--- description: Tourism officials and companies alike say Nepal still has a lot to offer, and insist the mountainous country is safe to visit title: Want to Help Nepal? Go There on Holiday image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25586c76e1e43eb8/6987eee455a8595959a8a018/470207732.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Nepal](/tag/nepal/) ## Nepal Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # The Best Way to Help Nepal Recover From the Quake? Go There on Vacation by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 8, 2015 6:25 AM CUT  A trekking path, lower right, is overshadowed by high-altitude peaks including Ama Dablam, top center, in a valley leading north into Nepal's Khumbu region, which is home to Mount Everest on April 18, 2015 A trekking path, lower right, is overshadowed by high-altitude peaks including Ama Dablam, top center, in a valley leading north into Nepal's Khumbu region, which is home to Mount Everest on April 18, 2015Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images by [Rishi Iyengar](/author/rishi-iyengar/) ## Rishi Iyengar Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close May 8, 2015 6:25 AM CUT “We are pleased to inform you that Nepal is now safe to visit,” reads an email from Adventure Mountain Explore Treks & Expedition (AME treks) sent out on Wednesday. “If you have already booked your holiday or you are planning to, we welcome you with an open heart.” The message from the Kathmandu-based mountaineering and sightseeing organizers represents a larger plea from the small Himalayan nation, as it continues to pick itself up from the devastating April 25 earthquake that claimed over 7,000 lives thus far. “Nepal is very safe to travel,” said AME executive director Tika Regmi. “Life is back to normal.” The 7.9-magnitude quake [laid waste](http://time.com/3846631/nepal-earthquake-kathmandu-freak-street-heritage-hippie-trail/ "undefined") to large swaths of Nepal’s capital Kathmandu (including several iconic heritage sites) and entire villages across the countryside have been flattened, but companies and officials alike insist visiting the country is now more important than ever. The quake came during Nepal’s summer trekking season, and its aftermath and gradual recovery will undoubtedly affect this year’s peak autumn trekking expeditions beginning in September — bookings for which Regmi says are already starting to be canceled. Despite Nepal’s peerless natural beauty — boasting eight of the 10 highest mountains in the world — and ancient temples and palaces, this landlocked nation of 30 million only receives around 600,000 visitors a year, making tourism a key [potential](http://time.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/nepal2014.pdf "undefined") avenue for growth. Ganga Sagar Pant, CEO of the Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN), says there is no reason for Nepal’s tourism — currently contributing around 10% of GDP and jobs — to grind to a halt. “The world must go on,” he said. “The tourism products are still there — mountains, flora and fauna, jungles, trails.” Pant says TAAN is planning “assessment” expeditions to popular trekking sites like the Mount Everest circuit, the Annapurna region (which includes the 10th highest mountain in the world) and the Langtang National Park in the weeks to come, so a more concrete picture of the earthquake’s impact can be formed. **MORE:** [6 Ways You Can Give to Nepal Earthquake Relief](http://time.com/3836242/nepal-earthquake-donations-disaster-relief/ "undefined") Nepal’s government is also in the process of collecting data on loss of infrastructure and damage to heritage sites and popular trekking paths. “But there are many other areas which could be new tourism products and destinations, so our focus is on that as well,” says Mohan Krishna Sapkota, spokesperson for Nepal’s Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Civil Aviation. “Our priority is to bring more tourists and provide them quality, safety, hospitality and other services to their satisfaction,” he says, expressing a desire to re-establish Nepal as a “safe, unique and attractive tourist destination.” All three men — Regmi, Pant and Sapkota — insist that Nepal remains safe and urge people to come visit. The benefits are especially positive if visitors reside in homestays and frequent independent restaurants and shops. “People from around the world are willing to help in this situation,” says Pant. “One important and sustainable way to do that is to help tourism here flourish again.” ### Witness the Aftermath of Nepal's Devastating Earthquake  A Nepalese boy stands amid earthquake damage in the ancient city of Bhaktapur in the Kathmandu Valley, April 28, 2015, three days after a 7.8-magnitude earthquake had hit the country. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A Nepalese man carries recovered belongings through the streets of Bhaktapur in the Kathmandu Valley, April. 28, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  People stand on top of a damaged building in Durbar Square in Kathmandu, April 26, 2015\. The historic Durbar Square, a UNESCO world heritage site, was severely damaged in the earthquake. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A group of Hindu Nepalese women mourn the loss of four family members who were killed in the earthquake at the site of funeral pyres on the river of Kathmandu, April 28, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A crowd watches Indian forces excavating collapsed apartments, looking for bodies and survivors in Kathmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Nepalese forces excavate the Dharahara tower in Kathmandu, April 26, 2015\. The building, a UNESCO world heritage site, was severely damaged in the earthquake. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Nepalese people flee buildings during an aftershock in Kathmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Indian and Nepalese forces attempt to identify a body after it was recovered from a collapsed restaurant in Kathmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A Hindu Nepalese man tends to a funeral pyre built for a person killed in the earthquake, on the river in Kathmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Nepalese forces excavate the Dharahara tower in Kathmandu, April. 26, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Nepalese forces clear fallen bamboo from ruins in Durbar Square, Kathmandu, April 26, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Nepalese children walk through the street in the ancient city of Bhaktapur, in the Kathmandu Valley, April 28, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Workers repair power lines in Kathmandu, April 28, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Indian and Nepalese forces excavate a body from collapsed apartments in Kathmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Nepalese people retrieve belongings from damaged homes in Bhaktapur, Kathmandu Valley, April 29, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Nepalese women mourn relatives lost in the earthquake in Bhaktapur, in the Kathmandu Valley, April 29, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  People walk through the damaged streets in the ancient city of Bhaktapur, Kathmandu Valley, April 29, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A displaced Nepalese family takes shelter in a tent in a Kathmandu park, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A mother looks at her son who was injured in the earthquake, at the Nepal and India Trauma Center in Kathmandu, April 29, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  Emergency rescue workers clear debris and search for survivors in Katmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A body recovered from a collapsed restaurant in Kathmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A Nepalese man tends to a funeral pyre built for a person killed in the earthquake, on the river in Kathmandu, April 28, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME  A funeral pyre built for a person killed in the earthquake, on the river in Kathmandu, April 27, 2015. Adam Ferguson for TIME ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/3851425/nepal-earthquake-tourism-impact-holiday-trekking/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/3851425/nepal-earthquake-tourism-impact-holiday-trekking/"},"headline":"The Best Way to Help Nepal Recover From the Quake? Go There on Vacation","datePublished":"2015-05-08T06:25:25.000Z","dateModified":"2026-05-11T05:04:05.400Z","description":"Tourism dollars can help save the Nepali people from undue hardship","url":"https://time.com/3851425/nepal-earthquake-tourism-impact-holiday-trekking/","keywords":["Nepal","Kathmandu","Tourism","Industry","Earthquake","damage"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25586c76e1e43eb8/6987eee455a8595959a8a018/470207732.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Rishi Iyengar","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/rishi-iyengar/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt25586c76e1e43eb8/6987eee455a8595959a8a018/470207732.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"NEPAL-EVEREST-TRAIL","caption":"NEPAL-EVEREST-TRAIL","creditText":"Roberto Schmidt—AFP/Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/nepal/","name":"Nepal"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/3851425/nepal-earthquake-tourism-impact-holiday-trekking/","name":"The Best Way to Help Nepal Recover From the Quake? Go There on Vacation"}}]}] ```