Genuine Grievances

I was given your name and the fax number by the office of the High Commissioner for Nepal in London on my request.

I was recently in Nepal. I happened to read your paper on 11 June 2001. I read, with interest, an article on tourist trade in Nepal. I thought I would write to you with a couple of points based on my personal experience.

My wife and I spent a few days in Nepal last month. We stayed in Hotel Everest. We would very happily remmend this hotel to anyone wishing to visit Nepal. The most impressive thing about the hotel is the staff. They were all, without exception, very helpful and went about their duties with smiling faces.

We sent to Tibet for a few days and on our way back to Nepal we crossed the border in Kodari. The immigration officers at the border are fraudulent. We had to buy entry visas. The cost of a visa is US$. 50. We did not have dollars. We offered to pay in Nepalese currency. They charged us 17,000 rupees for US$100 i.e. 170 rupees per dollar. The exchange rate in use in the hotel was 72 rupees. I am sure the officers did not account to the Nepalese authorities at the rate of 170 rupees. It is not difficult to work out what happened to the difference. The problem is, of course, that one has no choice, but to give to the demand of the immigration officers. This does not do the reputation of Nepal any good. I have written to the High Commissioner for Nepal in London. I am writing to you for two reasons. Firstly, because of your concern for the tourism trade in Nepal. Secondly, because you may be interested in investigating this malpractice yourself.

We went to Tibet for a few days’ trekking holiday. This was organised by a company based in Kathmandu. The company is, at best, inefficient, and, at worst, crooked. They did not provide oxygen in the vehicles despite their promises to do so. Similarly, they did not provide bottled drinking water on the trek. They did not have a reasonable number of guides on the trek. We were left alone to f end for ourselves at the border. Incidentally, we had difficulties at the Chinese border as the paperwork, which was the tour company’s responsibility, was not correct.

The article you published on June 11 made some points as to what needed to be done to improve the tourist trade in Nepal. You may wish to note the above points in your future discussions on the subject.

R.B. Kalbag
Huntingdon
Cambridgeshire, UK