By Rick M 
Recently, the Pokhara International Airport has revealed that tourist traffic in the last one month has recorded a huge recovery. Due to the opportune opening of the airport in January 2023, the facility has been important for tourists landed in the beautiful lakeside city of Pokhara and the adjoining Annapurna area.
As per the information received from the Civil Aviation Authority of Nepal (CAAN) now the passenger traffic at the Pokhara International Airport has increased by 35% than it was in the same period of last year. These series of increase has been due to the better flight connectivity, strategic promotional activities carried out by the Nepal Tourism Board and increasing inclination of traveler’s towards adventure tourism and responsible tourism.
Bikram Gautam the general manager of the airport was hopeful over the trend saying that, “We are over the moon that such reception has been accorded to by the travelers.” The increased number of customers is not only good for the airport but also for the economy of Pokhara city and adjoining regions. Gautam however pointed out that through the help of the management of the airport, it has been conducting negotiations with airline providers with an aim of expanding the number of flights/ airline routes in the airport.
Currently direct flights from major cities of India, China and many cities of South East Asia are available and many more international airlines have included Pokhara as one of their new destination. This has provided enhanced access for the tourists to the area; it has replaced the long road trip from Kathmandu.
They have asserted that local tourism entrepreneurs have noted an equivalent level of business activity. Evaluations of various stakeholders in Pokhara such as hotel and restaurants, and operators of adventure tourism are showing higher bookings along with increased revenues. Sundar Thapa, president of the Pokhara Tourism Council, said, “The success of the airport is visible across the city.” They pointed to a great increase of tourists on the streets, hotels and other activities such as paragliding and trekking.
The increase in the numbers of tourists has also brought about new problems mainly due to growth of the supporting facilities and the appropriate measures towards sustainability. To tackle these problems, the local government together with other stakeholders in the tourism industry has embarked on the following projects. There are such measures as the extension of the trekking routes and waste management and provider, the creation of new eco-resorts.
The growing numbers of tourists has raised several concerns and more particularly the environmental issues. The conservation teams have recently been collaborating with the local government to ensure that this upswing in tourism does not have a negative impact on the land’s landscape and its wildlife. Recent measures have also been put in place to ensure that tourists and other businesses adhere to the recommended manner of operating.
The Nepal Tourism Board has recently developed a new campaign namely the Sustainable Pokhara, which focuses on campaigning for sustainable tourism to protect the natural environment. Measures of the campaign are for example plastic-free areas, local and organic food, progress of community-based tourism, which therefore have a positive impact on the people living in the community.
Since Pokhara is gradually evolving into a famous tourist city, there exist prospects of enhancing the airport by expanding the airport services. The work on expansion of international flights, modernization of terminal building, as well as the facilities for transportation of passengers arriving at the airport are currently in the pipeline for consideration.
Achievement of Pokhara International Airport reaching the levels of success it currently boasts is being seen as the model for the rest of the regional airports in Nepal. Other cities across the country are positioning themselves for similar accomplishments, including more airports as well as modifications to existing ones, at various state of planning.
With tourism picking up and the onset of the holiday season, players in the tourism sector of Pokhara are hopeful of even better season. Its appearance is scenic with colourful culture and increased accessibility; Pokhara can now well and truly lock itself into becoming one of the most popular tourist zones in Nepal.