital on June 1 to promote Nepal’s tourism through international bloggers’ network. Similarly, Himalayan Travel Conference is being organised on June 2 to hold discussion on issues related to travel branding and market exploration.

In a bid to promote Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, and Events (MICE) tourism in the country, HTM 2017 will also host various knowledge-sharing events on the sideline of the main event on issues related to MICE tourism, international approaches and prospects in Nepal.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) Deepak Raj Joshi said that tourism events like HTM 2017 have to be hosted regularly in Nepal to raise awareness among foreigners about Nepal being a major holiday destination. “Such events will also be instrumental to disseminate information about Nepal’s tourism in the international market,” Joshi said, adding that HTM 2017 will help boost the confidence of domestic tourism entrepreneurs.

Meanwhile, Dundiraj Ghimire, joint secretary of Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation (MoCTCA), insisted on the need to jointly promote Nepal’s tourism in the global market. “We have not been able to do enough marketing of our destinations, thereby failing to catch the eye of potential foreign tourists,” Ghimire said. He also said that government is working to reform its policies to make them friendly for tourism businesses operating in Nepal.