Himal Press 
POKHARA: The Pokhara Street Festival, an annual event that serves as a curtain-raiser for the New Year, kicked off in Pokhara on Sunday.
Organized by the Restaurant and Bar Association Nepal (REBAN), Pokhara Chapter, the festival has been held continuously for nearly three decades along the Fewa Lake shoreline. The event has helped transform Pokhara into a preferred destination for New Year celebrations.
According to tourism entrepreneurs, the event has reversed the past trend of Nepalis traveling abroad, and foreign tourists rushed home due to a lack of attractive programs for New Year celebrations within the country.
Held under the slogan *“Let’s eat on the street, dance on the street, and enjoy on the street,” the festival stretches across a nearly 3.5-kilometer section of the Lakeside Road, making it one of the largest street festivals in the country. Restaurants welcome visitors with a wide variety of food items served on the streets. The event also features musical and cultural performances.
The five-day festival will conclude after welcoming the New Year.
Addressing the inaugural ceremony, Minister for Physical Infrastructure and Transport, Kulman Ghising, said Pokhara, as Nepal’s tourism capital, must be strengthened as a tourism hub through improved connectivity with other cities and countries. “We need to enhance both road and air connectivity to bring more tourists to Pokhara. Equally important is the conservation of Fewa Lake, which is the city’s most valuable tourism asset,” Ghising said.
Gandaki Province Minister for Tourism Mitralal Basyal said the provincial government was committed to promoting tourism development in the region. Similarly, Pokhara Mayor Dhanraj Acharya urged Minister Ghising to take initiatives to ensure regular international flights to and from Pokhara International Airport.
According to REBAN Pokhara President Bishwaraj Paudel, the festival aims to attract around 500,000 visitors.
A range of activities, including live concerts, traditional dance and musical performances, sports activities, talk shows, documentary screenings, and photo exhibitions, will be organized during the festival.
Meanwhile, a cultural procession was taken out from Hallanchowk to Komagane Park ahead of the opening ceremony. Participants from various communities, including Brahmin, Chhetri, Newar, Gurung, Magar, Thakali, and Tharu groups, joined the rally showcasing their traditional cultures.
