The Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) will conduct the PATA Adventure Travel and Responsible Tourism Conference and Mart 2011 (AT&RTCM) in Pokhara, Nepal at the Fulbari Resort and Spa from 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. The last AT&RTCM conference was held in Nepal 2001.
The event to be 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 will witness participation of high profile speakers in Sustainable and Responsible travel. According to the press release from PATA, notable names include 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. Official airlines for the conference are Nepal Airlines and Buddha Air.
During the conference 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. “It’s a great privilege for us to have the AT&RTCM return to Pokhara after the last event in 2001. 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. An event of such international stature will definitely help us in promoting Nepal as a tourist destination for ‘All Seasons,’” stated Prachanda Shrestha, CEO, Nepal Tourism Board.
According to Pawan Tuladhar, Chairman, PATA Nepal Chapter, PATA hosting the event in Nepal for the second time around 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 abreast 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 and an Adventure Mart, as it is the gateway to the famous Annapurna Range that offers some of the greatest treks in the world,\" stated Tuladhar.