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The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) is pleased to bring back the PATA Adventure Travel and Responsible Tourism Conference and Mart 2011 (AT&RTCM) to Pokhara, Nepal. The AT&RTCM will take place at the Fulbari Resort and Spa, February 7-11, 2011.
Under the theme ‘Social Give Back: Doing Well by Doing Good’, the conference will focus on current issues on sustainable and responsible tourism such as ‘Greening of Travel and Tourism’ and ‘Experiential and Indigenous Tourism’. ‘Extreme Adventure Holidays’ will also be discussed.
High profile speakers in sustainable and responsible travel will gather at the event. Notable names include those of Arlene Samen, CNN Hero; Brian Mullis, Sustainable Travel International; John King, Global Tourism & Leisure; Mina Gabor, International School of Sustainable Tourism; Nyima Tashi Sherpa, Kopan Monastery Village; Renton de Alwis, writer and social activist and Steve Harbert, Mountain Kingdom.
Participants will also be encouraged to ‘do well do good’ by contributing to the local community in Pokhara. Three options will be offered during the offsite session, including visits to a government school, Phewa Lake or an old age home.
Said Prachanda Shrestha, CEO, Nepal Tourism Board: “It’s a great privilege for us to have the AT&RTCM return to Pokhara after the last event in 2001. Indeed, Pokhara is a perfect venue for this event as it has been the centre of adventure activities in Nepal, draped by high mountains of the Annapurna Range, and flanked by the turquoise Phewa Lake. I truly believe that an event of such international stature will definitely help us in promoting Nepal as a tourist destination for ‘All Seasons’.”
Said Pawan Tuladhar, chairman, PATA Nepal Chapter: “PATA hosting the event in Nepal for the second time around only emphasises the Association’s continued commitment to adventure travel and responsible tourism. PATA is very much in line with the shift in trend in adventure and responsible tourism.
“Nepalese tourism entrepreneurs have always been the leaders in the trekking industry and keep current with the changing trends in adventure travel and responsible tourism. This is a great opportunity for Nepal to promote itself, especially as 2011 is ‘Nepal Tourism Year’. Pokhara is the ideal venue for such an event as an Adventure Mart, as it is the gateway to the famous Annapurna Range that offers some of the greatest treks in the world."
The event is hosted by Nepal Tourism Board with support from the PATA Nepal Chapter and endorsed by Adventure Travel Trade Association (ATTA), the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Sustainable Travel International. Official airlines are Nepal Airlines and Buddha Air.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
