# Prospects and Challenges of Homestay Business after the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case of Shree Antu Village, Nepal

Rojita Limbu

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Rojita Limbu. Prospects and Challenges of Homestay Business after the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case of Shree Antu Village, Nepal. Asian Journal of Sociological Research, 2025, 8, pp.66 - 75. 10.56557/ajsr/2025/v8i1121. hal-05103372

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# Prospects and Challenges of Homestay Business after the Covid-19 Pandemic: A Case of Shree Antu Village, Nepal

Rojita Limbu a*

a Nepal College of Travel and Tourism Management, Kathmandu, Nepal.

**Author's contribution**

The sole author designed, analyzed, interpreted and prepared the manuscript.

**Article Information**

DOI: https://doi.org/10.56557/ajsr/2025/v8i1121

**Open Peer Review History:**

This journal follows the Advanced Open Peer Review policy. Identity of the Reviewers, Editor(s) and additional Reviewers, peer review comments, different versions of the manuscript, comments of the editors, etc are available here: https://prh.globalpresshub.com/review-history/1953

Received: 18/03/2025

Accepted: 20/05/2025

Published: 23/05/2025

**Short Research Article**

## ABSTRACT

Homestays in Ilam district, Nepal, have emerged as a significant community-based tourism initiative contributing to rural development, cultural preservation, and local livelihoods. Despite their growing importance, limited scholarly attention has been paid to the socio-economic and cultural impacts of homestays in this region. This study addresses this gap by examining the role of homestays in Ilam's tourism sector, focusing on their contribution to sustainable development and local empowerment. Employing a qualitative research design, data was collected through in-depth interviews, field observations, and secondary sources. The findings reveal that homestays promote local entrepreneurship, preserve indigenous culture, and attract domestic and international tourists, although challenges such as limited infrastructure, training, and marketing remain. The study underscores the need for policy support and capacity-building initiatives to enhance the effectiveness of homestays as a sustainable tourism model. These insights offer valuable implications for tourism planners, policymakers, and community stakeholders in similar rural contexts.

<footnote>*Corresponding author: Email: limburojita121@gmail.com;</footnote>
Keywords: Homestay; challenges; nature; sunshine; tourists; policy.

# 1. INTRODUCTION

Nepal is a landlocked country in the lap of Himalayas and home place of natural beauty with traces of art facts where most of its people are engaged in agricultural activities. It has a total area of 1, 47,516 sq.km. It lies between latitudes 26° and 31°N, and longitudes 80° and 89°E and elevation ranges from 70 to 8848 meters, the average length being 885 km east to west and average breadth of about 193 km north to south. "Nepal is a small country located between India and China, with more than 80% of its land consisting of rural areas. It is home to the highest peak in the world, Mount Everest, which stands at 8,848 meters above sea level. The country is also known for its diverse landscapes, including the plains of the Terai region, the hills, and small and wide valleys" (Kafle, 2022, p. 16). It is surrounded by two big countries of the world, India in east, south, west and China in the north, the northern range is covered with snow over the year where the highest peak of the world the Mount Everest stands.

In the geographic diversity and varied climate conditions people of more than 60 caste/ethnic groups are accommodated in the country. The country is also famous as a tourism center. People from different continents visit this Himalayan kingdom to enjoy its natural beauty as well as rich culture heritage. Over the history, Nepal has been an independent sovereign state. The literacy rate of the country is less than 50% implying that the major of the people are ignorant of the causes of diseases and their preventive Measure. It is a developing country. Topographically, it is divided into three regions namely: high mountains in the North, hills in the middle and plain (Terai) in the south.

The mountain comprises about 68% and Terai region is the southernmost belt having a width ranging from 30 km and its attitude varies from 60 to 310 m above the mean sea level. Nepal with rich ancient cultures set against the most dramatic scenery in the world is a land of discovery and unique experience. For broad minded individuals who value an experience that is authentic and mesmerizing, Nepal is the ideal destination. Come and revel in the untouched and the undiscovered and uncover yourself.

It is unsurpassed that the sheer diversity Nepal boasts, from steamy jungle and Terai to the icy

peaks of the world's highest mountains means that the range of activities on offer. Trekking, mountaineering, rafting in spectacular scenery are just three things Nepal is famous for. Activities as diverse as Elephant Polo and a micro-light flight through the Himalayas show that in Nepal, the only boundary is your imagination. With 15 National & Wildlife Parks (two are UNESCO Heritage sites) Nepal is one of the last places on earth you can spot the Asiatic rhinoceros and the Royal Bengal Tiger.

"Nepal is the country of the Mount Everest, the highest mountain peak in the world, and the Birthplace of Gautama Buddha- Lumbini. Mountaineering and other types of adventure tourism and ecotourism are important attractions for visitors. There are other important religious pilgrimage sites throughout the country for the followers of various sects and religions" (Nepal, n.d.). Nepal is socially, culturally, and naturally enriched.

## 1.1 Background of the Study

Tourism has been defined in different ways by various authors and concerned organizations and yet there is no universally accepted definition of tourism. The origin of tourism can be traced to the earliest period of human habitation on the globe. Of course, there exists a difference between modern travelling during the early period. Nevertheless, it is the habit of travelling which has initiated the growth of the survival and existence of early men. With the advent of civilization and chance in the human outlook, the meaning of tourism has been shifted from the necessity to the desire of taking marvelous adventures. Tourism is a difficult phenomenon to describe because there is no single definition that is universally accepted.

One of the earliest definitions so tourism was given to the famous economist Herman V. Schullard in his book *The Yearbook of National Economy and statistics* in 1910. He defines "Tourism as the sum of operation mainly of one economic nature which directly related to the entry stay and movement of foreigner inside and outside a certain country, city or region" ("Introductory Tourism," n.d. para. 6). One of the earliest definitions of tourism. Oxford Learner's Dictionary, (n.d.) defines "a person who is travelling or visiting a place for pleasure." This definition is not enough as a tourist must be
nonresidential, not earning and she/he must
generate economic activities in a destination
place.

Homestay is one of the popular forms of
hospitality and lodging whereby visitors share a
residence with a local of the city to which they
are travelling. The length of the stay can vary
from one night to over a year and can be
provided gratis. "The term of the homestay is
generally worked out by the host and guest in
advance and can include items such as the types
of lodging, length of stay, housekeeping or work
required to be performed, use of utilities and
household facilities, and rules related to smoking,
drinking and drugs" ("Villas and Home stay",
n.d.). The history of village tourism in Nepal is not
long. Nepal has introduced a program of village
tourism aiming at promoting country's tourism
industry in 2052 B.S. for the first time.
Nonetheless, the promotion of tourism started
from the beginning of 1960. But concrete steps to
promote and intensity and ordinate way were
made when a high level "Nepal tourism
development committee" was formed in 1970 on
the financial and technical assistance of the
culminated in the publication of Nepal. Tourism
master plan in 1972, when has been the basis of
all future activities will in the field of tourism
development in Nepal. Village tourism is a grass
root level of tourism designated as its own Nepal
village lifestyle and environment, involved by
groups of rural tourists, assigned by Nepali
adults' authorities positively within its balance of
social and environmental function and
strengthened the rural and rural economy, village
tourism is a planned industry, its dimension is
very broad. Benefits are shared by all in an
equitable distributive pattern those who live in
tourism regions are considered as participants in
tourism activities (Bhattarai & Karmacharya,
2022).

'Athiti Deo Vhawa' (Guest is God) is the belief of typical Nepali society which has been carrying out the concept of home stay tourism in Nepal. The people of Nepal welcome their guests as a god and treat them with warm hospitable manners according to their own lifestyle, but the identical manner and belief has turned into the tourism business when the government of Nepal introduced the home stay program as village tourism in 1997 for the first time. It becomes more popular when the government of Nepal, officially introduced the home stay tourism program with the 'Home stay Regulation 2067' on 17th August 2010 (Devkota, 2008). The home

stay regulation emphasized to encourage the
micro-economic sector in the rural areas;
preserve ecological sustainability; generate self-
employment and economic growth in the rural
communities.

Similarly, it addressed to build up the quality life
of indigenous people of the village area and
make capable to access the benefit through the
tourism industry, to increase the use of natural
and human resources of the rural areas for rural
development; to expose the rural culture and
nature to the outside world; to protect
environment degradation; to decentralize the
national income and centralize the local
resources in the national economy; and to
protect, promote and improve local agricultural
and other industries (Devkota, 2008).

When the visit Nepal 2020 tourism campaign
was first announced. Dilli Maya Magar was
excited for the past nine years, Magar has been
operating a homestay in Dhankuta Namje
village, hosting both domestic and foreign
tourists and she was hopeful that the visit Nepal
2020 would boost an already flourishing
homestay industry in the community (Shrestha,
2020). Homestay communities were expecting
around 400 to 500 guests a month from March
until May but then Covid-19 began to spread.
The government in Nepal responded by
cancelling visit Nepal 2020 and imposing a
nationwide lockdown that prohibited all public
movements. Due to the pandemic and the
ensuing lockdown have already hit the
tourism and hospitality industries hard, with many
smaller outfits on the verge of collapse. "The
first step most of the governments around
the world have taken is lockdown" (Adhikari,
2025, p. 41). It was necessary to impose a
lockdown but it had adverse impacts on the
tourism industry.

This research intends to examine how Covid-19
exerted a profound impact on the hospitality
service in Shree Antu Homestay village in a
specific way. The very renown facts of Shree
Antu are it is considered as one of the best
sunrise viewpoints in the Himalayas for having
beautiful tea garden landscapes and Mountains
on its views! Not only that, but Shree also Antu
offers beautiful views of Indian hill stations like
Darjeeling, Mirik etc. Distance wise, Shree Antu
Homestay village is 720 km east from
Kathmandu (Indra homestay, 2017). This place is
growing as a new destination for domestic as
well as international tourists.
## 1.2 Research Questions

The following study tries to answer the following research questions regarding the scope of the study.

* What are the potential visiting sites and famous tourist attractions in Shree Antu Village?

* What kind of facilities and services are provided by the local people?

* What are the important aspects they are developing during lockdown?

* What are the key roles that have to be implemented by Shree Antu to attack more tourist after the pandemic?

## 2. LITERATURE REVIEW

As the COVID-19 pandemic's terror is very low on the global scenario, most industries and businesses are slowing retaining their pick. To be specific, it has brought both merits and demerits to the hospitality industry. Recently, homestay is becoming an enriching and novel experience for many tourists who want to immerse themselves in other's cultures for personal insights or educational purposes (Qiu and et al., 2024).

In the context of Nepal, homestay refers to some traditionally build houses in remote areas owned by indigenous people to accommodate domestic or foreign visitors by providing food and drinks in exchange of some money. As people in Nepal tend to migrate to city areas for studies, jobs, treatment, etc., homestay business has been flourishing promoting local businesses and tourism simultaneously (Bastola, 2023).

Research must be based on past knowledge. This previous study cannot be ignored because they provide the foundation of the present study. Mainly studies have been made directly or indirectly regarding tourism in Nepal. Almost all studies have stressed the need of it in the sense that it has greater potentialities and prospects to develop in Nepal. To make the study more reliable and comprehensive, few available articles, bulletins, reports, surveys and books on the relevant studies have been reviewed. Having analyzed the various literature relating to the spirit and the objectives of the study, the various books and other publications including some unpublished reports and information were sought and found effective in conceptualizing the various aspects of tourism.

Tuladhar, (1993) in his Ph. D. Thesis aimed to study the development of international tourism in

Nepal, and his main findings were that tourism is a subjective phenomenon and equally valid in resource management. Visitors continuously seek to see the combination of unusual events from more and more exotic land. In this case Nepal is a fascinating, exciting, mystic and exotic venue for the mountain lovers, it is a red dreamland. Practically tourism is a dream industry, in this business one sells fantasy, sky in the only limit. Turning visions into missions is the prime key to success in tourism which is never ending and ever changing.

Economic of Tourism in Nepal, (1981) is one of the studies done by development research and communication group. This study shows that tourism is one of the crucial, potential and fastest growing sectors of the Nepalese economy. The continuous increase in the volume of tourist flow had direct and indirect impacts on the process of Nepal's economic development. Despite enormous potentiality, tourism has a very late beginning in Nepal. It was not until the 1950's that the country started witnessing the development of tourism in an organized manner. The study has worked out tourism arrival and tourism expenditure. The total tourists nearly 80-87 percent were found visiting Nepal for pleasure purpose, almost 85-96 percent of the tourists visiting Nepal were found travelling by air. Of them 51 percent came via India, 28 percent via Bangkok and 12.5 percent via Dacca both Indian and non-Indian tourists seasonal bias, with a relatively lower preference for visiting Nepal during rainy season. Tourism and Economic Development in Nepal, (2006), written by Manoj Kumar Agarwal and Rudra Prasad Upadhya, is a comprehensive book in Nepalese tourism literature. This book has attempted to find our role of the tourism sector in economy of Nepal. This has been attempted with the view to find out activities of the tourism sector in broaden perspective to speed up the process of economic development of this Himalayan country. It has also been found that through the promotion of tourism sector the Nepalese economy can be moved faster on the path of globalization. It implies that the tourism sector has the potential to link the backward Nepalese economy with the forward economies of the world. Overall, it can be argued that the tourism sector could be considered to play the role of leading sector in the economy.

The tourism sector has strong inducement effects on other activities of the country. Besides, the foreign exchange earnings from tourism have
been found to be an important determinant of government's development expenditure and regular expenditure (Agarwal & Upadhaya, 2006). Village tourism is a relatively new concept as well as must be an integral part of the whole tourism effort, which is of interest not only to those in the tourism industry but also the developed professions, policy makers and local communities as a potential uncreative mechanism for conserving the natural resources base.

The government has conceptualized the working procedure of homestay program in 2010 which address the area of sustainable tourism development in Nepal as well as eco-tourism. (HMGN/NPC/MOPE, 2003) The government program 'Nepal tourism in 2011' is another major reason to boost up homestay tourism in Nepal. The government target was to bring one million tourists in 2011 year and according to figures there were 669 hotels with total a capacity of 26,063 beds in Nepal at that time. Even though Nepal tourism year was not fully successful, it gives motivation to many enterprises, development of homestay in various parts of the country including newly developed tourist destinations (Nepali Homestays, 2012).

## 2.1 Patterns of Homestay

"Homestay is a type of accommodation where visitors or guests pay directly or indirectly to stay in private home, where interaction takes place to greater or lesser degree with a host or family who usually live upon the premises and with whom space is shared to a degree" (Lynch, 2005; quoted in Sweeney, 2008, p.20). In community based, homestay functions as a part of tourism and it creates an opportunity of interaction and to exchange their culture between the host family and the tourist. "These activities are based on cultural exchange and respect for hosts where tourists can get proper hospitality services. It is also one of tourism's factors in which it brings all the activities of tourism to a particular area" (Amran & Ismail, 2003, quoted in Ibrahim et al., 2011, p.19).

Homestay tourism is a branch of the accommodation sector as well as a comprehensive tourism industry. The use of term homestays might be different in different countries. For e.g. in Australia homestay is particularly related with the farmhouse accommodation whereas in the United Kingdom it is often associated with learning the English

language. "The associations of the homestay such as private homes, host families who become public by sharing their culture with the guest, interaction between the host family and the guest the significant aspects of homestay which may be enough to distinguish homestay tourism from other forms of accommodation such as those hotel resorts etc." (Lynch, 2005, p. 527).

Homestay is a private home in which unused rooms are rented for the purpose of supplementing income and meeting people. There was a different pattern of homestay in different countries. They can describe by different words, such as second home in Denmark or paying guest. In host family students experience a family environment even though they are far from their own family (Bhuiyan et al., 2011). There is also a community homestay where real tourists or guests can stay with the host family for a certain period and explore the knowledge of local values, culture and local lifestyle. This kind of homestay program provides pure cultural practice and an opportunity to explore environment recreation for the visitors of the place.

According to homestay working procedure 2067 Nepal government has defined homestay as an accommodation and other related service to their guest and it operated individually or in group. Urban homestay programme is normally operated by individual hosts, and they can accommodate only four guests per day so that there will be not much negative business impact on the regular hotel business of nation (MCTCA, 2010).

## 3. METHODOLOGY

The present study is carried out based on exploration that attempts to investigate the potentiality of selected tourism destinations to attract tourists, the impact of it on the local environment and the living standard of local people. On the other hand, it tries to describe the existing status of recent development problems and prospects Suryodaya Municipality. The information which is collected through different sources is analyzed with suitable statistical tools to get the reliable primary information required for the study three types of questionnaires for home stay owners; tourist and local people were prepared for field surveys.

Shree Antu Home Stay (near Shree Antu Danda) lies in Ilam district in eastern Nepal, right at the
<table><caption>Table 1. Tourist arrival in Nepal</caption><thead><tr><td>Year</td><td>Total Number</td><td>Growth Rate</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>1955</td><td>1140</td><td>-</td></tr><tr><td>1964</td><td>9526</td><td>-1.4</td></tr><tr><td>1966</td><td>12567</td><td>33.9</td></tr><tr><td>1970</td><td>45970</td><td>31.7</td></tr><tr><td>1975</td><td>92440</td><td>2.9</td></tr><tr><td>1980</td><td>162897</td><td>0.4</td></tr><tr><td>1985</td><td>180989</td><td>2.5</td></tr><tr><td>1990</td><td>254885</td><td>6.2</td></tr><tr><td>1995</td><td>363395</td><td>11.3</td></tr><tr><td>2000</td><td>463646</td><td>-5.7</td></tr><tr><td>2005</td><td>375398</td><td>-2.6</td></tr><tr><td>2010</td><td>602867</td><td>18.2</td></tr><tr><td>2011</td><td>736,215</td><td>22.1</td></tr><tr><td>2014</td><td>790118</td><td>-0.9</td></tr><tr><td>2016</td><td>753002</td><td>40</td></tr><tr><td>2018</td><td>1173072</td><td>25</td></tr><tr><td>2023</td><td>1014882</td><td>Not available</td></tr><tr><td>2024</td><td>1147567</td><td>13.1</td></tr></tbody></table>

(Source: Nepal tourism statistics, 2024)

<table><caption>Table 2. Country and nationality wise travel trend</caption><thead><tr><th rowspan="2">Country &amp; Nationality</th><th colspan="2">Year</th><th rowspan="2">Change</th><th rowspan="2">Share</th></tr><tr><th>2016</th><th>2017</th></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Asia (SAARC)</td><td>187272</td><td>247387</td><td>32.10%</td><td>33.60%</td></tr><tr><td>Asia (Other)</td><td>127229</td><td>168839</td><td>32.70%</td><td>22.90%</td></tr><tr><td>Europe</td><td>148217</td><td>163290</td><td>10.20%</td><td>22.20%</td></tr><tr><td>Oceania</td><td>18767</td><td>21173</td><td>12.80%</td><td>2.90%</td></tr><tr><td>America</td><td>45747</td><td>53079</td><td>16.00%</td><td>7.20%</td></tr><tr><td>Others</td><td>75635</td><td>82164</td><td>8.60%</td><td>11.20%</td></tr></tbody><tfoot><tr><td><strong>Total</strong></td><td><strong>602867</strong></td><td><strong>735932</strong></td><td><strong>18.081%</strong></td><td><strong>100.00%</strong></td></tr></tfoot></table>

(Source: Tourism Statistics 2020, above data contains arrivals by air route only)

The Table 1 shows that the annual tourist arrival was 1140 in 1955 and 9526 in 1964. The growth rate of tourist inflow enormously increased up in 1995 and then was found gradually decreasing. In 1995 the growth rate reached up to 11.3 percent and consequently become negative in 2000. But the growth rate reached 18.2 percent in 2010. On October 2008 Government of Nepal had declared the year 2011 as the tourism year with the ambitious mission. In that year 2011 government was interested to welcome about 10, 00,000 tourists in Nepal but end of 2011 number of visited tourist were 7, 35,932 and 3.1 percent more than 2010. In 2018, 1173072 tourists visited Nepal. After the COVID-19, the number of arrivals started improving. In 2019, 1011882 visited and the arrival increased by 13.1% the following year.

The Table 2 shows the tourist arrivals record on the basis of country of continent Asian (SAARC) countries tourist visited 33.6 percent, Asia (other)

country's tourist visited 22.2 percent, European tourist visited 22.20 percent which increased to 10.2 percent, Americans tourist 7.2 percent increased 16 percent, Others country's tourist visited 11.20 percent and increased to 8.6 percent in Nepal and minimum numbers of tourists were from Oceania (21173/2.9 percent) although they are increasing in 2015 than 2014 in to 12.8 percent. Likewise, Chinese (75,631/10.3 percent) tourists visited Nepal in large number than other country and increased 63.1 percent then 2014, Sri-Lankan tourists (69241/9.4 percent) were visited Nepal. 21.0 percent tourists were from the India but in commercial the Indian tourists are not so beneficial for tourism sector that is why, Chinese and Sri-Lankan tourists are mentioned according to ascending order. In 2011, 735932 tourist visited Nepal but unfortunately the set target of Government to welcome about 10, 00,000 tourist was failing due to a lack of sufficient advertisement.
# 5. FINDINGS

This report helps me to find many things regarding Shree Antu village and the probability of future number of tourists in the Shree Antu Village. Major findings of the survey are analyzed as SWOT analysis.

## 5.1 Strengths

* The number of tourists has been gradually increasing. However, there is fluctuation in the annual increment. It means the number of tourists visiting Shree Antu village is increasing, which determines that this village is one of the popular homestay destinations in Illam district.

* Most tourists arriving at Shree Antu Village by purpose of visit are the following: Sunrise view visit 60 percent, Exploring tea garden visit 10 percent, pleasure 18 percent and 12 percent for Religious/cultural and others.

* Most foreigners visiting Shree Antu Village are age group 16-30 years of age 44 percent, followed 32 percent on 31-45- and 46-60-years group are 24 percent.

* The local Pashupati Market and Illam Bajar are nearest markets and therefore it seems to benefit from home stay. If anything, that is needed to run the homestay like raw materials, food items and so on are available in Illam Bajar and is the nearest marketplace home stay. That's why it seems that Illam Bazar and Pashupati market benefited from the homestay.

* The Home stay area of Shree Antu Village is aware of the cleanness inside and outside of houses. Shree Antu village is suitable place for the visiting purpose because it is the nearest place to Boarder of India and situated at the Eastern part of Nepal. So that tourists are increasing day by day and it improves the living standard of the people. Therefore, they are more conscious of the proper cleanliness of the area.

## 5.2 Weaknesses

* The 80 percent of total tourists were found to stay for one day, 5 percent were found to spend two days and three days, 6 percent were found for four days, and five days were 4 percent respectively.

* Home stay owners are unknown about benefit advertising. They don't have proper knowledge about advertising.

* Many tourists or guests spend one day only in Shree Antu village and the domestic tourists were visiting mostly in Shree Antu village in comparison to international tourists.

* Due to the pandemic and lockdown, homestay business has faced a collapse, which used to provide communities with economic support and sense of identity.

* Pandemics must lead to cancellations of flights while lockdown so that local tourists are not allowed to travel, and homestay must operate that the lockdown was necessary to control the spread of Covid-19.

## 5.3 Opportunities

* In Shree Antu village, the total number of homestays has 57. Earlier, Shree Antu village was small and there were few homestays for the tourist comparison to previous homestay. So, the flow of guests visiting Shree Antu village is increasing day by day along with homestays.

* Government must come with some financial support to keep the homestay industry afloat. The qualitative analysis is presented as SWOT analysis.

* The higher number of tourists want to visit Shree Antu village. Once they visit the Shree Antu village the flow of tourists will increase rapidly.

## 5.4 Threats

* COVID-19 and lockdowns significantly affected tourism, causing economic hardship for homestay owners and left almost all employees jobless causing frustration, hopelessness, etc.

* Insufficient financial and policy intervention from the government poses long-term sustainability risks.

* As more regions develop homestay models, Shree Antu faces rising competition for tourist attention.

* The tourism peak linked to specific times (like sunrise views) may limit year-round income.

# 6. RECOMMENDATIONS

On the basic of conclusion suitable recommendations have been made to provide solution to the various problems of tourism. Types of products service for development and
location of such development. Shree Antu Village is the potential tourism area of Ilam district. Therefore, it is the best option to develop as a model tourism village. Its natural setting had added much beauty to it. It has diverse products to sell to tourists. However, that has not yet been explored. Major recommendations for the promotion of village tourism within Shree Antu village are mentioned as follows:

* Shree Antu village should be developed externally, and advertisement should be made to increase the tourist destination.

* Government should try to increase the tourism infrastructures and other facilities road; communication and health facilities should be improved.

* To promote tourism and sustain it for the long term, there should be harmonies tourist-oriented activities like environmental sanitation security etc.

* Trained manpower and other facilities like foreign currency exchange extension of visa etc. are very poor in Nepali. So, these facilities should be improved.

* The homestay regulation training should be provided by the government in changing situation.

* Natural beauty is the major attraction of Shree Antu Village. But now the village is facing many problems like health facilities, a lack of youth and littering, etc. Thus, the government and private sector should concentrate on this area. And the most essential thing we must think about is to protect and preserve social, cultural, traditional and natural beauty of Shree Antu Village.

* To promote village tourism in Shree Antu Village each developmental, conservation and preservation programs should have equal involvement of rich and poor people including people of untouchability to make it sustainable.

## 7. CONCLUSION

Nepal is a country filled with villages. Nepal and villages are synonymous. There are more than 3000 villages in Nepal where more than 79.85 percent of the people reside. Among them Shree Antu village is one of the Nepal's one destinations. Nepal is known as important tourist destination in the world with its natural wealth and cultural religions and archaeological heritages. Since long tourism has provided to be

an important and major source of foreign exchange earnings to Nepal. It has been creating significant employment opportunities, and many other direct or indirect benefits have been generated for the country. Thus, tourism has played a significant role in the Nepalese economy. Despite enormous tourism potentials these have not been exploited property due to limited air access. A lack of infrastructure, market strategy and strong policy the number of visitors is not sufficient, which is expiating. Shree Antu village presents the excellence of all the attractions of village tourism. It is the 2nd place of Nepal from where sunrise can be viewed, and it is famous for tea gardens. Natural beauty, geographical and environmental viability, rich cultural heritage has been a major source of attracting an increasing number of tourists from all over the world. The study area has several aspects of tourism products. The study has regarded the potential for the promotion of village tourism because the area is rich in natural and cultural heritage. Thus, tourism development has made a very important contribution in the economic development of Shree Antu Village as mentioned above, tourism has contributed to the foreign exchange earnings employment generation and regional and rural development.

## SPECIAL NOTE

*This is an extract of my thesis submitted as a partial fulfilment of the requirements for the Degree of Bachelor of Hotel Management.*

## DISCLAIMER (ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE)

The author hereby declares that NO generative AI technologies such as Large Language Models (ChatGPT, COPILOT, etc.) and text-to-image generators have been used during the writing or editing of this manuscript.

## COMPETING INTERESTS

Author has declared that no competing interests exist.

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