Nepal Travel Answers

Sorry – The links haven’t worked TAAN Report taan.org.np/newsdetail/govt-... Republica myrepublica.com/portal/index... Thorntrees Debate lonelyplanet.com/thorntree/t...

Posting your personal opinion in the form of a question does not get around the Travel Forum Guidelines! If you want a debate, the VT forum is not the place for it.

Sorry Lyn – However my personal opinion is secondary to trying to find out more information on this topic and I am hoping that some of our VT Nepal members come along and supply this. At the moment the information is at best sketchy and although the TAAN site does stipulate that Solo trekking has now been banned in Langtang, the article in the Republica goes a lot further. I emailed my own contact in Nepal and he tells me that further changes are indeed afoot but doesn’t appear to know when these will come into effect, but thinks probably by the coming autumn trekking season. This will obviously have a profound effect on a lot of people heading to Nepal for trekking – so hence my post. Hopefully that clarifies my posting Best Regards Rob

Rob, i heard these rumours many months ago and for years i planned another trek to EBC for my 60th birthday (having been there twice before), just to see how things had changed. Treks in Nepal have been among the highlights of all my travels and enjoyed my own company as well as the company of others on the trek. As you know there is no need for a porter/guide on the most popular treks in Nepal but i suggest that this may be a move by the government to force trekkers to hiring locals so they can earn an income. However i had no intention of hiring a guide so i thought i might as well go to Sikkim, see Kachendzonga on an organised trek (where guides are mandatory) and do some individual hikes where it is possible without a permit. Yes, it would be a great pity if guides/porters became mandatory in Nepal, a further expense for the younger people who perhaps cannot afford the services of the guide, plus, transport, lodging and food.

Lyn, I would be interested to know which VT rule you think this violates. I think it constitutes very useful information for the huge number of people who trek Neapal annually. This is a very big issue for people hoping to trek there as I have done, albeit many years ago. It will seriously impact on costs, especially for solo trekkers and those in small groups. I think this is very useful information presented reasonably and I cannot see which VT rule it may contravene.

Until a forum for late-breaking news is established (we're told that is being worked on) we are allowed to post any big new developments that may interfere with member travel. This includes natural disasters, civil unrest and big changes in laws/procedures like this. As we see a lot of questions about hiking Nepal, and some members have already made their plans for a fall trek, this is a good heads up so they're prepared to have to switch gears if necessary.

Rob is actually posting a question 'is independent trekking coming to an end?' and i for one have answered it. He is merely looking to see if anyone has more info regarding this very popular travel destination, which is of interests to many people.

I think this is a real bad idea by the nepalese goverment, but i am not really suprised in a way. I was in Nepal in may for a few weeks and it struck me that there seems to be very little and very poor governing in that country. Just as i really enjoy visiting countries where i can see that the goverment rules well and makes sure that as many people as possible get a share of the cake, then i am really annoyed when i see a country that just squaenders the wealth of a country away for their own personal interest and profit and Nepal struck me as a place where this is happening big time and a lot more than in most other nations. I am in support of the rule that stipulates that you must have ansurance that covers rescue if you want to go trekking, cause helicopter resue and such is very costly for a poor country like Nepal and you should pay that little insurance fee if you want to go trekking. But once trekkers are up there they spend money every day in local communities and stay in lodges, eat at local restaurants and such, so it's not like they are not putting money in to the local economy. And if it becomes that you can only go with guides and porters then you also run the risk that these guys form cartels and makes sure that tourists only stay at lodget that pays them heavy commisions and then you will get a lot of rich local guides and local village people who will get less and less money. And from what i saw when i was trekking the Helambu valley in may then it's less than one third of the trekkers who go trekking without a guide or a porter, so it's not like there is no work for guides and porters. I personally have no prblems at all paying a porter or a guide. I actually enjoy to fuel a bit of money in to low income communities around the globe and think this is one of the joys of travelling. I did go all by myself in the Helambu valley though, but this was more because i was overcoming some stress from work and needed to spend a few hours s day without talking at all and because i wanted to sleep for as long as i felt every morning and not having someone saying "time to go". Bottomline in my opinion here is that Nepal will stand to lose 20 to 30% of it's trekking tourists if this comes in to effect and this will not help a country that is allready strapped for cash after several years of civil unrest that has been very hard on the local economy.

1. More jobs for the poor locals. Some form of honest earning. 2. It will cost more for Trekkers but given the poor exchane rate of the Nepali currency, which is less than that of the Indian currency, am sure it will not set back Trekkers who come from strong currency countries like GBP, US dollars, Euro, way too much as to deter them. 3. It's their country and nothing we say or do may make them change their decision. If neighboring Sikkim is already following this procedure, they may have taken a leaf from the Sikkim book. 4. Might even be a life saver to take some local person along with you in case of unforeseen problems along the way and language barriers. 5. Many of us take guided tours. So why not a local porter? 6. I'm a Nepali, so naturally my views are colored. LOL.

But the problem is Anil that this will not give more money to the locals but less money. Tourism is a buyers market and it's not like that all the same tourists will keep coming to Nepal and then just spend more money if this comes in to effect. Most of them will stay away and go elsewhere and as i mentioned earlier then i am sure that the small local businesses in the villages will be hurt by it if you put all in the hand of the local guides who will then start to extract more commision than they allready do from the local shopowners if they are to let their groups stop by their place. I am a tour leader myself and it's a job that can be exploited by idiots doing the job and idiots are in all countries and it's important not to give too much power to tour leaders or you will end up turning a good noble profession in to a profession for commision touts and other petty criminals. Nepal can of course do as Bhutan and only let in very few people who then has to pay a bundle of money for the privilege, but then things will end up like in Bhutan where it's only a small elite who earns money from tourism while the rest are impoverised farmers. Some regulation is good, like the insurance rule for instance, but if you try to control it the way they are aiming to now then you end up with a lot less tourism that profits fewer people. This looks a bit like the old days in the east block to me, but they do also have a marxist goverment if i am not mistaken.

as a person who trekked solo to everest i highly disagree with this. that is all.

I was hoping that some of our Nepali VT members would have come along by now to give us some updates. The latest I can find in the press is this kantipuronline.com/2012/07/2... Where I appears that TAAN are still mulling over the idea of banning all independent trekking in Nepal. As most regular visitors to Nepal will remember, banning independent trekking isn’t a new idea as it was brought in a few years ago, but then the Nepal authorities quickly changed their minds because of the outcry – Hopefully the same thing will happen again this time. Best Regards Rob

Hummm, As i Read and i know by the trek Agent and TAAN that is the final Decision for a Movement. But Still time to change. Most of Trekking Agencies are Happy now and they are expecting that will be forever.

Thanks Bashu I see that TAAN have now updated their site and confirmed that All Solo trekkers in All teahouse trekking regions now have to take at least a porter taan.org.np/newsdetail/now-s... I really can’t see how this will make much difference to the safety of solo trekkers, as we all know that porters don’t always walk with their clients. I also don’t see where the posted additional10 per day is coming from as TAAN registered agent’s hire out porters for a minimum of15, usually18 for EBC because it is now expensive for their food and accommodation and sometimes even20. Then you add in the cost of a return Lukla flight at around110, and then a Tip By my additions that is nearer30 extra per day !! But as long as this rule isn’t rolled out to all independent trekkers, thus at least giving solo trekkers the opportunity to find a trek-mate to keep to a tight budget then this is the main thing. Please let us all know if you hear that All FIT’s are going to have to take a porter Thanks again Rob

The latest reports coming out of Nepal are that the statement that TAAN have posted on their website at taan.org.np/newsdetail/now-s... Is Wrong and that this new rule only applies to Solo Trekkers in Langtang And that the statement on their website is only wishful thinking by TAAN and they are therefore putting out false information and that the Truth is that this rule only applies to Solo Trekkers heading into Langtang and Not any of the other teahouse trekking routes. Also at the moment that there is no talk on rolling this rule out to independent trekkers regardless of whether they trek solo not As always, nothing is yet confirmed so again, trekkers heading for Nepal are advised to watch and wait, Best Regards Rob