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So, how can <strong>Nepal</strong> motivate travelers to visit?<br />
The best way is celebrities, high-profile people and<br />
the media. They are the medium to disseminate<br />
a positive message at a time when visitors are<br />
traumatized. Oscar-winning Hollywood actress<br />
Susan Sarandon has urged tourists to come to<br />
<strong>Nepal</strong> amid concerns that the nation’s vital tourism<br />
industry could be seriously hurt, and this is a<br />
gesture of goodwill to encourage others. After all,<br />
world-of-mouth promotion is the best strategy to<br />
promote tourism. Besides, social media can play<br />
an effective role to build the visitor’s confidence.<br />
Among several aspects, PATA is also considering or<br />
is in the process of bringing celebrities and highprofile<br />
people to <strong>Nepal</strong>.<br />
How is PATA helping to revive <strong>Nepal</strong>’s tourism?<br />
PATA is currently engaged in supporting the <strong>Nepal</strong><br />
government and the private sector in both the<br />
technical and financial aspects. Our experts are<br />
currently assessing the tourism recovery initiatives<br />
in the aftermath of the earthquake. We need to be<br />
transparent to inform people which place is safe to<br />
visit. Safe and unsafe areas should be categorized<br />
and highlighted. Within a few weeks, we will have<br />
a clearer picture on such areas, and subsequently<br />
after some assessment, we will be working on a<br />
strategy—short, medium and long term—and<br />
recommend <strong>Nepal</strong> to act accordingly to bring <strong>Nepal</strong>’s<br />
tourism into the right and sustainable track.<br />
Besides, technical resources, we are collecting<br />
funds from various international organizations for<br />
the recovery process. Similarly, we have the PATA<br />
international travel mart in Bangalore this September.<br />
The mart’s major focus will be on engaging<br />
buyers and sellers to help sell <strong>Nepal</strong>’s destinations.<br />
What role should the government play at this critical<br />
time?<br />
Don’t you think that earthquake-proof tourism<br />
infrastructures are the need of the hour?<br />
The Tourism Ministry should be able to bring all<br />
the stakeholders under one roof. Not only the<br />
government, it’s time for everyone to join hands to<br />
promote <strong>Nepal</strong>. In fact, the April earthquake is a<br />
wakeup call. Its lesson learning for a country like<br />
<strong>Nepal</strong> because natural disasters could occur again<br />
and the country should be well prepared to tackle<br />
them. The aftermath of the quake has not only<br />
made things challenging, but also provided an opportunity<br />
for <strong>Nepal</strong> to do things in the right way.<br />
After all, <strong>Nepal</strong>, which relies heavily on tourism,<br />
has an opportunity to rebuild its infrastructure in<br />
a sustainable way.<br />
Tourism entrepreneurs are very worried and they<br />
have started offering heavy discounts and started to<br />
engage in price cutting. Is this a good sign?<br />
Not at all. Instead of cutting prices and offering<br />
heavy discounts, the industry should maintain<br />
their quality and enhance the service level. If you<br />
adopt undercutting measures, it will affect your<br />
business greatly, and ultimately you will have<br />
to lay off your staff and that could make many<br />
people jobless. So discounts and undercutting<br />
measures practically do have adverse effects on the<br />
whole industry.