AREA: 147,181 sq. kilometers.
ALTITUDE: Varies from 70 meters to 8848 meters.
LANGUAGE: Nepali is the national language. However travel-trade people understand and speak English and people educated as well.
CLIMATE: Nepal has four major seasons; Winter (December-February), Spring (March-May), Summer (June-August), Autumn (September-November).
Nepal can be visited the whole year around.
TIME: Nepal Time is 5 hours 45 minutes ahead of GMT.
GEOGRAPHY: It borders with the Tibet self-governing Region of the People's Republic of China in the North and India in the East, South and West respectively.
Nepal is the well known as Himalaya and land of mountains remote villages, where people survive by growing their own food on the thousands of hill terraces that scale even the steepest lopes. In the hill side of country, almost road less so travel all through the hill regions is only possible on foot and all basic goods have to be carried by people or beasts. Many areas have basic facilities like drinking water, elementary, education and medical facilities. But some touristic areas are not sufficiently developed so very difficulty people survive their life. The past splendor and beauty of this land can be seen in the architectural face still to be found in the ancient cities in Patan and Bhaktapur.
Nepal is known as a mystical land of unequaled variety with the altitude of 70 meter above the sea level in the south and 8848 meter height of Mt. Everest in the north. This huge multiplicity in altitude has reflected to our unique culture. Nepal has their own dramatic culture, language and dialect but most of them can communicate in Nepali. Nepal is famous for the beauties of nature by the high peaks of the Himalayas, green valleys, terraced farmlands, hilly foot trails and the forested plains full of rare wild lives including the lordly tiger, one horn rhinos. The religious homogeneity is next unique feature for Nepal.
The flourishing of art and architecture of Nepal reflect the artistic ingenuity and the religious tradition of people as well. The crystal clear lakes, turbulent rivers with deep gorge and hot springs can be well thought-out as the major astonishing point and plants like orchids, laden rhododendrons is as charming as you can imagine. Nepal has fascinated the imagination of mountaineers, explorers and all the way of foreign visitors since it first opened its door in the 1950. Still Nepal is known as trekkers Paradise. In 2011 Nepal government celebrate 'Nepal Tourism Year 2011' slogan was ‘NATURALLY NEPAL, ONCE IS NOT ENOUGH. And also celebrated ‘Visit Lumbini 2012’ (Lumbini, the birth place of Lord Buddha).
History of Nepal
The first civilizations in Nepal, which flourished around the 6th century B.C., were confined to the fertile Kathmandu Valley where the present-day capital of the same name is located. It was in this region that Prince Siddhartha Gautama was born c. 563 B.C. Gautama achieved enlightenment as Buddha and spawned Buddhist belief. Nepali rulers' early patronage of Buddhism largely gave way to Hinduism, reflecting the increased influence of India, around the 12th century. Though the successive dynasties of the Gopalas, the Kiratis, and the Licchavis expanded their rule, it was not until the reign of the Malla kings from 1200–1769 that Nepal assumed the approximate dimensions of the modern The kingdom of Nepal was unified in 1768 by King Prithvi Narayan Shah, who had fled India following the Moghul conquests of the subcontinent. Under Shah and his successors Nepal's borders expanded as far west as Kashmir and as far east as Sikkim (now part of India). A commercial treaty was signed with Britain in 1792 and again in 1816 after more than a year of hostilities with the British East India Company. In 1923, Britain recognized the absolute independence of Nepal.
Between 1846 and 1951, the country was ruled by the Rana family, which always held the office of prime minister. In 1951, however, the king took over all power and proclaimed a constitutional monarchy. Mahendra Bir Bikram Shah became king in 1955. After Mahendra died of a heart attack in 1972, Prince Birendra, at 26, succeeded to the throne. In 1990, a pro-democracy movement forced King Birendra to lift the ban on political parties. The first free election in three decades provided a victory for the liberal Nepali Congress Party in 1991, although the Communists made a strong showing. A small but growing Maoist guerrilla movement, seeking to overthrow the constitutional monarchy and install a Communist government, began operating in the countryside in 1996.
On June 1, 2001, King Birendra was shot and killed by his son, Crown Prince Dipendra. Angered by his family's disapproval of his choice of a bride, he also killed his mother and several other members of the royal family before shooting himself. Prince Gyanendra, the younger brother of King Birendra, was then crowned king. King Gyanendra dismissed the government in October 2002, calling it corrupt and ineffective. He declared a state of emergency in November and ordered the army to crack down on the Maoist guerrillas. The rebels intensified their campaign, and the government responded with equal intensity, killing hundreds of Maoists, the largest toll since the insurgency began in 1996. In August 2003, the Maoist rebels withdrew from peace talks with the government and ended a cease-fire that had been signed in January 2003. The following August, the rebels blockaded Kathmandu for a week, cutting off shipments of food and fuel to the capital. King Gyanendra fired the entire government in February 2005 and assumed direct power. Many of the country's politicians were placed under house arrest, and severe restrictions on civil liberties were instituted. In September 2005, the Maoist rebels declared a unilateral cease-fire, which ended in January 2006. In April, massive pro-democracy protests organized by seven opposition parties and supported by the Maoists took place. They rejected King Gyanendra's offer to hand over executive power to a prime minister, saying he failed to address their main demands: the restoration of parliament and a referendum to redraft the constitution. Days later, as pressure mounted and the protests intensified, King Gyanendra agreed to reinstate parliament. The new parliament quickly moved to diminish the king's powers. In May, it voted unanimously to declare Nepal a secular nation and strip the king of his authority over the military.
Major Tourism Activities in Nepal:
Mountain (Peak) Climbing
The 800 km stretch of the Nepal Himalayan is the greatest in the world with eight peaks that rise above 8,000m including the highest in the world, Mt. Everest. Ever since the country opened its peaks to climbers in 1994, the Nepal Himalayan has become a great theatre of mountaineering activity and the drama of success and failure have provided impetus to thousands of men and women to meet the ultimate challenge. The Nepal Himalayan has been an attraction to many people, be they saints, philosophers, researchers or adventures.
Trekking in Nepal Himalaya is way to experience Nepal's unbeatable combination of Natural beauty and cultural riches is to walk through in Himalayas. Beside the Trekking in Nepal with different kind of forests like Rhododendrons, pine, herbs tangles, deep and narrow valley, along great river gorges, lonely hamlets, picturesque Mountains, will also discover all sorts of beautiful animal and wildlife, temples, monasteries, and spectacular landscapes of Himalayan country of Nepal. Nepal has numerous routes trekking trails from one village to the other, between adjoining Nepal Himalaya pasture and across well defined high altitude passes, where people travel from one valley to other for cultural exchanges and religious activities. Nepal Trekking frequently consists of a series of ascents and descents walking 4 to 7 hours and 8 to 14 kilometer per day with a trekking guide and porters.
Nepal is a paradise for bird lovers with over 646 species (almost 8% of the world total) of birds, and among them almost 500 hundred species are found in Kathmandu Valley alone. The most popular bird watching spots in Kathmandu are Phulchoki, Godavari, Nagarjun, Bagmati river, Taudaha and so on. Get your binoculars and look forward to a rewarding experience.
Only awe-stricken silence can come close to matching the experience of going on a mountain flight to encounter the tallest mountains on earth. Mountain flights offer the closest possible aerial views of Mt. Everest, Kanchenjunga and the Tibetan Plateau. Mountain flights appeal to all category of travelers and have become a popular tourist attraction of Nepal. For those who are restricted by time or other considerations from going for a trek, these flights offer a panoramic view of the Himalayan in just one hour.
For all those cliffhangers out there, Kathmandu offers a roster of stone walls that make for an experience of a lifetime. Now of late, Rock climbing has become a popular sport in Kathmandu, which offers some really terrific places for rock climbing. Nagarjun, Balaju, Shivapuri and Budhanil Kantha are some of the places where you can try this sport.
Rafting is one of the best ways to explore the typical cross section of natural as well as ethno-cultural heritage of the country. There are numerous rivers in Nepal which offer excellent rafting or canoeing experience. You can glide on calm jade waters with munificent scenery all about or rush through roaring white rapids, in the care of expert river-men employed by government authorized agencies. One can opt for day of river running or more. So far, the government has opened sections of 10 rivers for commercial rafting. The Trisuli River (Grade 3+) is one of the most popular of Nepal’s raft able rivers. The Kali Gandaki (5-5+) winds through remote canyons and deep gorges for five days of intense rapids. The Bhote Koshi (4-5) is 26km of continuous white water and the raging Marshyanghi is four days of uninterrupted white water. The Karnali river (4-5) provides some of the most challenging rapids in the world. The Sun Koshi (4-5), 27km, requiring 8-10 days to complete, is a big and challenging river. Adventurers are provided with world-class services by rafting agents. Agencies here provide life jackets, camping and the standard rafting paraphernalia needed by world-class rafting. An extremely popular sport in Europe, cannoning is now available in Nepal. Cannoning gives you the freedom to explore some of the most ruggedly beautiful, yet forbidden places in the world.
The ultimate thrill of a bungy jump can now be experienced in Nepal at one of the best sites that this sport can boast of anywhere in the world. Nepal’s first bungy jumping site is situated 160m. Over the Bhote Koshi River, inviting you to experience the ultimate adrenaline rush in the surroundings of this amazing place. The jump, at 160m., is staffed and operated by some of the most experienced jumpmasters in the business.
Paragliding in Nepal can be a truly wonderful and fulfilling experience for the adventure seeking. A trip will take you over some of the best scenery on earth, as you share airspace with Himalayan vultures, eagles, kites and float over villages, monasteries, temples, lakes and jungle, with a fantastic view of the majestic Himalayas.
Ultra Light Flight
Ultralight aircraft take off from Pokhara and offer spectacular views of the lakes, mountains and villages. This is an ideal way to see life from a new perspective. The choice of Pokhara Valley for ultra-light aircraft is appropriate chiefly because of the proximity of the mountains, and the scenic lakes. For those who wished they could fly birds when growing up, this flight is a must. It might be lonely at the top, but this flight is a must. It might be lonely at the top, but the spectacular view from up high certainly makes it all worth it. Flights are from the Pokhara airport beginning September through June. The flights take place from sunrise to 11 a.m. and from 3 p.m. to sunset every day during these months.
The best way to explore the Kathmandu Valley is on a mountain bike. Nepal’s diverse terrain is a mountain biker’s dream adventure comes true. Mountain biking offers an environmentally sound way of exploring this magnificent country, its landscape and living heritage. There are plenty of dirty roads and trails in Nepal to meet every mountain biker’s wildest fantasy. Mountain biking is specially recommended if you wish to explore urban centers of Nepal such as Pokhara and Kathmandu as well as the countryside. Adventurous souls may plan extended trips to such exotic locals as Namche Bazaar, and western Nepal. You could even do the entire length of Nepal across the plains. Mountain bikes are available for rent by the day or longer in many of the bicycle rental outlets in Nepal and around the city.
National Parks located specially in the Terai region in Nepal attract visitors from all over the world. A visit to these parks involves game- stalking by a variety of means-foot, dugout canoe, jeep, and elephant back. One is bound to sight a one – horned rhino or two at every elephant safari. Besides the rhinos, wild boars, samburs, spotted deer, sloth bear; four-horned antelope are also usually seen. A Royal Bengal tiger may surprise you by his majestic appearance.