Nepal is set to roll out the red carpet for tourists from Hong Kong as the 'Shangri La' kingdom designates 1998 as Visit Nepal Year.
'It is an important event in the tourism history of Nepal and we urge the people of Hong Kong to visit,' Consul-General Pradhumna Shah said. Hundreds of events, ranging from cultural and food festivals to special interest tours and sound and light shows, are being organised in conjunction with the tourism drive.
International sporting highlights include car, classic car and motorbike rallies, a mountain marathon, ballooning festival, para-gliding and hang gliding contests and a kayaking and 'white water' competition. An attraction unique to Nepal is the annual International Elephant Polo Championship.
Most people have heard of the fairy-tale capital of Kathmandu, Nepal's exquisite temples and traditional trekking attractions, notably to Mount Everest or the Annapurnas.
But the tourism industry has recently been developed to cater for a new generation of thrill seekers and offers white-water rafting and kayaking, helicopter flights and hot-air ballooning.
Notable visitors to the Tiger Tops lodge at Chitwan National Park have included Hong Kong's 'First Lady', Betty Tung.
