The third edition of Himalayan Travel Mart (HTM) has been scheduled to be held next year from June 7-9. Addressing the closing ceremony of the second HTM 2018, Krishna Prasad Devkota, chair of HTM Main Organising Committee and Secretary of Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation announced the date for the mart’s next emphasizing the need for such events to promote Nepal’s tourism sector.

Himalayan Travel Mart—the nation’s one and only international travel trade show—has become a unique and popular event facilitating an unparalleled platform for networking, promotion, shared knowledge and valuable insights, business opportunities amongst the participants and stakeholders, according to the organisers. The second edition of HTM saw the participation of 225 foreign delegates from 53 different countries. 

The three-day event was organised to showcase tourism products and services of Nepal to international buyers and sell them through business-to-business relations. Organisers claimed that more than 1,500 appointments were scheduled during the event to establish fruitful relations between buyers and sellers.

Knowledge sharing sessions on various segments like cinema tourism, wellness, human capital development and heavenly Himalaya were also held at HTM. The mart was hosted by the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation and organised by the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) in collaboration with the PATA Nepal Chapter.

PATA Nepal Chapter had first conceptualised HTM with an aim to facilitate the business and networking opportunities between Himalayan sellers from India, Nepal, China (Tibet Autonomous Region), Pakistan, Bhutan and Myanmar and global buyers from Europe, North America, South America, Australia, New Zealand, Russia and CIS countries, Asia and the Middle East.

Of late, the event is becoming more popular with interest from many markets showing their willingness to join.

“Coming to the second edition, it’s an inspiring achievement for us to know about the increasing popularity of the HTM,” said Suresh Singh Budal, CEO of PATA Nepal Chapter, speaking at the closing ceremony of the HTM. “We even welcomed sellers from Vietnam and UAE this year who participated in the event.” PATA Nepal Chapter is committed to up-scaling and upgrading the quality of the future HTMs , welcoming entire industry stakeholders to join and engage in building a prosperous Nepal through tourism, Budal added.