ATTA President Shannon Stowell is on his way to Asia this week to lead a group of journalists and tour operators to Nepal. AdventureWeek Rebound Nepal on the Great Himalaya Trails takes place October 24 - November 1, 2015, and many participants are already in route.
This slightly different take on the AdventureWeek concept came about after the April earthquake in Nepal. After months of consulting with industry partners, our members and aid organizations about the post-earthquake tourism situation in Nepal, the ATTA decided to commit to doing what we are best at: raising awareness around destinations that need to be top of mind for adventure travelers. Over the past six months, the ATTA has volunteered time to organize and coordinate this important program as well as invite key influential industry members.
The following itineraries were developed for AdventureWeek Rebound Nepal:
- The Everest itinerary begins in Lukla and includes trekking through Sagarmatha National Park, Namche, Tangshisa, as well as a helicopter ride to Everest Base Camp
- The Annapurna/Chitwan itinerary features a scenic flight to Everest, trekking near Jomsom, a wildlife safari in search of rhino, hippo, monkeys and the elusive Bengal Tiger in Chitwan National Park, and various adventure activities such as biking, paragliding, and boating in Pokhara
- Both itineraries will explore Kathmandu and the surrounding valley
AdventureWeek Rebound Nepal Participants
Shannon Stowell
Alina SimoneEric Larsen
Josiah Holwick
Avery Stonich
Caroline Pemberton
Dutch Michael Simpson
Stephanie Pearson
Omar Samra
Tom McShane
Mike Edward Harris
Elen Turner
Mindy Poder
Christophe Noel
Huifeng Ma
Jen Murphy
Daniel Engber
Owen Gaddis
Maureen Seeley
Wouter Schalken
Stowell will join a group of twenty total participants in Nepal with the goal of providing positive global media attention and storytelling around adventure travel opportunities in Nepal. The hope is that those stories will reach a wide and diverse audience of travelers to inspire them to book a trip to Nepal soon -- the best way to boost its economy and get its longstanding trekking tourism back on track for future success.
“AdventureWeek Rebound Nepal started as a way for ATTA to help Nepal rebuild for the long term and has become a community effort bringing together various partners on the ground and within the tourism industry,” said Stowell. “Hundreds of volunteer hours have been spent by the ATTA team; we hope that the impact will be felt around the globe when we declare ‘Nepal is open.’”
Nepal’s ability to rebuild tourism relies heavily on the travelers’ confidence in the safety of the destination. Recognizing this, the ATTA is providing a one-day AdventureEDU course for local tour operators on Safety and Risk Management taught by Gordon Janow on October 31. Funding is provided by Tourism Cares, with help from Great Himalaya Trails. The program will also offer a chance for media and tour operators to connect with one another and Nepali operators during an AdventureConnect networking event in Kathmandu. The goal will be to discuss story ideas, developments and news around Nepal’s readiness for travelers to return post-earthquake.
You can track AdventureWeek Rebound Nepal participants in real time by following #AWReNepal and #MyGHT on Instagram and Twitter.
AdventureWeek Rebound Nepal on the Great Himalaya Trails is made possible by support from Great Himalaya Trails, Tourism Cares, and ExOfficio with additional support from Princeton Tec and The North Face.