Himalayan Travel Mart to get continuity in 2018

Published On: August 3, 2017 02:30 AM NPT By: Republica | @RepublicaNepal

KATHMANDU, August 2: Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has said that the recently concluded Himalayan Travel Mart will get continuity in the coming years as well.

Speaking at a press meet in Kathmandu on Wednesday, Dipak Raj Joshi, CEO of Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), said that Himalayan Travel Mart will be organized in May or June next year.

In the press meet, Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Nepal Chapter, the organizer of the event, claimed that the recently held Himalayan Travel Mart 2017 was immensely successful. The event saw participation of 107 media and bloggers, 74 buyers, 14 sellers, 21 speakers and nine renowned international personalities from 53 countries, according to the organizers.

Himalayan Travel Mart 2017 was held in Kathmandu from June 1 to 4, 2017 with the theme 'Nepal: Gateway to the Himalayas.

Speaking at the press meet, Suman Pandey, chairman of PATA Nepal Chapter, said that the event delivered results as per their expectations. “The program concluded successfully. The major achievement was International Travel Bloggers and Media Conference,” he added.

A total of 74 buyers and 45 seller companies participated in 1,825 commercial meetings during the B2B session, according to PATA Nepal Chapter.

Dipak Raj Joshi, CEO of Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), said that events like Himalayan Travel Mart will help the country to bring more tourists. “It was a very successful program and it should be organized on a regular basis,” Joshi said.

Joshi also said that Nepal has already welcomed more than 400,000 tourists in the first six months of 2017. “We are hopeful of continuing this momentum in the coming days as well,” Joshi added.

Similarly, Pandey said that the Himalayan Travel Mart 2017 was the biggest international event hosted by Nepal since the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign.

According to PATA Nepal Chapter, the Rs 72.1 million was invested to organize the event. “NTB provided us Rs 19.4 million. We also mobilized resources from airlines, hotels, insurance companies, banks, different travel trade associations, as well as registration fee of participants,” Pandey added.

The official airline of the Himalayan Travel Mart was Air India, while Soaltee Crown Plaza was the official hotel, according to PATA.