“Youth Travel”

Presentation by: Sweta Gurung

At

PATA Adventure Travel & Responsible Tourism Conference & Mart:

7 - 10 February, 2011

Adventure Travel in Nepal

Blessed due to nation’s rich anddiverse natural resources,culture and traditions.

Offering plethora of experiencesfrom the lowland of the Teraiplains to the high Himalayas,Adventure in Nepal is limitless.

3

Number of Tourists by Purpose of Visit

Year(December)

Pleasure Trekking &Mountaineering

Business Official Pilgrimage Meeting &Seminar

Others Total

2000 255889 118780 29454 20832 15801 5599 17291 463646Ź 55.2 25.6 6.4 4.5 3.4 1.2 3.7 100

2001 187022 100828 18528 18727 13816 - 22316 161237Ź 51.8 27.9 5.1 5.2 3.8 - 6.2 100

2002 110143 59279 16690 17783.00 12366 - 58907 275468Ź 40 21.5 6.2 6.50 4.5 0 21.3 100

2003 97904 65721 19387 21967 21395 - 111758 338132Ź 29 19.4 5.7 6.50 6.3 0 33.1 100

2004 167262 69442 13948 17088 45664 - 71893 385297Ź 43.4 18 3.6 4.40 11.9 0 18.7 100

2005 160259 61488 21992 16859 47621 - 67179 375398Ź 42.7 16.4 5.90 4.50 12.7 0 17.8 100

2006 145802 66931 21066 18063 59298 - 72766 383926Ź 38.0 17.4 5.5 4.7 15.4 - 19.0 100

2007 217815 101320 24487 21670 52594 8019 100800 526705Ź 41.4 19.2 4.6 4.1 10.0 1.5 19.2 100

2008* 152950 100055 23039 45091 43044 6938 129160 50027730.6 20.0 4.6 9.0 8.6 1.4 25.8 100

Source: Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil AviationNote: Figures in bold represent percentage share in total* Estimated

Where There Be Dragons

The Experience

The Experience

The Experience

Experience with the Local Community

- Dragons programs are authentic, rugged and profound learning adventures that expose the beautiful and complex realities of the countries in which we travel.

-Featuring extended itineraries, Dragons programs encourage deep immersion into strikingly different physical and cultural landscapes, combining the best in experiential education, travel, service learning, and physically and intellectually challenging experiences.

-Dragons participants are offered 4 to 13 week long program in Nepal where the itinerary is creatively weaved to investigate and explore the ideas of Global Citizenship, Awareness of Self and Leadership.

Adventure Travel & Young Travelers

• According to statistics by WTO (World Tourism Organization), current young travelers (age 15 - 25) represent more than 20% of international tourists.

• According to the annual report of the Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation(MoTCA) Nepal, the number of travelers in the 16-30 age group surged by 32 percent in 2009. The data being 106,596 in 2008 and 140,805 in 2009.

• Young people are lured by Adrenaline pumping activities.• The highlight for Dragons participants remain trekking in the high

Himalayas and the culture that surrounds those mountains.

Adventure Travel & Responsible Tourism

• The abundance of natural resources is not be taken for granted.• The myopic view on Adventure Travel needs to be shifted. • Sustainability IS the buzz word today. • Young travelers appreciates fun and adventurous activities. • Young travelers learn from their peers and role models. • These young travelers are taking physical journey to - understand the larger world

and to investigate their role in that world. • Responsible Tourism begins with these Young travelers.• Nepal as a beautiful nation with its complex diversity offers plethora of experiences.• Experiencing them with cultural sensitivity and engagement is practicising

responsible tourism. • As a by-product, local communities are empowered and their cultural legacy is

valued.• Adventure Travel can remain sustainable only when responsible tourism is weaved in.

Why We Travel?

• We travel, initially, to lose ourselves; and we travel, next, to find ourselves. We travel to open our hearts and eyes and learn more about the world than our newspaper will accommodate. We travel to bring what little we can, in our ignorance and knowledge, to those parts of the globes whose riches are differently dispersed. And we travel, in essence, to become young fools again, to slow time down, get taken in, and fall in love once more. – Pico Iyer