By Our Correspondent
Kaski, Dec. 27: A four-day tourism revival and rural tourism promotional tour has started with the objective of reviving tourism industry affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Village Tourism Promotion Forum (VITOF) of Gandaki Province organised tourism promotion tour in its three districts with the support from Nepal Tourism Board, Pokhara and Pokhara Tourism Council.
A team comprising tourism-related officials and media persons is going to visit tourist villages in Kaski, Parbat and Baglung districts to spread the message of increasing tourism activities, said Nawaraj Adhikari, Chairman of VITOF, Gandaki.
During the visit, discussions and interactions will be held between the stakeholders at homestay services providers in Dhorpatan, in Baglung district, Righa Community Homestay House, in Galkot, Shivdhuri Community Homestay, in Tarakhola, Athiti Satkar Community Homestay, in Bhakunde, Bhuk Deurali Community Homestay, in Parbat, Labsibot Community Homestay and Hemjakot Community Homestay, in Kaski district.
Inaugurating the programme, Minister for Industry, Tourism, Forest and Environment Vikas Lamsal of Gandaki Province said that there was a need to revive the tourism industry affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Stating that tourism is an important means for the prosperity of Gandaki Province, he said that the government is committed to creating a conducive environment for thriving tourism businesses.
Chairman of the Pokhara Tourism Council Gopi Bahadur Bhattarai said that the tourism sector needed to be revived with the cooperation of all.
Suryanath Pahari and Uday Subedi, vice-presidents and programme coordinators of VITOF, Gandaki Province, expressed their confidence that the promotional visit would provide new momentum to the tourism industry.
There are more than 300 Homestays in Gandaki Province, which is rich in natural beauty and culture.
Homestays, including the Siruwari model community homestay, are the first in Nepal to cater to tourists, both domestic and foreign.