Homestay Congress 2020

Background

ICIMOD’s Kangchenjunga Landscape Conservation and Development Initiative (KLCDI) has been promoting homestay development in the KL through various long- and short-term ecotourism development initiatives within its partner countries: Bhutan, India, and Nepal. The Asian Rural Tourism Festival is one such important event that KLCDI has been supporting to promote sustainable ecotourism.

Against this background, KLCDI – in partnership with the Government of Nepal, Nepal Tourism Board, and Green Generation – will be organizing the Homestay Congress 2020 on 9–12 February 2020, as a part of the 6th Asian Rural Tourism Festival from 9 to 13 February 2020. Homestay Congress will be the flagship event aimed at regional homestay development in the KL.

Objectives

• Promote knowledge and experience sharing among homestay operators in the KL
• Identify pathways for scaling up homestays through panel discussions
• Increase the outreach and publicity, and documentation of homestays and festivals through knowledge products, social media, and research
• Study the economics of homestays and festivals

Expected outcomes

• Initiation of multi-stakeholder dialogue to explore and understand the scope of establishing an umbrella organization of homestay operators
• Informed understanding in regards to potential of and regional pathways for homestay development in the KL
• Enhanced understanding of partnership landscape for regional homestay development
• Documentation of the economics of homestays and festivals and improved outreach and publicity for future planning

Download Flyer