Tasi Ghale: Tourism could be developed through golf

Tasi Ghale, Chairman of Hotel Royal Singi, had the opportunity to visit Thailand at a young age, and was impressed by the flourishing tourism business abroad and absorbed himself in it. He had previously built and operated a small hotel in Thamel.

Ghale took a loan of Rs 130 million and established the Royal Singi Hotel in Kamaladi in 1998, the year Nepal celebrated Visit Nepal Year for the first time. Established on January 20, 1998, the three stars Hotel Royal Singi recently celebrated its silver jubilee.

As foreign airline flights increased in Nepal, the tourism industry began to flourish. Hotel Royal Singi was also honored several times by Nepal Rastra Bank for paying more dollars collected from foreign customers of the hotel.

According to Ghale, all the income from the hotel was invested in the hotel itself. He has the bitter experience of selling and investing about 20 ropanis of land in places like Thamel, Budhanilkanth, Sitapaila in Kathmandu while building the Royal Singi Hotel. The idea of closing the hotel, demolishing the building and running a mall or office came to him. However, it was not possible.

In Chairman Tasi Ghale’s experience, hotel operators have many problems. He clarified that if government policies continue to hurt the hotel business, the industry may have to be closed one day.

The 10 year-long Maoist insurgency, load shedding, earthquake and COVID-19 pandemic, Nepal's hotel business collapsed. Experience of staff unions being established behind parties in hotels is another issue faced by hotels in Nepal.

During the establishment of the hotel, the banks, which had encouraged businessmen by giving loans at low interest rates, increased the interest rates, and the businessmen started to face problems.

Tasi Ghale, who is also the president of Nepal Golf Association, said that the tourism sector can be developed through golf in Nepal. According to him, he said that the game of golf is developing in South Asia as well as South East Asia and countries like India and China are bringing in tourists through golf.

He emphasized that for the development of the golf game, golf courses should be established throughout the country. If the government is able to provide land for the construction of golf courses in different parts of the country, Tashi Ghale has seen the possibility of many people investing. He said that if about 20 more golf courses can be built in Nepal, high-level tourists will increase in Nepal.