Food festivals, musical concerts in Chitwan

Chitwan Sauraha, a popular jungle safari destination in Nepal, is also becoming a romantic destination for Valentine’s Day breaks. Hoteliers reported a spurt in bookings for the last two-three days to celebrate the Valentine’s Day which falls on February 14. For the last eight years, Sauraha has been organizing food festivals, among other programmers, targeted at valentine couples. And this year too, the four-day event organized by the Restaurant and Bar Association of Nepal is expected to bring in a large number of people. The organizer said the tourist hotspot has been crowded by young and married couples for the last few days. The hotels are offering up to 20 percent discount on food and accommodation as part of the food festival. There are around 70-80 food stalls offering domestic and international delicacies.

Besides, events such as cultural performances, tug-of-war, and musical chair, among others, are being organized. “As every couple expects enjoyment in a relaxed and peaceful environment, we have been organizing the festival with several programmers,” said Shree Lal Pariyar, coordinator of the festival. The organizer is said the event expected to attract 10,000 to 15,000 visitors.

Popular musical band Nepathya will perform on the banks of the Narayani River. The event is part of a social initiative to raise funds for homeless children. A 10 percent of the money collected from the sales of tickets will be allocated for social initiatives. The organiser has claimed the musical event attracted more than 10,000 music on a single day.
A separate event will also be organized at Mangalpur. Ganesh Youth Club, in association with Mangalpur Market Management Committee, is organizing a musical and food festival from Friday there. Hari Bahadur Karki, chairman of the committee, said various traditional food items of different ethnic groups would be served for the visitors to celebrate the Valentine’s Day. There are 40 food stalls in Mangalpur and the organizer is expecting to receive 10,000 visitors in the two-day event.

Food mark Restaurant and Bar is also organizing a separate musical programmers in Belchowk, Narayangadh. “As we want to provide enjoyment for the visitors, the program is targeted to make the Valentine’s Day special,” said Dataram Ghimire, organizer of the event. Sauraha has seen an aggressive development of hotels and resorts over the past few years. It has more than 100 hotels and all of them are packed during the festival.