In Nepal, tourism faces the consequences of the deadly flood

In Nepal, the results of the flood that occurred at the end of August show more than 1,300 dead and nearly 5,000 missing. While the country had already been hit by a serious earthquake in 2015, how can the Nepalese tourism sector plan ahead after this new tragedy? The high season for trekking in the Himalayas is due to begin in mid-September, but there are already a lot of cancellations and uncertainty.

In a small family hotel in Nuwakot, located on the heights of the valley devastated by the flood, Dilman, the owner, already knows that this autumn will not be like any other. "We had quite a few reservations from mid-September, the hotel was almost full. We had a group of 10 people, on a Hindu pilgrimage, towards the Tibetan border and they canceled. Obviously! It will be impossible to get there. In November and December too, there should have been people there, but they also canceled," explains this Nepalese boss.

It's a hard blow since the tourist activity keeps the whole house alive, and to that is added the mourning, confides Dilman, with emotion: "I lost ten of my loved ones in the disaster." He specifies that after the earthquake of 2015, the house was destroyed, and he had already had to find strength, to start again. From now on, to support small businesses like his, and Nepal as a whole, he hopes that the authorities will be able to organize themselves.

30 kilometers away, in the heart of Kathmandu, the travel and hiking agencies in the Himalayas are not stocked either. “We have a lot of questions from customers who ask if they can still go trekking. But in September, no” because the Langtang valley, usually very popular, is inaccessible for the moment, underlines Purna, who has worked with French tourists for thirty-eight years. He advises his clients to postpone their trip or to go trekking “in another region” in Nepal.

For now, moving away from the disaster zone is somewhat the only solution. Despite everything, this can weigh on the country's economy, according to Shanker, who runs another agency and who has already recorded five trek cancellations in the coming weeks. “Tourism has a big impact for us,” he explains. “It creates a lot of jobs, between drivers, hotels, waiters, guides…” And added: “We are all worried, so I want to tell travelers from all over the world that Nepal is a magnificent country and that there are several valleys to discover. Come, it will help us rebuild and it will give hope to the Nepalese.”