Staff Correspondent
The Nepal Embassy, Nepal Tourism Board, and Hotel Association Nepal jointly organized Nepal Tourism
Promotion Programme under the theme ‘Next Door Nepal: Your Ultimate Travel Destination’ in Dhaka
recently.
During the event, B2B and networking sessions among hotel, travel, and tour entrepreneurs from Nepal
and Bangladesh were held.
Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador Mr. Ghanshyam Bhandari stated that the excellent neighbourly
relations between the two countries were further consolidated by tourism and people-to-people
linkages. Highlighting tourism as a priority sector of the Government of Nepal, he expressed hope that
the B2B contacts between travel and tour entrepreneurs would be instrumental in bringing the two
peoples and countries together.
Mr. Laxman Gautam, Head of Marketing and Promotion Department of Nepal Tourism Board, made a
presentation highlighting Nepal’s major touristic products. He also underlined that Bangladesh remains
one of the major tourist source markets for Nepal and urged the participating travel agents and tour
operators to encourage Bangladeshi friends to visit Nepal.
Mr. Binayak Shah, President of the Hotel Association Nepal (HAN), stressed the vibrant and welcoming
spirit of Nepal and appreciated the role played by B2B engagements in promoting tourism exchanges
between the two countries. Chief Executive Officer of HAN Mr. Tek Bahadur Mahat made a presentation
on profile of hotels participating at the event.
Deputy Director of Bangladesh Tourism Board Mr. Mohammed Saiful Hassan emphasized the need of
enhanced connectivity to enrich people-to-people contacts.
On the occasion, Bangladeshi Mount Everest summiteers Ms. Nishat Mazumder and Mr. Babar Ali were
felicitated. They also shared their experiences of their successful Mt. Everest expeditions.
Hotel Association Nepal signed five separate Memoranda of Understanding with Bangladesh
International Hotel Association (BIHA), Tour Operators Association of Bangladesh (TOAB), Association of
Travel Agents of Bangladesh (ATAB), Bangladesh Outbound Tour Operators Association (BOTOA),
Tourism and Hospitality Industry Skills Council (T&HISC) and Asian Tourism Fair.
Nepali folk cultural performances were also showcased during the event.
The visiting delegation from Nepal comprised 21 members including officials from Nepal Tourism Board,
Hotel Association Nepal, and representatives of 13 different hotels. The Programme was attended by
over 150 participants, including government officials, representatives of travel agencies, tour operators,
hotels and airlines, and other hospitality, travel and tourism-related organizations of Bangladesh.
