Kathmandu: Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) in association with the Nepal Association of Tour and Travel Agents (NATTA) has successfully completed the Nepal Sales Mission to Bangladesh in the capital city of Bangladesh on Nov. 23, 2021.
Fourteen Tour Operators from Nepal interacted and exchanged business propositions with more than 50 Bangladeshi Tour Operators in a one-day B2B and destination promotion program.
This is the second international sales mission ( the first being to Sri Lanka) organized by the Nepal Tourism Board following the ebbing of the second wave of COVID-19 pandemic which seems weak and less alarming particularly in South Asia for a few months now.
Coupled with the thriving economy of the people of the Republic of Bangladesh which provides more disposable income and the growing confidence for cross-border tourism the participants observed that there is an unprecedented prospect of increasing tourist arrivals from Bangladesh to Nepal.
According to the World Bank Group, the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) is expected to grow by 6.4% in the 2021-22 fiscal year (FY), one of the highest economic growths in South Asia.
It is also noteworthy here to mention that despite its proportionately dense population base, Bangladesh has managed the COVID-19 crisis relatively well which also has boosted the confidence of its citizens.
According to the tourist arrival statistics, nearly 26,000 tourists from Bangladesh visited Nepal in 2018 which saw a sharp decline in the following years due to the global pandemic.
However, tour operators from both countries seem very upbeat at the prospects of growing numbers in 2021 and onwards as Nepal cautiously opens its international borders for visitors and there is a huge demand for international travel among Bangladeshi nationals.
The sales mission took place concurrently with the commencement of Himalayan Airlines’ flight between Kathmandu and Dhaka. According to the representative of the Airlines who participated in the event, the airline operates two flights a week now and is looking forward to increasing more flights shortly in the future.
Biman Bangladesh operates two flights a week and the participants from both countries anticipate more frequent flights between the two capital cities so that there is enough air passage and competitive fares for the prospective visitors from Bangladesh to Nepal.
Further, the Nepali delegates have been told that direct passenger train service shall begin soon between Dhaka and New Jalpaigudi station in India which might prove a boon for Nepali tourism trade as even the budget travelers have a better option of traveling to Nepal overland.