Tourism promotional event hosted in New York

Kathmandu, July 12: An interaction and networking event was organised in New York, USA, on Friday to showcase Nepal’s travel destinations and promote the country as an attractive place to visit for American tourists.

The event was organised by the Consulate General in collaboration with Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) and Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) New York Chapter. On the occasion, Consul General Dadhiram Bhandari highlighted the growing role of US visitors in Nepal’s tourism industry and underscored the potential of promoting and branding Nepal’s unique natural and cultural potential to attract high-end visitors from America.

Permanent Representative of Nepal to the United Nations, Ambassador Lok Bahadur Thapa, shed light on Nepal’s government’s priority of developing tourism as a key economic sector. He called for the participants to join hands with the Consulate’s efforts to make Nepal a premier destination where the visitors not only witness natural beauty and cultural depth but also contribute to sustainability, equity and community empowerment.

In her presentation, Erin Levi, Travel Writer and Producer, shared her thoughts about Nepal and its tourist attractions. She shared experiences about her visits to Nepal and dubbed the country as one of the safest places for people of all ages and genders to visit. It may be noted that Levi’s article on the Burhan Wilderness Camp of Bardiya, Nepal, had featured in TIME’s ‘World’s Greatest Places of 2024.’

Nishchal Banskota of Nepal Tea Collective presented how the second generation of Nepali entrepreneurs are doing business in the US market while promoting Nepal among American visitors. He explained the concept of Immersive Tea Tourism, through which his enterprises have been organising groups of over 30 visitors, mostly American, to the tea estate in eastern Nepal.

Elizabeth Chin, Executive Director of PATA, New York Chapter, underlined the importance of joint collaboration to showcase Nepal’s attractions among US visitors. Her team members called on the participants to put Nepal in their preferred destination visit list and expressed their readiness to extend any support and information about Nepal in this regard.

A visual presentation was also made using the promotional materials received from the NTB and prepared by the Consulate. Over 50 participants from the travel, tourism and hospitality sectors, friends of Nepal and media/social media personalities had attended the event.