Nepal opens door to Chinese tourists
( 2003-09-02 09:24) (bjtoday.com)
The mountain nation of Nepal
is making clear efforts to draw Chinese tourists, as shown by last Wednesday¡¯s
signing of an air service agreement between Nepal and Chinain Beijing and
negation of visa requirements for domestic travelers.
The long-awaited air service agreement will expand air traffic between the
two countries, overcoming the previous bottleneck of limited flights.
Before the agreement, Nepal announced a new visa-free entry policy for
tourists from China as well as the South Asian countries of India, Sri Lanka,
Bangladesh, Pakistan, Bhutan and Maldives, that took effect as of August 6.
Similar treatment will be extended to citizens of these nations planning to
re-enter Nepal who stayed in the country for at least 15 days in the previous
visa year (January to December).
The Nepalese government has backed these moves by taking a series of steps to
boost the country¡¯s tourism industry by opening more mountain peaks and areas to
climbers and hikers, allowing rafting of more rivers and easing restrictions on
trael in some protected regions.
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