Tourism in Nepal

Tourism is the largest industry in Nepal; the largest source of foreign exchange and revenue. Possessing 8 of the 10 highest mountains in the world, Nepal is a hotspot destination for mountaineers, rock climbers and people seeking adventures. The Hindu and Buddhist heritage of Nepal, and its cold weather are also strong attractions.

About Nepal
Nepal is a country lying between China on the North and India on the South. It is a landlocked country on the collision zone between two plates, so large mountain ranges are formed in the creasing – including the Pahar Hill region and the Mountain region, both with large altitudes and populated valleys. Tourism is especially large in Mount Everest and a large amount of conflict has arisen there – as we will study later. Mountaineers with ambitions to travel, view and climb the spectacular slopes come in their ten thousands. 39% of the GDP comes from agriculture; 76% of people use it as their principle employment. Services (which would include tourism) equal 42% and industry 21%. The lack of natural resources means that agriculture is the main primary industry, while tourism probably the main tertiary. Main exports are clothing, leather, jute goods and grain.
There are lots of places to visit in Nepal. That is why people often term Nepal as "a place where there are more temples than houses". Similarly because of Gods and Goddesses we term it as a place where the number of gods and goddess is more than the population of people.
Inside the Kathmandu Valley, there is lots of sight seeing. For example, you can go to Kasthamandap which was build of one tree, Pashupati nath of the capital and several other temples, historical places and monuments.
However, one of the most amazing thing of the Kathmandu Valley is the excellent view of the valley from all the hilltops!
Similarly when one goes outside of the valley, he or she can see countless natural beauties never explored. Tourists stare with amazements of the gift of God to the Himalayan Kingdom. Nepal is a must visit place.

Problems of tourism

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Tourism began in Nepal as people discovered the land around the tallest peak in the world, Mt. Everest. Development around Mt. Everest was slow to start, however the scenery waiting to be viewed would soon attract many tourists. So tourism began: people had ambitions to climb the slopes of the great mountain, and, as always, local people began to expand their living to fit that of the tourists and began to, in some areas, become richer and more developed. However, visitors would share their culture, good or bad, and this had some major disadvantages, principally litter. Locals also began to, as they used more developed equipment, drop litter on the slopes that no-one wanted to take down. This includes oxygen bottles, bottles of water, snack bars and tissues etc – all of what we enjoy at home, but without any bins. Landfill sites were set up.
Other problems include the volume of tourists wearing the mountain away, which causes mudslides through erosion which can be deadly for lower communities. Trees are cut down at an alarming rate, adding to this problem – a tourist uses three times more wood then a Sherpa. In the towns, toilet facilities involve no sewage system, and therefore local water, which the people are used to it being clean, is neglected and polluted with human waste. Locals, who can’t afford the bottled water that tourists are buying have no real choice about using the polluted water and suffer the increased health costs and deadly diseases. Now tourists are buying and pushing up the price of products that the locals are selling, agriculture in growing potatoes for the local population has decreased and problems have occurred because of the price rise: locals can no longer buy their community’s food and often must either eat less or find another way to make a living. Large non-localised organisations often refuse responsibility concerning waste, forcing local people to clean up to keep the area attractive to tourists.

Benefits of Tourism
Tourism is big business in Nepal. Local people can benefit and develop their lives out of poverty with tourism, despite the fact that tourists can dilute the culture and often damage the local area. Tourism can lead to development, such as healthcare and cleaner water, and this can be good if tourism is sustained long enough for people to demand those services, but again many disadvantages can come with this. The industry can also act as a substitute to other methods of income, such as agriculture or secondary industry, which may start to struggle.