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Indian journalists' FAM Tour in Nepal

Sunday - 24th April 2005

Nepal Tourism Board has been organizing a series of Familiarization trips of various walks of Media personnel from around the major tourism markets holding tourism prospects. The objective behind organizing such trips are to bolster the news emanating from the ground reality more than the pseudo coverage carried out by various communication agencies without relying on the facts as a basis. At a time when initiating campaign programs in prominent print and electronic media is becoming out of reach for the under developed countries despite possessing natural and cultural endowments potential, Fam trips are proving cost effective way of destination promotion. Till date, NTB has already hosted the Fam trips to more than 300 journalists of highest repute and chunk of them have cooperated NTB by highlighting Nepal's tourism potential to disproportionate magnitude.

In order to perpetuate the notion of organising FAM tour for greater mileage, this time too, NTB has invited 17 Indian journalists from Mumbai and Delhi from April 15-22, 2005, in order to re-orient them about our destination potential and existing situation update. During the course of their stay in Nepal and visit of various major tourism destinations, they have garnered their own first hand information about the tourism potential and the existing safety and security situations. Most of them have realized the overall security situation of Nepal is conducive enough to run any type of tourism activities within the major tourism destinations.

Indian journalists visited Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, Nagarkot, Pokhara and Chitwan. Nepal Tourism Board in joint collaboration with Royal Nepal Airlines, Cosmic Air, Nepal Recreation Centre, Pashupati Area Development Trust has recently launched Fantastic Family Offer- 'Buy 3 & Get 1 ticket Free' in India. It is believed that this FAM tour will give impetus to this offer making Nepal a favourite tourist destination for Indians.

The visiting journalists also interacted with the officials of Nepal Tourism Board, Royal Nepal Airlines, Cosmic Air, Nepal Recreation Centre, Pashupathi Area Development Trust on April 22 sharing their experience. During the interaction, they said that they found Nepal different than what was portrayed in the media. They further said they didn't find any kind of problem in course of their visit. They raised a few questions regarding luggage check at domestic airport and simplification of identity for Indian tourists coming to Nepal by air. CEO of Nepal Tourism Board Mr. Tek Bahadur Dangi, Mr. Yogendra Sakya, Former Board Member, Nepal Tourism Board and Mr. R. D. Tuttle of Nepal Recreation and Lawrence Lew, General Manager, Cosmic Air addressed the interaction programmes and provided answer to the questions raised by Indian journalists.

The journalists from Mumbai are Mr. Sanjeev Sabade- Maharashtra Times, Mr. Suhas Potnis-Gavakari, Mr. Anand Katti-Freelance Travel Writer, Mrs. Madhura Katti-Freelance Travel Writer, Mr. Devanshu Desai- Chitralekha, Mr. Shailendra Kesari- Safari Plus, Mr. Gautam Purohit- Gujurat Samachar and Ms. Sylvia Fernandes- TRAC. Similarly, the journalists from Delhi are Mr. Amit Roy-Hindustan Times, Mr. Manoj Mathur-Rajasthan Patrika, Mr. Varinder Bhatia-The Indian Express, Mr. Sat Pal Baghi-Punjab Keshari, Mr. Vishal Duggal- Sahara Times, Mr. Raminder Sinha-Dainik Bhaskar, Mr. Vishnu Datt Sharma- Dainik Jagran and Mr. Tarun Chakarvarti-Greh Laxmi.

These FAM tours were supported by Hotel Yak & Yeti, Fishtail Lodge, Club Himalaya, Island Jungle Resort, Hotel Annapurna, Buddha Air, Cosmic Air, Nepal Recreation Centre and Shangri-La Hotel.

In the past, NTB invited journalists from Sun Zhan Tao and LinQiong from Voyage Magazine, Zhang Xiang Hong from Beijing Youth Daily, Gu Xian Junn from Sports and Leisure, Xu Li from Wedding Magazine from China. Similarly, Nayamogan Munian, Selvamalar, Artmathanloingam, Parvathi Wajindram, Roziami Idris, Fadzil Yahya Aziz and Suresh Murugiah from Astra TV were also invited.

From India earlier NTB had invited R. Chandrakanth, Special Correspondent of The Hindu, P.S. Phadnis, Chief of Bureau, Deccan Herald Vasanth Nadiger, News Editor, Vijayanand, Mr. Kiran Prakash M.S., Chief Sub-editor, the New Indian Express and Ms. Divyalakshmi Nambiar, Sub-Editor, Voyagers World. Similarly, Ms. Liu Wying Sze and Mr. Fung Kin Wai from Eastweek Magazine, Hong Kong were invited for FAM tours recently.

A journalist from Thailand is arriving on April 22, 2005 from Bangkok at the invitation of NTB. Similarly, Nepal Tourism Board is bringing a FAM trip of five journalists from Bangladesh from April 26. Another FAM trip of electronic media of India is coming to Nepal in May first week.


Source NTB