Challengesand Recommendations

Infrastructure

Infrastructure for tourism has a sizable demand-supply imbalance, especially in facilities for high-end visitors; this creates a chance for further private sector involvement The facilities needed to accommodate the increasing number of tourists are insufficient in terms of both quantity and quality, and thus there is a demand-supply imbalance in the country's tourism infrastructure. The "high value" tourist category, which looks for luxury accommodations, tours, and travel services, has a particularly huge demand-supply mismatch Given Nepal's general emphasis on "low budget tourism," this category is not given much attention, and the industry might benefit from giving high-value travelers more attention. There are only 19 5-star hotels and resorts in Nepal as of right now, and the majority of them are located in Kathmandu and Pokhara, with very little high-end infrastructure elsewhere.

The lack of proper road and air infrastructure poses a huge challenge to the tourism sector of Nepal Mass tourism and attracting high end tourists is difficult due to lack of adequate infrastructure. Trekkers are mostly prepared to face inconvenience during their visit such as at the airport, however, it creates unnecessary hassle for them. The construction of domestic airports during peak tourist months creates a lot of inconvenience for travelers and trekkers, which can discourage them from visiting Nepal in the future

Infrastructures need to be improved to improve connectivity and make travelling comfortable The airports and the safety and maintenance of airplanes need to be improved. The increase in number of domestic flights will increase domestic mobility, and therefore tourist flow within the country The process of taking a flight must be easier for tourists from all over the world by creating direct flight routes where possible to reduce the time taken to reach Nepal Flight management at the Tribhuvan International Airport is also an issue, as international airlines are prioritized, delaying the movement of tourists within the country .

Human Resource

Retaining capable hospitality manpower in Nepal is a challenge Despite the presence of good quality educational institutes for hotel management in Nepal, it is difficult to retain graduates as the Middle East is an attractive destination for them and are more likely to move

July 2023 20 abroad. Nepal also does not have enough hotels to absorb the hospitality graduates.

Hotel management institutes need to include practical as well as theoretical knowledge in the curriculum. There is a need to educate young professionals on the skillsets required in the tourism industry such as good communication, finance, product development, and technical skills such as tourism marketing, tourism online retailing etc

The training for trekking guides in Nepal is too theoretical which results in a lack of skills in the guides To obtain a guide license in Nepal, you have to attend NATHM for a month, but the education they provide is not of great quality. Since trekking involves tourists from all countries, a knowledge of multiple languages is essential.

Regulatory Bodies

The regulatory environment is mostly favorable to the tourism industry Through rules that demand hotels and resorts meet international standards as well as subsidies and incentives for the private sector, Nepal's regulatory environment has a favorable impact on enterprise value and operations in the tourism sector. However, they might be improved by introducing more accommodating laws to encourage private sector engagement in the tourism industry, particularly around land acquisition through Private Public Partnerships (PPPs) and build- operate-transfer models.

However, there is a lack of consistent long-term policy on tourism A sustainable long-term policy is required for the tourism sector so that the hospitality businesses can plan accordingly and ahead of time. The policies should also take into account the possible environmental damage caused by heavy influx of tourists There is a need for proper planning and training for new hotels in order to ensure good quality and prevent oversupply.

Based on the stakeholder consultations, Nepal can be more conducive to tourists if the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) focuses on marketing more than on product development. However, NTB has been unable to market the places in Nepal properly due to lack of funds NTB can hire tourism experts at the decisionmaking level to increase the capacity of NTB to develop and brand Nepal as a tourism destination

Further, there is a need for proper and timely implementation of policies introduced to revive the sector from COVID-19. For instance, the financing option provided by the government at 5% to the hotels affected by COVID-19 for a period of 2 years had slow implementation, depriving several hotels from availing such facilities.

Additionally, there is a need to improve tourist visa policies of Nepal so that travel to Nepal can be more convenient. For this, the government should facilitate the visa approval process by enabling payment of fees through credit card and online payment channels.

Marketing

There is a need to market Nepal in a better way as a tourist estination Nepal can be rebranded as not just a mountainous country, as Nepal is rich in culture and nature as well to attract tourists of all kinds. Nepal can sustainably market the country’s history, humility, and friendliness and redirect its focus to improve the experiences of tourists visiting Nepal. Currently, the country relies mostly on word of mouth for marketing. Moving forward, digital marketing can be leveraged to promote various experiences offered by Nepal with only a little investment Further, participating in international fairs, and hosting international events can lead to increased visibility of Nepal in the global space, which will eventually lead to more arrival of tourists.

Data

There has been no effort to change the tourism industry into a data-driven one. The data on tourist arrival is not accurate because any foreigner entering Nepal is considered a tourist There is no data on the movement of tourists within the country There is a need for data on the activities of the tourists so as to analyze behavioral patterns, exit poles and divert focus on the quality of experience they gained. There is data available on the tourists in the Namche region but no analysis has been conducted. There is no analysis of the age group of tourists arriving in Nepal. Data analysis is needed for incoming tourists and their spending patterns so that the tourism industry can plan accordingly

Chain hotels have their data in their system which can be compared to the market averages. Hotel data is not comparable due to differences in room keys. The hotel industry must be required to fill an online database with rooming data such as bed nights. This can be done by collaborating with already existing data companies and the central bureau of information

Mismatch of Expectation

International tour operators selling holiday packages for Nepal tend to charge a high rate to their customers. Due to this, the tourists visiting Nepal expect high quality as per the rate paid. However, the Nepali tourism industry gets only a small share of this rate and thus can only provide services as per the proportion of revenue they receive. This leads to a mismatch of pricing with the quality of service offered, causing dissatisfaction among tourists