Adventure tourism expo kicks off in Nepal

KATHMANDU, March 23 (Xinhua) -- Global Adventure and Mountaineering Conference and Expo (GAMCE)-2018, an international event aimed at promoting Nepal as the adventure hub for Asia, kicked off in Kathmandu on Friday.

The-three day event is first of its kind being held in the Himalayan country, which is renowned for adventure tourism due to its prominent peaks. Nepal hosts half of the world's 14 tallest mountains.

Organizers - Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), the main tourism promotion body of the country and the House of Rajkarnikar, an event management company - said there are 42 speakers and about 250 participants taking part in the conference while 35 exhibitors are showcasing their adventure gears and travel services in the expo.

The event is being organized at a time when various mountaineering expedition groups are preparing to climb the Nepal-based Himalayan mountains.

During the inauguration ceremony, NTB Chief Executive Officer Deepak Raj Joshi said Nepal offers variety of experiences in area of adventure tourism and the country has been appealing to global adventure enthusiasts.

"Nepal is already in global map of adventure tourism and the future of adventure tourism in the country looks rosy," he said. According to the organizers, they initiated such event considering the tremendous growth of revenue the sector witnessed in recent years.

Birendra Rajkarnikar, managing director of House of Rajkarnikar, said they aimed to strengthen the working relations among the Nepali and international stakeholders of adventure tourism with the GAMCE-2018.

The organizers said they aimed to develop GAMCE as a market platform for adventure tourism.

One of the main reasons behind foreign tourists visiting Nepal is to get involved in adventurous activities, mainly the mountaineering because the country is famous for a large number of Himalayan peaks including the world's highest Mt. Qomolangma. Enditem