POKHARA: With Nepal’s snowy Himalayan peaks as a backdrop, the sky above Pokhara transformed into a vibrant canvas of colours for the country’s first hot-air balloon festival.

Tourism is a major earner for Nepal, which saw over a million foreign visitors this year after a post-pandemic bounceback, and investments are being made in hotels and airports to cater to travellers.

“We felt that we must bring a balloon festival like this to Nepal,” Sabin Maharjan, an organiser of the event, told AFP.

Hot-air balloons from more than 10 countries participated in the festival.

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“A ride here can be very exciting as you can see mountains, hills and lakes,” Maharjan added.

“All passengers tell us that they are very happy – such a festival will boost our tourism.”

‘Spectacular’

The balloons created a mesmerising display against a stunning sight of the snow-capped Annapurna range.

“It is spectacular,” American balloon pilot Derek Hamcock, 67, said.

“As soon as you go above the small range here you see all the Himalayas. Unbelievable, every time you see them it is unbelievable.”

Balloons shaped as a rat and a frog from were among those joining in the fun, slowly drifting with the breeze.

“You never know where you are going,” said Diego Criado del Rey, 29, a balloon pilot from Spain.

“So it is pretty much you and the nature – not fighting, but being together. You go where the nature tells you.”

Nepal’s Civil Aviation Authority issued a notice for the skies over Pokhara for a duration of nine days to allow balloon flights.

Although more than two centuries have passed since France’s Montgolfier brothers made the first manned flight, ballooning can still capture the imagination.