Pakistan Tourism Potential – “The Best Kept Secret of Asia”

From the mighty stretches of the Karakoram in the North to the vast alluvial delta of the Indus River in the South; Pakistan remains a land of high adventure and nature. Trekking, mountaineering, white water rafting, mountain and desert jeep safaris, camel and yak safaris, trout fishing and bird watching are a few activities, which entice the adventure and nature lovers to Pakistan.
Pakistan is endowed with a rich and varied flora and fauna. High Himalayas, Karakoram and the Hindukush ranges with their alpine meadows and permanent snow line, coniferous forests down the sub-mountain scrub, the vast Indus plain merging into the great desert, the coast line and wetlands, all offer a remarkably rich variety of vegetation and associated including avifauna, both endemic and migratory. Ten of 18 mammalian orders are represented in Pakistan with species ranging from the world's smallest surviving mammals, the Mediterranean Pigmy Shrew, to the largest mammal ever known; the blue whale.
Pakistan is home to 108 peaks above 7,000 meters and probably as many peaks above 6,000 m. There is no count of the peaks above 5,000 and 4,000 m. five of the 14 highest independent peaks in the world (the eight-thousanders) are in Pakistan (four of which lie in the surroundings of Concordia; the confluence of Baltoro Glacier and Godwin Austen Glacier).

Main Sector Segments

The Tourism and Hospitality sector, by virtue of not being a federal subject, is not clearly mapped. For the purpose of this document, we will consider the Tourism and Hospitality industry of Pakistan to consist of revenues generated by:

• The hotels & motels industry value consists of all revenues generated by hotels, motels and other accommodation providers through the provision of accommodation and other services.
• The total value includes room revenue and non-room revenue, including shops and telecommunication services. The industry is segmented according to the origin of the revenues (leisure consumers and business consumers).

• Foodservice is defined as the value of all food and drink, including on-trade drinks not drunk with food, for immediate consumption on the premises or in designated eating areas shared with other foodservice operators, or in the case of takeaway transactions, freshly prepared food for immediate consumption.
• The food service industry is valued according to total sales of all food and drink in or through accommodation outlets, full service restaurants, quick service restaurants and fast food, and other. The accommodation segment includes food and drinks sales in bed and breakfasts, guest houses, holiday parks, hostels, and hotels and motels. This segment includes food and drink sales in leisure venues, such as visitor attractions; mobile operators, such as vans and other mobile operators; retailers, such as bakeries, convenience stores, delicatessens, department stores, garden centers, service station forecourts, supermarkets and hypermarkets, and other retail sales.