24th Mar, 2022

40 Best Tourism Activities In Nepal

Nepal is a beautiful country rich and diverse in natural and cultural resources which is in its developmental phase and is full of potentiality in tourism sector. Nepal is an economically backward landlocked country where the tourism industry plays the vital role in ups and downs in economic bar of the nation. Tourism in Nepal acts as a treasure hunt which is full of mysteries whilst providing pots full of golds and silvers during the journey hoping one day it will find the greatest treasure of all. The gold and silvers are the employment opportunity for people and medium to earn for their livelihood. The primary purpose of this trekking/tour information about the overall tourism industry of Nepal breaking them into the forms or types.

The information provides the different available tourism forms in Nepal and the activities that one can perform in those as well as the importance of that tourism form. Also covers the discussion about the prospect of the tourism industry in Nepal and its potentiality to change or grow into something new. The overall article reflects the potentiality of tourism growth in Nepal if the resources available here are to be utilized properly and in orderly fashion. If the Nepal Government and the tourism industry are to establish and run the new kind of tourism activity here, then the survey and the previous researches show that people or the tourists are willing to come and engage on those activities.

Ghorepani poon Hill Trek Nepal lies between latitudes 26° and 31°N, and longitudes 80° and 89°E above the equator of the earth. It lies in the south of Asia continent in between two giant countries China and India. China surrounds Nepal on North and India surrounds Nepal on East, West and south making it a landlocked country. The total area of Nepal is 147,181 square kilometers with population of approximately 30 million. This makes Nepal 93rd largest country in the world and 41st most populous country.

The capital city of Nepal is Kathmandu. Nepal is 800 kilometers long and 200 kilometres wide making a trapezoidal shape which is divided mainly into three regions i.e. Himalayan region, Hilly region and Terai region. The Himalayan region consists of world’s tallest mountains such as Mt. Everest which is the tallest mountain on earth as well as 8 of the 10 tallest mountains of the world such as Lhotse, Makalu, and Annapurna. It has more than 250 peaks over 6000 meters. The lowest point of Nepal is 59 meters and tallest is 8848 meters. The three regions are divided as 75 districts and 14 zones.

upper mustang trekking Tourism is a collection of activities, services, and industries which deliver a travel experience comprising transportation, accommodation, eating and drinking establishments, retail shops, entertainment businesses and other hospitality services provided for individuals or groups traveling away from home. The activities such as travelling and staying in places far from their usual community or home that are done by the individual or group, who are called tourists, for either leisure or business is termed as tourism. Tourism is different from travel.

Tourism consists of travel but travel cannot be termed as tourism. For tourism to happen these three criteria must be covered. First, a person should stay out of his/her usual environment i.e. the traveler must be non-residence. Second, the travel must be for a purpose such as leisure activity, business, fun, adventure. Lastly, the traveler must not spend more than a year but may stay the night or not. Millions of people throughout the world travel from one place to another each year to travel exotic and new places or get the experience of the world. Tourism has expanded even more with the development of technology providing possibility to reach and explore difficult parts of the world.

There are different types of tourism based on place or geography of the place throughout the world. Depending upon where you are, you can find one or many forms of tourism. There is not a definite amount or quantity of tourism forms in the world. Basically, tourism is divided into educational and leisure category. Nevertheless, these two seem to be vanishing as the visit to the unknown land makes a person learn and enjoy at the same time spring landscape with flowers of rhododendron in Nepal

The existing forms of tourism throughout the world are adventure tourism, birth tourism, business tourism, cultural tourism, disaster tourism, ecotourism, genealogy tourism, medical tourism, nautical tourism, religious tourism, sports tourism, virtual tourism, and wellness tourism. (Pradhan, 2013) Among the aforementioned forms of tourism, adventure tourism, cultural tourism, religious tourism, ecotourism, sports tourism and business tourism are the most common ones which are found in most parts of the world. In context of Nepal, these are the common and important types of tourism.

Nepal is a small landlocked country which lies in between India on east, west and south and China on north. Nepal is Federal Democratic Republic country which is a sovereign state located in South Asia. Packed in a tiny area of Nepal, lies the best and iconic natural beauties of the world such as Mt Everest which is the tallest mountain on the earth as well as cultural, traditional and religious heritages such as Lumbini which is the birthplace of Gautam Buddha.

Nepal covers just 0.03% landmass of the whole earth and 0.3% of Asia. Nepal is a Hindu country with more than 80% people following Hinduism followed by Buddhism, Islam, Kiratism, Christianity and animism. Nepal is a developing country with a low income economy with many people being illiterate and unemployed.

Most of the people reside in the remote or rural areas of country where the infrastructural developmental things are not in adequate manner. In Nepal, where the whole landmass is covered with natural and cultural beauty and people with no high income, tourism plays a crucial role in terms of creating a job opportunity and providing them with an opportunity to earn for their livelihood.

Trekking tourism in Nepal is extremely important in context of economic stability of the country as well. Travel tourism is the backbone of Nepal. Depending upon where tourists visit or go, different form of tourism can be found throughout Nepal. People who love to seek thrill and adventure can go for the extreme tourism activities and people who are into wildlife can visit the national parks of Nepal or go hiking into the woods.

That is why it is important for Nepal to preserve the natural and cultural beauty that they have in order to attract as many as tourists it can. For this purpose, the government of Nepal and the tourism industry of Nepal should focus on opening new tourism activities and renewing the tourism policy to regulate the activities in efficient and systematic manner. This primary aim of this thesis is to dive deep into the types or forms of tourism available in Nepal and dig into their history, present condition as well as discuss on the prospect of them individually.

The thesis would focus on overall details of each tourism type about their scope, importance, impact, and income from them, statistics and further more. It would also cover the part about the possibility of future success of those tourism forms. It would also cover the part about possibility of new types of tourism in Nepal in brief. Everest base camp Trek, Nepal is rich in wildlife.

Thousands of flora and fauna species are found in Nepal. Rare animals like one horned rhino, red panda are found in Nepal. There are 8 national parks, 1 hunting reserve, 5 conserva-tion areas and 3 wildlife reserves. Terai is the richest habitat of wildlife. One can see royal Bengal tiger, swamp deer, musk deer, blue bull, gharial and marsh mugger crocodile. One can see birds such as bab-bles and orioles, koels and drongos, peacocks, floricans, wildfowl.

The hilly region is covered with moist temperate forest of deodar, oak, maple and birch in which are found deer, ghoral serow, leopard and monkey. The gorgeous multi-colored lmpeyan Pheasant (Nepal's national 4 bird) is also found here with other endangered birds like the Koklas and Cheer Pheasants. In the Himalayan region, one can find snow leopard, Himalayan thar, blue sheep, wolf, black bears and lynx. (Visit Nepal, 2012) Nepal is a Federal Democratic Republic country where more than 120 languages are spoken by over 27 million people and wide range of religion is followed by them. The national or official language of Nepal is ‘Nepali’ which is used in government offices and official documents as well. More than 81% people follow Hinduism, 9% follow Buddhism, 4.4% follow Islam, 3.1% follow Kiratism, 1.4% follow Christianity and 0.4% follow animism.

The wide diversity of language, religion and people has made it possible in Nepal to have different and numerous cultures and traditions. Nepal is rich in tradition, culture, language and dress. Nepal has many World Heritage Sites recognized by UNSECO such as Lumbini which is the birthplace of Gautam Buddha who is known as ‘Light of Asia’, Pashupatinath Temple, Kathmandu Durbar Square, Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Square, Boudhanath Stupa.

(Earthbound Expeditions, 2016) Nepal has other traditional monuments such as Nyatapole, Swyambhunath, and Krishna Temple which attract thousands of people every day. The national festival of Nepal is Dashain which is celebrated primarily by Hindu. Other festivals such as Buddha Jayanti, Krishna Astami, Ram Nawami, Tihar are also celebrated nationwide each year by millions of people. People of Hindu and Buddhism have few differences due to the cultural and historical intermingling of Hindu and Buddhist beliefs. Nepal is a poor country in terms of economy. 25 % people live under poverty line. The GDP of Nepal is dependent primarily on remittance.

Agriculture is the mainstay of the economy which provides livelihood to more than 70% people and accounts for 1/3rd of the GDP. Nepal has 42000 MW of hydro-power capacity but uses very less off  it. The earthquake of 2015 hit Nepal in its economy destroying houses, buildings, infrastructures. The political instability is also the major cause of economic backwardness in Nepal. The estimated GDP of Nepal in 2015 was USD 70.08 billion and per capital income is USD 2500. (Central Intelligence Agency.

Mountain climbing  in Nepal In the economically backward but country like Nepal with huge amount of natural beauty, tourism plays a vital role in keeping the balance of economy of country. Tourism acts a way for other businesses to survive in the country. Tourism provides the country with foreign currency and helps earn lots of money as well.

It also helps in creating a job opportunity for the people in huge number directly or indirectly. The potentiality of tourism in Nepal is huge. Around 1 million tourists visit Nepal each year.

Tourism helps to motivate government to build new infrastructures and develop or upgrade the existing ones. This doesn’t just help tourists but the whole country itself. Manjushree, who is believed to come from either China or India, is said to be the first tourists to visit Nepal. As per the legend, he made a valley by cutting a hill on Chovar side with his sword letting the water to flow away. Modern tourism started in Nepal since 1950 after the advent of democracy.

With this, Nepal started to develop its social, economic and political life. Since then, tourism has flourished even further. Tourism in Nepal began with mountain tourism. Out of 8 of the 5 world’s 10 tallest peaks, 7 of them were successfully scaled i.e. Mt. Annapurna I, Mt. Everest, Mt. Cho Oyu, Mt. Makalu, Mt. Kanchenjunga, Mt. Manaslu, Mt. Lhotse, and Mt. Dhaulagiri in 1960 only.

Annapurna I which is over 8000 meters was first ascended by Maurice Herzog and Louis Lachenal of France in June 3, 1950. The highest peak of the world, Mt. Everest, was ascended in May 29, 1953 by Tenzing Norgay Sherpa of Nepal and Sir Edmund Hillary of New Zealand. Nepal became member of UNO in 1955, member of Non-aligned Countries’ Group since its beginning and member of different international agencies which made it easier for Nepal to be introduced to the whole world and flourish its tourism industry even further. In the year 1955, the famous Thomas Cook brought over 60 tourists in Nepal for Nepal tour for the first time.

This opened the door for tourists in Nepal officially and it led to formation of tourism management committees in Nepal. In effort to make a concrete tourism development, Tourism Development Board was formed in 1957 AD culminating to the establishment of Nepal Tourism Board in 1998. Since 1962, Tourism Department started keeping the statistics of tourist visiting Nepal.

Shortly after, Nepal Tourism Development Committee was formed in 1969 which helped formulate the tourist policy as well as plan a future development of tourism in Nepal. After the formation of Nepal Tourism Board in 1998, government of Nepal decided to dissolve Tourism Department handing the responsibility of formulating new policies and plans to Tourism and Civil Aviation Ministry. (Shrestha & Shrestha, 2012, 59-61) 3.1 Importance of Tourism in Nepal Tourism is one of the important factors in economic sector of Nepal which doesn’t just create employment opportunities and income generation but also in foreign currency income which shows that the tourism industry’s development could lead to the end of economic crisis in this country.

Tourism is important not just for people but for country itself. Trekking is a medium or portal via which people around the globe can share the ideas and knowledge whilst creating an understanding among them. Tourism provides an opportunity to understand the different societies, cultures, tradition, foods and life style of various countries around the world. Trekking doesn’t just help generate income but it also helps to maintain the economic stability in the country. Tourism helps people by providing them with employment directly and indirectly. People working on tourism industry are the direct beneficiary but the people working on agriculture, airlines, hospital, hotels are the indirect beneficiary.

The products from the indirect beneficiary can be promoted via tourism and get to the international market as well. It helps people to understand each other and respect each other which help to maintain the peace in the country and the world. Tour/trekking is a medium which helps create mutual relation among nations and help bring diverse people close to each other and interact in close proximity. It plays a greater role in keeping friends, family and relatives close and in contact with each other once in a while which is 6 important in the world today. Adventure Trekking also helps create demand in the market which allows the local products to get the market and increase the popularity of it. 3.2 Impact of Tourism Tourism is one of the most important industries in the world which gives a significant source of economic outcomes and the possibility and opportunity for employment. It is also a complex industry which requires huge capital investment and resources as well.The Top 30 Things to Do in Nepal.all theses activities are given below with short brief:

Tourism Activities in Nepal

Nepal has a wide diversity of natural and cultural resources which gives it a benefit of having variety of tourism related activities. Activities such as hiking and trekking to sight-seeing. Nepal has wide variety of tourism activities prevailed where thousands of tourists enjoy each year. Pleasure activities, extreme activities and sports activities are the popular ones in Nepal. All the tourism activities available in Nepal are described below. Trekking and Hiking Nepal is one of the best destinations in the world for trekking since it has most of the highest mountains in the world. Trekking to the base camp of those mountains is challenging, adventurous and fun. Each year thousands of tourists come to Nepal with the purpose of trekking to such places where the natural beauty can be seen at its best. Depending upon the level of difficulty, budget of the trekker, days available, seasonal or off seasonal destinations, alone or group people can choose different trekking destinations throughout the Nepal.

The most popular trekking destinations in Nepal are Everest Base Camp, Annapurna Base Camp, Annapurna Circuit, Poonhill trek, Langtang trek, Manaslu trek, Gokyo trek, upper Mustang trek, upper Dolpo trek, Kanchenjunga trek, Makalu base camp, Rara Lake, Phoksundo lake, Tilicho lake. Along with trekking another popular choice of tourism activity in Nepal is hiking. Nepal is full of green valley, gorge, beautiful villages, White Water Rivers, lakes, natural sceneries which attracts thousands of tourists on hiking each year. Forests full of varieties of animals, birds, butterflies, insects, reptiles and flowers and trees attract tourists as well. The most popular hiking destinations in Nepal are Nagarkot, Chisapani, Shivapuri, Namo Buddha, Godavari, Amitabha Monastery, Sundarijal, Namo Buddha, Nuwakot, Ghale Gaun, Phulchowki, Manakamana, Kulekhani, Daman, Dakshinkali, Kakani, Dhulikhel

Jungle Safari in Nepal

 Nepal’s rich and unique bio-diversity makes it an ideal place for Eco-tourism. The lowlands of Terai are full of tropical jungles which provide a huge variety of wildlife which makes it ideal for jungle safari. Nepal has 9 national parks, 3 wildlife reserves, 6 conservation areas and a hunting reserve which covers the total area of 28,999 square kilometers which is 19.7% of total are of Nepal. Tourists can enjoy the elephant ride, canoe ride, jeep safari, nature walking, bird watching excursions or quick tours around in the jungle areas where they can find tigers, one-horned rhinos, peacocks, different types of deer, wild boar, wild bison, monkeys, bears, wild elephants, leopards, gharials, crocodiles. They can also find aquatic birds alongside the rivers banks.

Mountain Climbing in Nepal:

Along the 800 km stretch of Nepal on the Northern side, it consists eight of the 10 tallest mountains in the world including Mount Everest which is the world’s highest mountain with an altitude of 8848 meters. Ever since the country opened the doors for people to climb mountains in Nepal since 1994, it has become a best place in the world to ascend the mountains and feel proud and accomplished. Many people fail and success in the attempt to reach the top which has provided the people with impetus of climbing or trying once. Each year thousands of people try to climb these mountains and some of them succeed and some don’t but the pure of joy of doing these hardcore and adventurous activities has attracted people each year. Some people lost their lives while attempting these. The most popular mountains that most people attempt to climb in Nepal are Mt. Everest, Annapurna, Manaslu, Yala peak, Mera peak, Island peak and Pisang peak.

Mountain Flight in Nepal

People who don’t have much time or people restricted by time who come to visit Nepal can go for a mountain flight which offers the panoramic view of the mountains of Nepal such as Everest, Kanchanjunga and Tibetan Plateau. It gives the closest possible view of these majestic mountains in just an hour long flight. It is one of the most popular activities that tourists opt for in Nepal.

Rafting, Kayaking and Canyoning in Nepal

Nepal is the second richest country in water source in the world in terms of land and water ratio. Nepal has numerous rivers and rivulets, lakes and water sources which offers adventure sports activities such as rafting, kayaking and canyoning. Rafting in the rivers such as Trishuli, Kali Gandaki, Bhote Koshi, Marsyangdhi, Karnali, Sun Koshi are pure joyous and fun. Nepal’s popular for white water rafting. Trishuli River Rafting which is grade 3 rafting is the most popular one in Nepal. Not only rafting but tourists can go for kayaking as well in these rivers. Kayaking can be done in the lakes of Nepal as well such as Fewa lake, Begnas lake, Rupa lake. The diverse terrain of Nepal makes it possible for having many waterfalls in Nepal where people can go for canyoning. Canyoning is an extreme sport that is popular in Nepal. Thousands of people go canyoning each year.

Paragliding and Sky Dive in Nepal

People who are real thrill seeker can go on a paragliding or sky diving in Nepal. The adrenaline of flying like a bird is a wish of everybody. The majestic tourist destination Pokhara provides these opportunities to those who want to try this. Paragliding takes off from the height of Sarangkot and lands on the bank of Fewa Lake.

Bungee Jumping in Nepal

 Situated over 160 meters above Bhote Koshi river, the bungee jump here is majestic and thrilling. Sheer drop from the steel suspended bridge towards to blue flowing river and that feeling of adrenaline rush for few seconds is what the bungee jump in Nepal provides. Another bungee in Nepal is at Pokhara where one can jump from a tower. The vertical drop of 60 meters.

Mountain Biking in Nepal

The best way to explore Nepal and the beauty of Nepal is to go on a mountain biking. The rough terrain of Nepal provides the opportunity to ride on the uphill and downhill and on the hardcore road. Mountain biking offers an environment friendly way to explore the beauty of Nepal, be it a natural or historical. One can rent a mountain bike and go on a long ride. The best place to ride on the city areas such as Kathmandu and Pokhara and for those who seek thrill and have gut, they can ride to the exotic places like Namche Bazar.

Tourism Statistics in Nepal

The table below shows the number of tourist arrival in Nepal from the year 2000 to 2015. The data was acquired from the Tourism Department of Nepal from their official website. The table shows how many tourists visited Nepal each year since 2000 along with the growth rate on annual basis and it also shows which medium they used to visit Nepal i.e.Air or Land. The table also shows the average length of stay of each year since 2000. The table below shows that there’s a fluctuation on the tourist number each year. Some year number of tourist increases while some year it decreases. In the year 2000, the total number of tourists who visited Nepal was 463646 which was 5.7% less that previous year. Among those, 376,914 visited Nepal via air and 86,72 visited via land. They stayed in Nepal for average 11.88 days. (MoCTA, 2015) The decrement pattern continued in the year 2001 with huge decrement of 22.1% which led to 361,237 tourist arrival in Nepal.

Among which 299,514 visited Nepal via air and 61,732 visited via land and stayed for average of 11.93 days. Likewise, in 2002, tourist number decreased by 23.1%. Only 275,468 tourist arrived Nepal that year and stayed for only 7.92 days on average. (MoCTA, 2015) In the year 2003, the tourist number suddenly increased by 22.7% bringing in 338,132 tourists who stayed for 9.6 days on average. The number grew by 13.9% in 2004 which brought in 385,297 tourists who stayed for 13.51 days on average. In 2005, the number decreased by 2.6% which made a total of 375,398 tourists. After that the number kept increasing and in 2007 it sky-rocked by 37.2% making a total of 526,705 tourists. In 2008, it decreased by 5% and grew again in 2009 by 1.9%. The number rose by 18.2% in 2010 making a total of 602,867 tourists in Nepal. (MoCTA, 2015)

Types of Tourism in Nepal

Depending upon the geographical structure of the country, natural landscapes, mountains, rivers lakes, terrain as well as man-made monuments, temples and places along with the diverse and widely spread variety of flora and fauna throughout the country, Nepal hosts different types of tourism activities for tourists who want to explore Nepal. In a pure form, there are very few primary tourism activities in Nepal which are branched out to other various tourism activities within themselves. For those people who seek a vacation places Nepal hosts as a leisure tourism destination. Likewise, for those people who seek adventure and thrill in their life Nepal hosts extreme tourism. For people who want to explore the world and the things in itself and get acquainted within those, Nepal hosts a religious or cultural tourism.

Furthermore, Nepal hosts other tourism activities such as business tourism, Eco-tourism, and official tourism. In the following chapter, we are going to talk about 5 major tourism activities that go all around the year. We will be beginning with the definition of those tourism activities followed by the details of what things are done. We will talk about the different types of activities that the tourist can do within that activity. We will discuss the places or venues that those activities are hosted. Furthermore, we will talk about the importance of those tourism activities individually.

We will discuss about the income generated by those activities and the royalty or tax collected by the nation from those activities. We will also look into the statistics of the tourists who visited Nepal to those activities of each activity. At the end of each activity, we will discuss the prospect of that tourism activity in Nepal in details. We will discuss the possibility of development of that activity even more and how it would not only help country earn money but also create a suitable environment for the tourists to visit Nepal again. We will talk about how to modernize and change the old approach of running it into the new approach.

Adventure Tourism in Nepal

Adventure Tourism may be defined as a leisure activity that takes place in an unusual, exotic,remote, or wilderness destination and tends to be associated with high levels of involvement and activity by the participants, most of it outdoors. Adventure travelers are explorers of both an outer world, especially the unspoiled, exotic parts of our planet and an inner world of personal challenge, self-perception and self-mastery. (Thompson Rivers University, 2016) By the word itself, adventure tourism defines itself. It is a kind of tourism which involves adventure and thrill. Adventure tourism entails the element of risk.

Adventure tourism requires special interest, experience and skill which make it cost effective to both the adventure business and the tourists who seek to go for it. Adventure tourism in Nepal is one of the fastest growing tourism activities but the least understood form of international tourism. The diverse geographical structures that are widely dispersed throughout the country makes it possible to have different kind of adventure trekking activities in Nepal such as mountaineering, trekking, hiking, rafting, canyoning, bungee, paragliding, sky diving, jungle safari, mountain biking, hot air ballooning, mountain flight.

Every year, thousands of tourists visit Nepal seeking thrill and adventure. Most of them come for multiple purposes but some come just seeking for the pure adventure. People choose Nepal for its uniqueness in climate, terrain and the options it provides in terms of adventurous works. There are various adventurous things that one can in Nepal depending upon their budget, time and their will to do it or the gut they have. Nepal provides option to choose from many such tasks to perform.

Types of Adventure Tourism in Nepal

There are many types of adventure tourism that one can do in Nepal. These kinds of tourism activities usually take place in natural landscapes and places such as rivers, lakes, falls, hills, ricks,mountains, terrains, cliffs, jungle. Depending upon the budget and the taste of people, one can perform multiple activities. There are lots of travel and tour operators in Nepal who also provide this service to the guests.

Mountaineering in Nepal

This is the most popular adventure tourism or extreme tourism activity in Nepal where each year thousands of people try and succeed or fail to ascend the highest mountains of the world. Mountaineering requires a high skill and harsh training and a good physique in order to achieve that. Also, the mountaineering cost for foreigners in Nepal is very costly. The mountaineering equipment is very costly. In Nepal, from 1953 to 2012, more than 3844 people have successfully climbed the tallest mountain in the world i.e. Mount Everest. Among those 3844 climbers, 220 were woman. Likewise, more than 296 people have climbed the third highest mountain in the world i.e. Mount Kanchenjunga till 2012.

The government of Nepal has opened 326 peaks for anyone to climb among which 102 are still climbed by anyone whatsoever. (Ministry of Culture,Tourism & Civil Aviation 2013, 13-111) Many treks and expedition offices in Nepal provide mountaineering services for those who want to climb the mountains. The royalty for mountaineering is very high which ranges from US $ 1500 to US $10,000 and US $ 50,000 for Mt Everest. This does not include another services expect for the permit to climb the mountains.

Religious and Cultural Tourism

Religious tourism is a form of tourism, whereby people of faith travel individually or in groups for reasons related to religion or spirituality in their quest for meaning. (Jongmeewasin, n.d.) Tourists travelling for the purpose of religious activity leaving his/her country or home travelling to religious and holy places is religious tourism which is also the oldest form of tourism activity in the world. It began almost with the dawn of humanity itself. Religious tourism is not only a visit to the specific holy temple or site but it may be a travel for a humanitarian cause as well. It means that the tourist or visitor shall not be of specific religion. Anyone can visit for this purpose. Religious and cultural tourism is a big market in the world.

(Tourism and More, 2014) Religious and Cultural tourism in Nepal is another popular tourism type where each year thousands of people visit Nepal for this purpose. This activity is coined ‘Pilgrimage Tourism’ as well. People all over the world visit Nepal to travel to religious places and pilgrimage. Nepal has majority of Hindu people but it does not stop other people following different religion to travel Nepal for religious purpose. People following Buddhism travel Nepal in high number each year since Nepal is the land where Lord Gautam Buddha was born. Nepal has many world famous religious sites such as Pashupati temple, Swyambhunath, Bouddha, Dakshinkali, Asura Cave, Lumbini, Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Durbar Square, Patan Durbar Sqaure, Muktinath, Gosainkunda, Manakamana,  Janakpur, Namobuddha which are the popular ones. Among these few are listed in the world heritage sites by UNESCO as well.

Monastery Visit and Guest Staying

People who follow Buddhism or wish to follow that path are welcomed in the monasteries of Nepal warmly. Each year thousands of tourists visit monasteries around Kathmandu valley for these purposes. These monasteries provide courses on Buddhism such as Retreats, Buddhism discovery, Dharama talk. The guests staying at such monasteries are to follow the monastery rules and regulations such as dress codes, meal time. These monasteries provide accommodation based on programs as well as they provide private stay which requires certain payments. The most famous re-treat monastery in Nepal is Kopan Monastery located in Kathmandu valley. There are other monasteries such around Pharping area, Swyambhu area, Boudhanath area where guests are welcomed hearty.

Missionary travel tourism in Nepal

A missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to proselytize and/or perform ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development. There are Christian Missionaries in Nepal whose purpose is to share the stories of Jesus and spread Christianity throughout the country. They also provide opportunity to others to volunteer, teach in schools and help in churches. Their primary aim is to circulate the prayers of the Churches and story of Christianity.

Leisure Tourism in Nepal

Leisure travel is travel in which the primary motivation is to take a vacation from everyday life. Leisure travel is often characterized by staying in nice hotels or resorts, relaxing on beaches or in a room, or going on guided tours and experiencing local tourist attractions. (Answers, 2016) The purpose of leisure tourism is for recreation. Leisure travelers enjoy organized entertainment and sports. Leisure tourism often includes tours and sight-seeing of different attraction. In context of Nepal, leisure tourism is very popular. People all around the world travel Nepal seeking to rest on the lap of the nature. Nepal is full of surprises for people who want to sit back and relax. Tourists who seek pleasure can go enjoy the beauty of lakes, rivers, nooks, falls, hills, Himalaya. They can also enjoy the organized tour of city and the famous places of Nepal such as temples, monasteries, monuments, natural areas.

Many tour and travel companies provide a short sight-seeing tours on places around the city areas such as Bhaktapur Durbar Square, Kathmandu Durbar Sqaure, Patan Durbar Square, Pashupati, Dakshinkali, Asura Cave, Swyambhu, Bouddha, Chagunarayan. Leisure travelers who visit Nepal tend to spend a lot of money on food, transportation and accommodation.

They tend to enjoy Nepali Cuisine and prefer to travel on taxis rather than public transport. They look for hotels with many facilities and features which are usually expensive in Nepal. Also, the products and services have higher margin in price for international tourists. Leisure travelers also spend money on buying the local handicrafts and items which are expensive as well. This shows that the leisure tourists are the source of income for not just the people who are directly benefited by them but also those who are indirectly benefited and the nation itself.

Types of Leisure Tourism Activities in Nepal

There are many activities that the leisure tourists can do in Nepal. From sunbathing in the bank of river to sightseeing and hiking in the nearby hills are the popular tourist activities in terms of pleasure tourism. Since the leisure travelers have tightly packed time frame, they tend to do lots of activities within that short span of time.

Sightseeing in Nepal.

 This is the most popular leisure activity that the leisure travelers do in Nepal. They travel from places to places sightseeing and enjoying the natural and historical beauty of Nepal. They travel to places such as old temples, palaces, museums, monasteries, natural landscapes such as hills, rivers, waterfalls, lakes, ponds. Places throughout Nepal such as Kathmandu, Bhaktapur and Patan Durbar Squares, Chitwan National Park, Fewa lake, Begnas lake, bat cave, Davis fall, World Peace Stupa, Lumbini – The birthplace of Lord Buddha, Janaki Temple at Janakpur, Nagarkot, Champadevi, Kulekhani, Shivapuri Conservation Area are popular places that the leisure tourists tend to visitmost.

Boating and Kayaking

Leisure tourists seem to enjoy boating and kayaking on the lakes of Nepal. Pokhara, a valley of lakes, is a famous destination of leisure tourists which is full of natural beauties. The Fewa lake and Begnas lake of Pokhara are popular for boating and kayaking in Nepal. A whole day boating charge is minimal which attracts tourists in this pleasure activity.

Sit Back and Relax in Nepal

The most popular thing that the leisure tourist does is sit back and relax. Nepal offers so many exotic and mesmerizing places for this activity. On the bank of the river and lake people are seen enjoying their beverages sitting and relaxing with the sun on their body.

Village Tour in Nepal

Wherever you are in Nepal, a village tour in Nepal would show you what the traditional Nepal used to be and the real struggle and life of Nepal. It is a great opportunity to discover Nepal through that experience. Village tour is a way of understanding the roots of culture, tradition, customs, practices and lifestyle of Nepal.

Nepal is an agricultural country with more than 75% people depending upon agriculture, farming, animal husbandry and fishing which clear the idea that most of the people in Nepal live in village or remote areas. People who visit these places can learn a lot about how to get acquainted with the nature and how to enjoy the simple life. Community home stays are popular means of accommodation in such places. These places also organize cultural programs, songs and dances for the guests for their enjoyment and to show the tradition and lifestyle of theirs.

Yoga and Meditation trip in Nepal

Yoga and Meditation helps in development of healthy body, mind and thought. It helps to achieve balanced, harmonious and integrated development of all the aspects of one’s personalities and guide to the happy, true and healthy living of life. Meditation is believed rejuvenates one’s energy and zeal. It helps to relax and explore the spiritual side of oneself. Thus, leisure travelers who visit Nepal indulge themselves to these activities. 

Many places around Kathmandu valley and Pokhara offer yoga and meditation services and courses as well. Many hotels and restaurants also offer these services to their guests. Humbly because outings are those time of the year where you get to celebrate and refresh your energy for the next year!! Trekking and some yoga courses combined are great things to do! Yoga is a group of physical, mental, and spiritual practices or disciplines which originated in ancient Nepal. Yoga is one of the six orthodox schools of Hindu philosophical traditions. There is a broad variety of yoga schools, practices, and goals in Hinduism, Buddhism.