Meet Rakesh, your expert in Nepal!
🌍 Lives in: Kathmandu
Regions of Expertise: Countrywide - Kathmandu, Pokhara, Annapurna, Langtang, Everest, Manasalu, Great Himalaya Trail, Terai, Chitwan, Lumbini
Experience: 9 years planning & designing trips
Languages: English, Nepalese
Rakesh’s Specialities:
Get to know Rakesh!
A note from Rakesh
"Hi, I'm Rakesh and I've been working for the past 12 years in Nepal and the Himalayas in tourism and community/sustainable development.
My passion for travel grew after extensively traveling all over the Himalayas, mostly in remote, unvisited places. My career in tourism began 11 years ago, when I began working for our national government as a co-coordinator of the Great Himalaya Trails project.
Since then, I’ve worked on sustainable tourism action plans, tourism development, and initiatives to promote the stunning areas of Nepal that still see few tourists.
About 8 years ago, I started my own small travel agency and tour operator, and we’ve been designing and running unique trips to Nepal and Bhutan ever since.
Read more
I am a strong believer and advocate of sustainable travel, and know that this type of tourism can benefit our remote and rural communities, while also positively changing and transforming the travelers who visit them.
My goal for every traveler that I talk with is to help them experience the authentic side of this region, getting out into our beautiful, natural landscapes while connecting with local communities and supporting socially responsible and purposeful travel.
Whether you’re seeking adventure, a leisurely holiday, cultural connection, spiritual well-being, or anything else, I would love to chat with you and help you plan the trip of a lifetime."
Nepal Travel Consultations
Why plan with Rakesh
Spend 60 minutes tapping into Rakesh’s hyperlocal expertise to plan a better trip.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Consultations cost $125 USD.
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Consultations are held over Google Meet. Once you’ve scheduled your call, you’ll receive a confirmation email containing the link for your video call. On the scheduled day and time, just click that link to join.
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Each consultation is different, but here are some common things that our experts typically help with:
Itinerary planning
Transportation, driving routes, and tips for how to get around
Practical travel information; culture, safety, weather, language, money/tipping, etc.
Suggested hotels/accommodations and advice on where to base yourself
Local recommendations for restaurants, activities, and unique experiences
Advice on reputable tour guides, tour operators, and excursions
Pro tips on how to best visit popular sights and attractions
Ways to avoid overcrowded destinations and tourist traps
Insider ideas on off the beaten path places, authentic experiences, and ways to connect with locals
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What you can get done in an hour depends on your goals for the consultation and how organized you are coming into it.
In most cases, an hour is ample time to create a solid itinerary, answer your major travel questions, get practical advice on how to travel in your destination, and discuss lots of great local tips and recommendations.
To ensure that the hour is used efficiently, when you schedule your call, our pre-consultation questionnaire will ask you what your primary goals for the consultation are. Prior to the call, your Local Expert will review your questionnaire and prepare detailed information addressing those goals.
They’ll come into the call ready to share specific advice, recommendations, itinerary ideas/revisions, and useful links and resources for you to review together.
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Yes! Each consultation is guided by a comprehensive pre-consultation questionnaire that you fill out immediately upon booking.
We’ll ask you a series of 30+ detailed questions that really dig into you, your trip, your interests and travel style, and what you want to discuss with your Local Expert.
The questionnaire will cover things like: the dynamics of your group, the things you enjoy while traveling, your budget, how early you want to start your day and how late you want to end it, whether you want to hit the highlights or roam the back streets, and even what types of restaurants you want to eat at.
Your Local Expert will focus only on your interests and travel style.
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Our Local Experts are seasoned travel professionals who have spent decades working in their countries/regions. While their personal interests may be different from yours, they’ve worked with thousands of travelers and have recommendations and advice for every type of individual.
They know their destinations in-depth and can help plan a trip for every traveler and taste.
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No. Our service is geared toward independent, do-it-yourself travelers who intend to make bookings on their own.
Our goal is not to plan your trip for you, but rather to help you plan a better trip independently. To that end, our Local Experts will give you all of the information that you need to confidently put your trip together yourself.
When Local Experts recommend things like restaurants, hotels, excursions/activities, tours, drivers, etc., they’ll provide you with contact details and links so that you can make the final arrangements on your own.
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Almost every Go Ask A Local expert has at least 10 years of professional travel experience as a guide or trip planner in their country/region.
We work with a vetted team of seasoned professionals who know their destinations inside and out.
Unlike other companies, when you book a call, you’ll always be connected directly with your chosen Local Expert. We never pass anyone on to a junior sales associate or some anonymous back office team. With us, what you see is what you get.
Ready to plan with Rakesh?
Here’s how to schedule your consultation:
Tailor-Made Trips to Nepal
In addition to offering Nepal Travel Consultations, Rakesh is also a license local travel agent who has been designing custom-made nature-focused and culturally immersive trips all over Nepal for 9 years.
While he also still guides a few trips a year, he’s mostly based out of his office in Kathmandu now, so he personally plans and organizes every trip himself. If you’re create a unique trip with an expert local agent who exclusively covers his country, talk to Rakesh!
How it works: Schedule a free 20-minute introductory call to meet Rakesh and learn about the type of trip that you could plan together.
Next steps: After the call, if you decide that you’d like to hire Rakesh as your local travel agent, you’ll work one-on-one to collaboratively plan and book your trip to Nepal.
Who is this service right for? Travelers who like to be involved in their trip planning, but want an expert to manage the specifics:
Rakesh will take care of the itinerary creation, bookings and arrangements, transportation & logistics, tours/activities, etc., so that you can focus on the fun stuff.
Learn more about the tailor-made trip planning process here.