How Pokhara is being marketed? Nepal Tourism

How Pokhara is being marketed? Nepal Tourism

The history of tourism in Pokhara began with the trekking by British Gorkha officers during 1950s. Pokhara and its surrounding areas became popular among the mountaineers and trekkers after the successful climbing of Annapurna 1st on 3rd of June 1950 by Maurice Harzog and his team of mountaineers. Since this successful ascend, Mr. Harzog wrote a book entitled "Annapurna" which did not become popular, but it reached to the record breaking sales with nearly 11 million copies by the year

2000.2 Thus, Pokhara got its global name and fame in the world due to its topographical and natural connection with Mt. Annapurna. Initially, Pokhara was automatically marketed without any systematic way. It was marketed not really by domestic tourists but mainly by international tourists through their verbal words. Moreover hippies during 1960s and

70s were crucial to promote Pokhara and Annapurna region through their verbal words (Shakya 2008). Today, Pokhara is marketed by various ways. The major highlights are described in succeeding paragraphs.

1 Role of promotional guide books

There are important roles played by promotional guide books to promote Pokhara from 1980s and thereafter.

a. Pokhara in Lonely Planet

Lonely Planet is one of the popular travel guide books. It is published as a book and it has a website too. Several independent travelers use this guide book and decide to travel at various destinations mentioned in it. So the book is also an important destination promotional tool. In one of these books, Pokhara is described as follows:

Imagine a perfect triangular mountain, capped by snow and buffeted by the icy winds of the Himalaya. Imagine a millpond calm lake, perfectly reflecting the snowy peaks. Now imagine a village on the lakeshore, thronged by travelers and reverberating to the sound of 'om mani padme hum' from a hundred shops selling prayer flags, carpets, masks, singing bowls and CDs of Buddhist mantras. That's Pokhara.

Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, 's second city, at least in tourist terms, Pokhara is the end point for the famous Annapurna Circuit trek and the starting point for a dozen more treks through the mountains of the Annapurna Range, including the perennially popular Jomsom Trek and the equally dramatic (but less busy) trek to the Annapurna Sanctuary. It's unashamedly touristy, in the Thamel mould, but the setting is spectacular - the perfect pyramid of Mt Machhapuchhare looms high above Pokhara, reflected in the placid waters of Phewa Tal.

For many travelers, Pokhara represents a last chance to stock up on creature comforts before hitting the mountain trails. For others, it's a place to enjoy a steak dinner and cold beer after weeks of daal bhaat in the hills. Even if you aren't a dedicated trekker, there's plenty here to keep you busy. Pokhara has numerous museums and there are some fascinating caves, waterfalls and Tibetan villages in the surrounding hills” (Lonely planet 2013).

There are following more descriptions from the perspective of marketing Pokhara.“Why Go?

Pokhara: Peaceful Pokhara has a prime position beside a deep green lake, nestling among forested hills with a picture, postcard backdrop of gleaming Himalayan peaks.

But Pokhara has two personalities. Behind lakeside Pokhara, the one most tourist see, is a sprawling trade centre bustling with all the trappings of modern commerce but with pockets of old Newari architecture. Meanwhile, back at lakeside Pokhara the scene is chilled out version of Thamel where traffic fumes have been swapped for fresh mountain air and the racing motorbikes for paddle boats” (Lonely planet Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, 2012, p. 191).

b. Pokhara in Rough Guide

This is another guide book for travelers. It has also described Pokhara as follows:

The Himalayas make the greatest rise from sub-tropical valley floor to icy summit of any mountain range on earth and the contrast is stunningly apparent at Pokhara. Basking beside verdant lakeshore, on clear mornings it boasts a nearly unobstructed views of the 8000 meters plus Annapurna and Manaslu ranges, looming almost touchily 25 KM to the north” (McConnachie et al. 2012, p. 204).

5.5.2 Role of internet marketing and blog sites

Internet marketing and blog sites are other means to promote Pokhara. There are a number of blog sites created by tourists who have already travelled Pokhara. They share their experiences and reflections on such blog sites which are interesting to know Pokhara for other readers. Trip advisor, Lonely Planet, Yatra.com, Makemytrip.com are some of the examples which have brought revolution in the online business of tourism all over the world. These days the travellers are internet-friendly and they make it a point to refer these sites before planning any trips. Thus, it is a very important need of the hour to publicize tourism products through these channels. Pokhara has been well-marked by individual companies in these sites.

Pokhara is now being marketed by various concerned agencies, organizations and stakeholders. They have played a vital role for the promotion of these regions. Some of their efforts regarding the marketing and promotion are given below.

5.5.3 Role of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Tourism Board

Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Tourism Board, the National Tourism Organization of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , holds the sole responsibility of marketing campaigns of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, internationally with the brand name "Naturally Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, -Once is not enough." In this sense, Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, still follows the conventional strategy of marketing in which the whole destination is generally included in a single package. Pokhara is included as a major tourist destination of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, in this package. Thus, the concept of individual destination marketing has been rarely applied in Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, 's tourism marketing (personal communication with Shradhha Shrestha, Station In charge, NTB, Pokhara). There are following regular marketing and promotional activities of NTB at the destination level in international tourist markets where Pokhara generally gets some space in combination with some other tourist destinations of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, .

• y Participations in the major tourism fairs around the World such as World Tourism Mart (WTM), ITB Berlin, Vakentiebeurs- Netherlands, MITT Russia, BIT-Italy, Fitur-Spain, ATM Dubai, CITM/COTOM-China, JATA-Japan, KOFTA-Korea, TTAA-Thailand, MATKA-Finland, TTF/SATTE/OTM-India etc. Apart from participation in the major fairs around the world, NTB jointly with the private sector and tourism associations organizes Sales Missions and Road shows abroad. These programs usually consist of Press briefings and Business to Business sessions.
• y Organization of media and tour operators’ familiarization trips ( FAM) trips Campaigning through advertisements, advertorials, print and electronic publicity e-marketing through website and e-newsletter Market specific promotional collaterals through producing travelers' information in different languages Promotion of Pokhara as the ultimate adventure destination in context of the development of air sports (e.g. ultra light aircraft, paragliding, jeep flyer, sky diving, etc.
• y Branding Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, into 3 sub-brands namely lifetime journeys, ultimate adventure and weekend holidays. First two brands are target to European and American markets whereas the third brand is for neighboring markets like China and India.
• 5.5.4 Visit Pokhara Year 2007 as a joint initiative
• Visit Pokhara Year (VPY) 2007 was the first promotional campaign in the regional level outside Kathmandu. It was organized by NTB in partnership with various tourism-related organizations like PTC and several travel trade associations functioning in Pokhara. A total of five million rupees was allocated for this campaign and the same amount was contributed by the travel trade as the matching fund. The main objectives of this campaign were as follow:
• y With focus to Pokhara, promote Lumbini, Palpa, Gorkha, Chitwan, Syanja, Tanahun, Annapurna area and surroundings as important tourist destinations with the advent of New Year and new political development of the nation in the post-conflict scenario.
• y Help in energizing and involving all players and stakeholders for their active participation in reestablishing the tourism destination image of Pokhara and the surrounding.
• y Help in conserving and promoting major tourism destinations like Phewa Lake, Begnas Lake, Buddhist circuit, etc.
• y Identify the areas in improving human resources in enhancing the service to the tourists.
• y Highlight and promote unique and emerging products of Pokhara such as paragliding, Para trekking and ultra light flights.
• y Explore more tourist products or areas and create their profiles.
• y This campaign was the most important promotional campaign for Pokhara. With this campaign, Pokhara was able to receive 165,177 tourists in 2007 which was 74 percent more than the total tourists’ arrivals in 2006. In this occasion, various marketing and promotional materials were published which included items like Danglors, stickers, broachers, posters, audio visual, CD, DVD etc. In this special year, Pokhara was also focused on its international travel fairs and road shows.

5.5.5 Pokhara in all major promotional campaigns

Pokhara had been promoted in all major promotional campaigns like Visit Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Year 1998, Destination Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Campaign 2002-2004, International Year of Mountains 2002, Mt. Everest Golden Jubilee Celebration 2003, Dhaulagiri Golden Jubilee Celebration 2010, Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Tourism Year 2011, Visit Lumbini Year 2012 and ongoing promotional focuses of Tourism Vision 2020. There were joint roles of various organizations like Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation, NTB and other travel trade related private associations and entrepreneurs.

5.5.6 Role of various tourism organizations

The various tourism-related associations working in Pokhara play important roles in promoting the Pokhara region both domestically and internationally. The roles of such organizations are highlighted below.

a. Pokhara Tourism Council

As an umbrella tourism organization, Pokhara Tourism Council (PTC) prominently works to guide and mutually lead several member tourism associations in achieving together the common goal of tourism marketing and promotion of Pokhara region. Some major contributions of PTC are follows.

y Coordination of Pokhara trade industry and its leadership to participants from various national and international trade fairs, seminars and conferences like National Tourism Fair, South Asia Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE), and PATA Adventure Travel and Responsible Tourism Conference and Mart in past.

y Publication of promotional magazine “Tourism Mirror” which provides detailed information on all the existing tourism destinations and products of Pokhara.

y Publication of the promotional booklet “Paradise Pokhara” to offer the insights of the tourist attractions and publicizes Pokhara.

y Play a leading role in organizing World Tourism Day celebration on 27 September each year. The core activities include special welcome to first arriving three guests at Pokhara Airport and Tourist bus-park. Such guests are also offered with complimentary hotels, hiking and trekking.

y Promotion of the theme “Pokhara for All Seasons” through organizing the annual event Asare Ropain Mahotsav (rice planning festival) to interlink and strengthen the reciprocal relationships between agriculture and tourism. This festival is widely organized, participated, enjoyed and advertized by both domestic and international tourists. Formulation of manual on tourism ethical operation code of conducts and corporate social responsibility guidelines in association with the Swiss National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) North-South and Department of Development Studies, Kathmandu University at the destination level in 2013 in Pokhara (Upadhayaya & Khatiwada, 2012). The applications of these guidelines are supposed to enhance the image of Pokhara as a responsible destination in the world.

y Apart from PTC individual associations also work independently towards the development and promotion of tourism of Pokhara. They are as follows.

b. Paschimanchal Hotel Association Pokhara

The major national and international marketing campaigns of Paschimanchal Hotel Association Pokhara (PHAP) are as follows;

y “Jaun Hai Pokhara”: Jaun Hai Pokhara is the campaign launched by PHAP to promote Pokhara among the local Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, i people and thus boost domestic tourism. PHAP has created various promotional materials like CD, brochures, posters, and leaflets, introduced various packages on discounted rates on hotels for Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, ese and conducted road shows to promote Pokhara in various parts of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, under this campaign. There are positive results of such campaigns with the increase in the domestic tourist arrivals to Pokhara.

y “Chaliye Pokhara”: Chaliye Pokhara is a modified campaign of the popular Jaun Hai Pokhara campaign. This is specially designed to promote Pokhara in the Indian market. The major promotion of this campaign was done in 2012 when PHAP jointly with Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Tourism Board organized a Border Town Roadshow in border cities of India like Gorakhpur, Kanpur and Lucknow. Presentations of the tourism products of Pokhara are the major highlights of this program with special launching of customized packages for Indians.

y "Pokhara Pure & Perfect": This is another campaign of PHAP to promote Pokhara internationally, especially in China, other Asian countries and the Western European countries. Many promotional materials like attractive posters, DVDs, brochures, t-shirts, caps, etc. have been produced under this theme and distributed widely. This campaign has been launched successfully in many countries like China, Thailand during PHAP's independent events. This campaign's successes can be credited today as ‘Pure & Perfect’ has become a brand to be associated with Pokhara.

c. Trekking Agencies’ Association of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , Western Regional Association, Pokhara

TAAN has undertaken the major responsibility of developing and promoting adventure tourism in the country. TAAN, Pokhara, was involved for long in organizing the international paragliding championships from its first to tenth series which it later handed over to Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Air sports Association. TAAN Pokhara annually promotes home-stay and village tourism promotional campaigns on the World Tourism Day through organizing FAM trips and winter camps. This association has published several brochures, maps and signage of some trekking routes of this region.

The execution of Trekkers Information Management System (TIMS) by TAAN, Pokhara, helps to collect and maintain the proper data of the trekkers, which is supportive for the marketing and promotional strategy of tourism.

d. Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Association of Tour and Travel Agents, Regional Association, Pokhara NATTA promotional tour is a major marketing activity of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA) Pokhara. NATTA Pokhara, has organized 4 tours in Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , 2 tours in India, and one tour each in Malaysia and Singapore is South East Asia till date. NATTA publishes brochures, posters, CDs depicting the products of Pokhara and distributes the same during the promotional tour. Apart from the promotional tour, NATTA Pokhara also conducts various tour operators’ and media writers’ FAM trips in Pokhara, participates in various international travel trade fairs and conferences which are supportive to enhance the destination image of Pokhara.

e. Restaurant and Bar Association of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Pokhara Chapter Restaurant and Bar Association of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, (REBAN) Pokhara Chapter annually organizes Pokhara Street Festival. This event is becoming popular every year and witnesses visitors’ increase by leaps and bounds. The event starts from 28 of December every year and ends on 1st of January. As the name states, the festival is massively observed on the stretch of 3 km in the Lakeside area. Prior to this occasion, the members of REBAN organize the promotional tour including press meets to various cities of Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, and India. This helps to promote Pokhara.

5.5.7 Role of various tourism associations as the organizers of several activities

There are a number of tourism associations in tourism sector of Pokhara, which are actively engaged in organizing marketing and promotion related activities.

Marketing focuses 

Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, Air sports Association  Promotion of Pokhara through organizing annual international paragliding championships participated by national and international paragliders 

NMA Annapurna Chapter in association with NTB 

Golden Jubilee celebrations of the first ascend of Mt. Dhaulagiri in 2010. Instrumental in establishing International Mountain Museum (IMM) in Pokhara which is one of the prominent attractions for visitors. Promotion of the mountain people, their activities, mountain history, mountain-related scientific information of the origination of the world mountain system and various mountain activities through IMM 

Trekking Equipment

Shops’ Association Promotion of Pokhara through the brand name of Annapurna, Everest, Lumbini, etc. in trekking equipments 

Embroidery and Garment Association 

Promotion of tourism activities like trekking, rafting, jungle safari, paragliding, religious symbols, tourist destinations, etc. through embroidery costume. 

Source: compiled by author from various publications

5.5.8 Role of media

Media contributes immensely towards achieving the stronger destination positioning, branding and attracting new tourists. In this context, Mr. Francesco Frangialli, the former UNWTO Secretary-General once rightly expressed the view that modern day tourism is highly dependent on media reporting. He said so because today a vast majority of travel decisions are made by people who have never seen their intended destinations first- hand for themselves (UNWTO 2007). Many people are making their travel decisions and are also travelling on their own by using information from multiple sources of media which include televisions, radios, newspapers, books, magazines, movies, and Internet.

In Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, ese context, the decreasing trends of tourist arrival during a decade long armed conflict and the increasing trends of tourist arrival after the peace process agreement proves that media plays a vital role for the development of tourism. In spite of the negative and totally sensitive incident of the 2001 royal massacre, people from all over the world still visited Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, recognizing the worth of visiting Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, for its natural and cultural fascinations. To some extent, it is the crucial role and support of media. Even in the armed conflict period, tourists realized that they were safe in Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, and thus there were still large number of tourists, who continuously arrived Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, (Upadhayaya 2012). By realizing the role of Media, the NTB and other various organizations have established a media centre. The NTB regularly invites media people in Nepal, the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, , the beautiful country, tourist based country, to discuss the burning and sensitive issues about tourism and implement them for further promotion of tourism. Such a vital role of media and its influence are observed in national level either immediately after the royal massacre or during the armed conflict and post-conflict periods. Finally, media is found active in printing and broadcasting the appropriate image of Pokhara.

5.5.9 Role of non-tourist organizations

Pokhara has of several non-tourism related areas of social, commercial and even non- profitable organizations, which work on their own capacity for the overall development of tourism in Pokhara through its marketing and promotion. Their names and areas are presented in the table below.

Apart from tourism associations, there are significant involvements of various individual tourism entrepreneurs in marketing and promoting Pokhara. There are 573 hotels and guest houses, 116 travel agencies, 81 trekking companies, 21 tourist standard restaurants and 15 paragliding companies and hundreds of handicraft centers, books shops, cyber cafes, money changers (PTO 2011). Every year several individual companies have been participating in the travel and tourism fairs organized in the domestic and international markets. Most of them have their own promotional materials like brochures, posters, stickers, CDs, DVDs, websites, etc in which they reflect and grab attentions towards Pokhara as an exotic tourist destination. The travel trade companies have played significant roles for promoting destination (personal communication with travel trade people of Pokhara).