Ecotourism in Annapurna Conservation Area: Potential, Opportunities and Challenges

Ecotourism as a component of the sustainable green economy is one of the fastest growing segments of the tourism industry, because of its superiority compared to other types of tourism in terms of the responsibility towards people, nature and environment. In the long run, people can also be benefitted from ecotourism. This research explores the fundamental potential, challenges and opportunities of developing ecotourism in Ghorepani village of Annapurna Conservation Area (ACA), the first and largest mountainous protected area in Nepal. Primary data were collected through preliminary field visit, questionnaire survey of households, key informant interviews, focus group discussion and direct field observation. The Ghorepani village of ACA attracts many tourists because of its beautiful natural landscape, biodiversity richness, snow-capped mountains, sunrise from Poon hills and different Rhododendron forests. Overall, the key finding of this article outlines the current status, potentials, strengths, weakness, opportunities and challenges in ecological tourism development. On that basis, Ghorepani village of ACA needs to be improved with multiple outreach activities, especially to resource-dependent households.https://journals.grassrootsinstitute.net/journal1-natural-resources/vol-3/issue-4/nr.03-04-4.bishowjoshi.pd