Sunshine Himalayan Adventures: Founded in 1996 , Sunshine Himalayan Adventures (SHA) is an approved EcoTour Operator in the Northern Indian State of Himachal Pradesh (HP) and the one permitted to offer tours in the pristine wilderness of India’s newest National Park – The Great Himalayan National Park (GHNP). SHA is dedicated to responsible Eco-tourism principles and tour products that are environmentally sustainable and economically beneficial to the local people. We offer our clients the opportunity to experience the beauty and wonder of the Western Himalayan ecosystem and the exciting culture of the renowned Kullu Valley, known throughout India as the “The Valley of Gods.” The ecotourism program continues developing a paradigm wherein local villagers actually benefit from having their ancestral lands turned into a wilderness preserve. Part of the plan is to train local youths in eco-tourism and trekking so that more resources become available to them than ever in the past while wild nature is preserved for posterity. A plan of simple elegance and sweeping implications!

1. Ecotourism in the GHNP
Vision of a Responsible Tour Operator
Sunshine Himalayan Adventures (SHA)
pankisood@gmail.com

2. What is an Ecotour Operator
Tour operators specializing to cater eco-tours
collaborating with local people focused on local
nature and culture based tourism.
Hence to promote development of ecotourism in
the Great Himalayan National Park , which meets
the needs and aspirations of the current
generation without compromising the ability to
meet the needs of future generations.

3. Key Principles
• Facilitate partnership for planning, implementation, coordination and
monitoring ecotourism activities with key stakeholders such as, local
communities, NGO, government organizations, tour agents based
nationally and internationally
• Respect local communities’ culture, tradition and custom.
• Adherence to international ecotourism principles, guidelines and
standards for the development of ecotourism.
• Generate income sources to local communities preferably to
economically disadvantaged through ecotourism activities.
• Enhance cooperation among the local entrepreneurs such as―home
stay operators, tour operators, tour agents ― government
organizations and other key players in the development of ecotourism
infrastructures and promotion of ecotourism products.
• Encourage visitors to learn the biodiversity and ecosystems as well as
local people’s cultural and traditional values.
• Ecotourism promotion and development to conserve nature including
biodiversity and ecosystems as well as local people’s culture and
tradition of the Great Himalayan National Park

4. Challenges of GHNP at Creation in
2001
• Negligible Local Participation in Tourism
• Unskilled Human Resource
• Hidden Destination – Negligible Outreach
• Lack of True Ecotourism Experiences & Products
• Lack of local accommodation or Tour operators
• Lack of visitor expectations , needs and safety
• Anti Park movement in local community due to
closure of grazing and medicinal herb collection

5. Immediate Stakeholders for SHA
Sunshine
Himalayan
Adventures
Park
Administration-
GHNP
Local
Community-
Unemployed
Youth
Domestic &
International
Tourists
Local NGO’s
and WSCG
Groups – BTCA
Travel Industry
–
Delhi & Metro’s
Panchayats
& Local
Administration

6. Overall Stakeholders

7. Local Capacity Building
• Organized Five Basic & Advanced Level
Interpretative Guide Training programs
• Organized Specialized training in Bird watching
• Organized First Aid & Rescue Training
• Organized Hands-on training for cooks, soft
adventure guides, Communication, hygiene
etc.
• Sponsored Ecozone Youth for Mountaineering
trainings with the WHMI

8. SHA Unique Experiences

9. Local Capacity Building

10. Developing Unique Experiences
• Mountaineering Expeditions- Climbed and Named over 5 peaks
in GHNP ( Yeshe , Chakri , Snow Leopard, Sentinel peak etc)
• Wildlife Tours- Ran dedicated tours for Brown Bear / Rare Birds
with experts from all over the globe
• Bird watching Tours- Clicked the First Ever Picture of the
Western Tragopan in the Wild
• Village Treks
• GHNP Treks
• Ecozone Tours
• Forest Learning Program for School Kids
• Cultural Tours
• Home stay Accommodations
• Camps
• Our List of Ecozone activities crosses over 40 nature & cultural
experiences and activities to do – eg White Water Scuba Diving

11. Unique Visitor Interpretation

12. Aiding Research & Sustainable
Development
• Giving Park insights into the Tourism Industry &
helping with development of SaiRopa / Ropa
Complex
• Development of Butterfly House
• Several Researches & Ongoing Research on Birds
and Wildlife , NTFP’s & Fire Studies etc
• Aiding research on ecotourism with SPJain &
various other researchers

13. Marketing & Promotion
• Click the GHNP photo Contest & sevral other
contests to popularize the GHNP in niche market
• Organized First Reality Adventure Show
• Had various articles published on GHNP with a
strategic plan of marketing
• Assisted in creating
www.greathimalayannationalpark.com ,
www.tirthanvalley.com , Managing all Web2 tools
on GHNP – Facebook, Youtube etc
• Took help of volunteers from TIES, SP Jain Institute
etc to have a promotion network for GHNP

14. Helping the Park Administration
• Fine Tuning Visitor Facilities and Information
• Converting Poachers to birding & wildlife Guides
• Making Voices & Choices & other outreach
material for the park
• Using trekkers information for anti-poaching &
reporting of wildlife through forms
• Assisting in World Heritage Site Process &
Application
• Full ground logistics provided to all researchers
on cost basis

15. Establishing Policies for Ecotourism
• Assisted in Making Ecotourism Policy for HP in
2005
• Made the Sikkim Ecotourism Policy in 2012 with
Japanese Experts
• Doing Active Planning for Ecotourism through
consultancies in Himachal, Uttarakhand and
Sikkim for various Government Projects
• Actively Working for ecotourism projects with
WWF , BNHS , ADB , JICA for establishing
ecotourism as a tool for rural enpowerment

16. Spreading the Fruits of Ecotourism
• From Over 15 ecotourism youth to Over 150 ecotourism youth
• Eight New Local Entrepreneurs have started ecotourism
Operations
• From one homestay to over 15 homestays & Guest Houses
• Guest Arrival Increased almost
• Tirthan Valley on World Tourism Map ( www.tirthanvalley.com)
• Great Himalayan National Park soon becoming a world
heritage site
• Ecotourism Leading to growth of flora and fauna in the park –
Pheasants populations have doubled
• Ecotourism now an established alternative income generation
activity in the GHNP & its Ecozone areas

17. Our Current Initiatives
• Helping BTCA with establishing effective
Ecotourism Self Help Groups & Cooperatives
• Establishing a model Campsite with community
involvement
• Finalizing Carrying Capacities of Trails of the
GHNP
• Trying to get projects for BTCA to imrove on
ecotourism
• Fighting mass tourism, onslaught of outsiders
into the valley & other challenges like hydel
development

18. Our Recognition & Rewards
• AWARDED HONORARY MEMBERSHIP OF
Oriental Bird Club
• Life Membership of Administrative Staff College
of India
• Life Membership World Mountain People
Association
• Invited to Ecotourism Conferences in
Bhutan, Sikkim, Uttaranchal, Nepal , Himachal
& UK
• AWARDED HONORARY MEMBERSHIP OF BNHS

19. Future Challenges
• Metamorphosis from private company model to a
cooperative model of ecotourism for more stakeholder
distribution
• Getting Projects for making ecotourism self help groups more
sustainable especially in the lean tourist season . ( Apricot &
Fruit processing project & Souvenir Making )
• Getting more responsible tourist in the area
• Workshops with local school kids for keeping area clean and
healthy & helping initiate zero waste management.
• Home stay , cooking and other ecotourism related trainings
• Getting real and needy living off the road closer to the core
zone Involved in income generation activities .

20. Picture Gallery

21. Picture Galore

22. Our Partners and Supporters

23. Thank You
• Sunshine Himalayan Adventures
• Arya Samaj Street, Akhara Bazar Kullu-175101
• Himachal Pradesh , India
• www.sunshineadventure.com
• sunhimalaya@gmail.com
• http://www.muchbetteradventures.com/co/s
unshine-himalayan-adventures/