Tony Jones

Ever wonder who were some of the first people to lay the foundations for Thamel to become what it is today? Well, Tony Jones a charming unassuming fellow from England was bored with his tenure in the British army and decided to take an overland group to South Asia. It was just an informal initiative and 6 people boarded on a truck, decided to call the journey “Encounter Overland,” and came to Nepal. The year was 1965 and Thamel had its first overland tourists. The rest is history and Tony understatedly says, “Don’t even ask me how I did, and why I did. It just happened…maybe because I did not want to continue with the army!” He really did not want to blow his trumpet about his contribution to development of backpacker tourism. However, he is full of praises for Thamel and feels very lucky to be a part of it. “Thamel has grown organically and spontaneously creating its own character. With limited resources, it has flourished, and this hails the true spirit of entrepreneurship.”

He was one of the initiators of budget tourism and he strongly believes that this is what works for Nepal. “Trust budget tourism, - it utilizes genuine Nepali skills and manpower and fits with the infrastructure of the country. The demands of the budget tourists blend with what Nepal can offer.”

Looking back at the development of Thamel, this old timer recounts that in the 1960’s Thamel was a hole in the backwaters of Kathmandu. It boomed in the 1970’s responding to the trend of “hippyism.” “It was a respectable hangout for the flower power generation and most of them came here for the Himalayas, and not for drugs. It’s an absolute misinterpretation that Thamel only invited the fellows who wanted to get high.” “The groups used to venture out from KGH and celebrate their return in Rum Doodle. These were the two main centres of attraction and I remember Helena’s, KC’s and Narayan’s were also the hang out places those days.” The 1980’s were Thamels “heydays.” He remembers that most businesses were charging as much as they are today back then. It was boom time and Thamel was gaining popularity for backpackers worldwide. The early 1990’s were what he calls “the spare rib phenomena.” Thamel spread its wing into greater Thamel because the employers of the first generation enterprises were moving out to open up their own restaurants, hotels, travel agencies etc. By late 1990’s, the conflict gained momentum and now he says, “there is a rush to the bottom competition,” where everyone is trying to slash their prices more than the other.

Nevertheless, he believes the conflict has made Nepalese more resilient and determined and nothing can prevent entrepreneurship from developing, especially in Thamel, which has a lot of jobs to offer, skills to develop and businesses to expand. He gives a very optimistic picture of the future saying, “Thamel will survive whatever happens because there is nothing to replace it. Thamel has a unique charm of its own and there are not many places like this in the world where within a square kilometer, there is everything that a tourist wants.” He feels that the future tourists of Thamel will more be of the middle-aged group who missed Thamel in the 70s and 80s. “It’s the “would be hippy crowd,” who will now come to the destination that they missed in their youth. The parents will not allow the youngsters to venture into a conflict-ridden country, so you have to tap the “responsible age group,” market.”

Tony is now working on a pet project called the “Trisuli Centre.” He is promoting village tourism in a place called Bandare along the Prithvi highway. With the co-operation of 25 households, Tony is working to renovate and recreate the whole village into a tourist attraction center that will enhance the beauty of the country’s rural lifestyle and encapsulate the spirit of Nepal’s hinterland. Well, good luck to this enthusiastic and diehard promoter of tourism. He will surely create a landmark wherever he goes!!!

(Tony Jones is the Director of Himalayan Encounters, a trekking and rafting agency specializing in white water rafting, wilderness t`rekking and jungle safari)

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