Nepal Information

Nepal, a country of Mt. Everest and birth place of Lord Buddha situated between China in the north and India in the south, east and west , is a landlocked and least-developed country in South Asia. Nepal occupies only 0.03% and 0.3% of total land area of world and Asia respectively. The country stretches from east to west with mean length of 885 kilometers and widens from north to south with breadth of 193 kilometers.

Geographically, the country is divided into three ecological zones: the Northern Range – Mountain, the Mid Range – Hill and the Southern Range – Terai (flat land). In the northern range, the Himalayas from an unbroken mountain range which contains eight peaks higher than 8,000 meters, including Mt. Everest on the border with China. Eight of the 14 eight-thousanders of the world lie in Nepal: Sagarmatha or Mount Everest (8,848 m), Kanchenjunga (8,586 m), Lhotse (8,516 m), Makalu (8,463 m), Cho Oyu (8,201m), Dhaulagiri (8,167 m), Manaslu (8,163 m) and Annapurna (8,091 m). The middle range is captured by gorgeous mountains, high peaks, hills, valleys and lakes. The Kathmandu Valley lies in this region. The southern range consist of dense forest areas, national parks, wildlife reserves and conservation areas and fertile lands.

Nepal is one of the richest countries in the world in terms of bio-diversity due to its unique geographical position and altitudinal variation. The highest point in the country is Mt. Everest (8,848 m) while the lowest point is in the Terai plains of Kechana Kalan in Jhapa (60 m).Nepal can be visited all year round, but September to mid-November and late February to late March are tourist high seasons.

Area: 147,181 sq. km
Capital: Kathmandu
People: More than 125 ethnic groups and 123 spoken languages
Religion: A secular state with a predominance of Hindu and Buddhist population (Hindu 81.34 ,Bouddha 9.04 ,Christian 1.42
Islam 4.39 Others 0.76 percent)
Currency: Nepali Rupee (approximately US$ 1 equals Rs. 100)
Political System: Federal Democratic Republic
Seasons: Winter: December-February, (2) spring: March-May, (3) Summer: June-August, (4) Autumn: September-November.
Total population of the country in 2011: 26.5 million (Male 12849041/ Female 13645463)
Total households 5423297
Average life expectancy: 64.1 n//12 2012/13
Literacy Rate (%): 65.9 212/13P
Annual growth rate GDP (%) 3.56
Per capita GDP: US$ 717

WORLD HERITAGE SITES
UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites of Nepal are: Lumbini, the birth place of Lord Buddha, and seven monuments of Kathmandu valley within a radius of 20 km (together counted as one Heritage Site). Kathmandu valley World Heritage Site comprises of three historical palaces – Kathmandu, Patan and Bhaktapur Durbar Squares; two Buddhist stupas – Swayambhunath and Bauddhanath; and two Hindu temples – Pashupatinath and Changu Narayan.
UNESCO Natural World Heritage Sites
1. Chitwan National Park (932 sq. km)
2. Sagarmatha National Park (1,148 sq. km)

National Parks
1. Bardiya National Park (968 sq. km)
2. Khaptad National Park (225 sq. km)
3. Langtang National Park (1,710 sq. km)
4. Makalu-Barun National Park (1,500 sq. km)
5. Rara National Park (106 sq. km)
6. Shey-Phoksundo National Park (3,555 sq. km)
7. Shivapuri National Park (144 sq. km)

Wildlife Reserves
1. Koshi Tappu Wildlife Reserve (175 sq. km)
2. Parsa Wildlife Reserve (499 sq. km)
3. Shuklaphanta Wildlife Reserve (305 sq. km)
Conservation Areas
1. Annapurna Conservation Area (7,629 sq. km)
2. Kanchenjunga Conservation Area (2,035 sq. km)
3. Manaslu Conservation Area (1,663 sq. km)

Hunting Reserve
1. Dhorpatan (1,325 sq. km)

Outdoor Attractions & Activities – Mountaineering, trekking, mountain biking, nature tours, culture tours, pilgrim tours, white-water rafting,canyoning , kayaking, canoeing, mountain flights, pony trekking, jungle safaris, bird watching, fishing/ angling, paragliding, ultra-light aircraft ride, bungy jumping.