Build a fear free tourist destination

Nepal government has done little till date to set Chinese tourists' mind at rest that traveling in Nepal is safe. The Nepali tourism sector will have a rude awakening. Now only those brave Chinese travelers dare to visit the Himalayan country.

Are air flights safe?

The crash of an ultra-light aircraft in Pokhara on October 3, 2013 that killed two people onboard, including a Chinese tourist, is a tragedy for both the victims and the tourism market of Nepal. It has instilled fear and anxiety in the minds of Chinese tourists. But the Nepal's tourism industry has failed to understand the severity of the issue. The death of Liu Jun, 33, from Shanghai comes a year after the fatal crash of a Sita Air airplane on September 28 last year that killed all five Chinese nationals and other 12 people on board.

October is a prime travel season for Chinese citizens, who enjoy only two longest holidays every year. One is the Spring Festival, a traditional Chinese festival that lasts two weeks and is the most important one. During this holiday, people enjoy being together with relatives and friends. Another is a seven-day National Day holiday that begins on the last day of September or the first day of October each year, it is a well-deserved golden week for tourism market that witnesses huge tourist flow and mass consumption. No tourism business can afford to miss this week.

After unprecedented coverage of the consecutive crashes around the golden week, the emotional shock to Chinese holidaymakers is beyond all doubt. After all, nobody is willing to die an unnatural death in another country. Xinhua has been trying to figure out the cause behind the ultra-light aircraft crash, but its attempt has proved very difficult. It is reported that another deceased person in the crash, Stephen Shrestha, a proprietor of Avia Club, was considered the first and the most experienced pilot in Nepal.

Furthermore, according to Prabin Gauchan, the administrative director of Avia Club, the crashed ultra-light aircraft had a 36-year-old history.

To understand the investigation process after nearly one month of the accident, this agency called Prabin Gauchan again, who said they are also waiting for the crash investigation report and the Chinese victim is sure to get full insurance but it has not been provided yet.

Sanjeev Gautam, Deputy Director General of Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal, told Xinhua that the investigation team has already returned from Pokhara. The report, however, is yet to come. The slow process leaves me with an impression that the authority concerned is not so serious about this tragedy. If this proves to be true, Nepal's image will be hampered severely. Without safety, Nepal's abundance of adventure opportunities, including paragliding, hot air ballooning, flying in ultralight aircraft, bungee jumping, canyon swing, and so on, will go to waste.

Land route is safe?

For those travelers, who try to enter Nepal through land route, after leaving the Tatopani customs, the Araniko Highway from Tatopani to Kathmandu, built by the Chinese government with great effort, is full of risk because of some larcenous policemen.

During my stay here for nearly two years, I have heard many complaints about the corruption of policemen at checkpoints on the highway. Let me share one story. A couple from Fujian Province was interrogated by a policeman when their tourist bus was checked in front of a police checkpoint. The policeman asked: "Why do you carry 400 US dollars with you? Why don't you use Rupees?"

The first question is that how can policeman find the money? Both tourists and businessmen from China told me that robbing the Chinese on the highway is too rife to turn a blind eye. They feel hurt and make an outcry over such discriminations: "Why Chinese people in a friendly neighboring nation, Nepal, have become a cut below others?

The second question is: What is the purpose of such a query? The policeman has already cast greedy eyes at the money! Thanks to the couple's Nepali guide, who was angry with the policeman's unacceptable behavior, argued strongly on just grounds and chased the corrupt official away.

In a sense, the Araniko Highway has become the tenderloin of some Nepali policemen at the cost of Chinese citizens.