Description:
Tiger Mountain Tharu Lodge (TMTL), one of the three Tiger Mountain properties in the Chitwan area, is just 13 km downriver from Tiger Tops Jungle Lodge, on the edge of Royal Chitwan National Park . Situated in a tranquil garden setting on high ground overlooking lush green forests and villages, it is inspired by the lifestyle and rich culture of the indigenous Tharu people. Tharu Lodge is a living diorama constructed in the traditional longhouse style, and built from local materials. The spacious and comfortable double rooms have en-suite bathrooms with solar-heated water and are stocked with hand-made herbal soap.
Tharu Lodge offers the best of both worlds: wildlife plus cultural and resort activities, including birdwatching, jungle walks, sunset strolls, ox cart rides and walks into the different ethnic villages (Tharu, Bote & Mushyar), swimming, tennis, badminton, and pony rides for children. Visits to The Tiger Mountain Organic Farm and Lodge projects are also posssible.Elephant more... and sunset river safaris are available for guests staying two nights or more. The Tharu Lodge grounds and gardens are the home to 43 bird species and frequent visitors to the area include the Greater One-horned Rhinoceros, Wild Boar, Leopard, Sloth Bear, Civet and Jungle Cats and many more. The elusive Royal Bengal Tiger is sometimes sighted.
Tiger Mountain , the pioneer of adventure tourism in Nepal with over 40 years experience, places a great emphasis on self-sufficiency at its lodges. Its own Tiger Mountain Organic Farms produce fresh ingredients for its award-wining Nepali and Western cuisine: Wild-Boar cross, poultry, seasonal vegetables and fruit, herbs, salads, honey. All bread, rolls, quiches, pastries, cookies and pies are freshly baked on the premises, and we serve home-made marmalade and jams, chutneys, muesli, yoghurt, pasta, sausage, pate, and fresh organic coffee and herbal teas
Tharu Lodge is proud to be part of the Tiger Mountain ideal of environmentally responsible tourism with a conscience, and endeavours to blend and harmonize with the surrounding jungle and villages. In line with its ethic of putting something positive back into the areas where its lodges are located , your stay at Tharu Lodge will help fund various Charities,Community Development and Environmental Projects, including a free clinic, a school for underprivileged children (Tiger Tops Swissair Pre-School) and 4 other educational programmes, village irrigation, recycling, flood relief, agricultural and vocational training, women's literacy and empowerment and anti-poaching and wildlife monitoring programmes.
The all-inclusive rate covers the diverse array of in-house activities listed above, and room with full board (3 award-winning meals, full afternoon tea, and complimentary coffee or tea whenever...). Activities will be custom-tailored to suit your special interests and wishes, and accompanied by expert guides. Child-friendly meals are easily arranged (note: rate does not include Government taxes, National Park Entrance fees or airport transfers).
1. Tiger Mountain Tharu Lodge village Clinic :
manned by a staff member withh a Community Health Worker's degree, provides treatment and medicine to villagers and is open 24 hours for emergency cases. The minimal 2 rupee (approximately 3 cents) fee collected from patients is put into an emergency fund for those who require but can't afford expensive surgery or hospitalisation. The Lodge also provides a vehicle for emergency transportation.
2. Tiger Tops Swissair Pre-School:
is a free education programme for underprivileged children made possible by Swissair Staff Fund for Children's Relief, Tiger Mountain and donations from friends and guests. The School's 78 students receive, free of charge, 2 meals a day, health care, uniforms, and schooling. In exchange for the children's schooling, parents help to grow vegetables for students' meals in the school's organic gardens. This gardening work has not only given them a sense of involvement in their children's education but has inspired them to start many kitchen gardens in the village, thus improving village nutrition. The children's meals are cooked with bio-gas from the school buffalo and latrines.Once the students graduate from the programme, their onward education in Government schools is also funded and monitored.
3. TTSA School Library Programme:
sponsors Saturday reading, art, music and drama activities for all village children, and environmental awareness and conservation lectures and programmes for other local schools. Attendance averages 70 children every Saturday.
4. TTSA School Tree Nursery Project:
was initiated with financial assistance from the International Trust for Nature Conservation. The programme teaches children conservation and responsibility for their natural resources. It also aids in local reafforestation and provides villagers with alternative sources for fodder, fuel and building thus taking pressure off of the fragile environment.
5. Duff Kennedy Scholarship Fund:
finances the Government School education of older children from poor families. These students, in return, supervise the Saturday library programmes at the Tiger Tops Swissair School. There are currently 96 students covered by this scholarship programme. We have now come full circle as two of them have come back as paid teachers at our community projects! One is tutoring at the Tiger Tops Swissair Pre-School, and the other is teaching full time in the Mushyar Village.
6. Provision of salaries for Bote and Tharu community teachers:
When the villagers of the Bote and Tharu communities got together and built schools for their children (350 students), but subsequently found they were unable to collect sufficient fees to fund teachers' salaries, Tiger Mountain initiated teachers' salary funds for their Schools, Durga Bhawani and Singha Nath. They are now supported by guest donations administered by Tiger Mountain Tharu Lodge
7. Provision of salary for Mushyar village teacher and tutor:
Similarly, Tiger Mountain Tharu Lodge took up the cause of the Mushyar village children when there was no budget to pay their young teacher, a Duff-Kennedy scholar. He has also been an inspiration for illiterate adults in the village, who are now learning to read and write thanks to his example.His salary is now funded by Lodge guests and friends
8.Mushyar Children's Garden Project:
to teach gardening skills to youngsters and improve village nutrition. A foot pump was offered free of charge to the adults of the village, but they were not keen to dig a well and look after the garden. The older children however took the project on and started producing vegetables for their families, and earning a small income from surplus vegetables -- and the adults are sitting up and taking notice!
9. Dhajaha Flood Relief Project:
When 145 families were left homeless by Narayani river flooding in 2000, Tharu Lodge stepped in with clothing and regular medical visits to the relief camp. With the generous help of guests, victims built latrines and dug wells for safe drinking water. Today, they are still in the camp, but at least are living under improved hygiene conditions, with clean water and medical care.
10. Construction of subsidised foot pumps for villagers, installation of hand pumps and related irrigation projects:
Several foot pumps constructed at the TTSA school and operating in the villages have provided sources of income for the Mushyar children and a village widow, and have also improved nutrition for many families. A hand pump installed by the Lodge with labour from the villagers provides clean water for a number of households, and another hand pump installed at a community school provides clean drinking water for 175 students.A toilet facility for this school has also been constructed with donations from guests and friends.
11. Agricultural & Vocational Training programmes for villagers:
Tiger Mountain is the main employer in the area, but is obviously not in a position to provide a job for every villager who needs one. As an alternative, it offers training so they can go farther afield armed with a marketable skill.TM Organic Farms also offer agricultural workshops to introduce new crops and techniques, thus improving village nutrition and income sources.
12. Assistance to Buffer Zone National Park:
To protect wildlife and the environment and help in anti-poaching patrols, the Lodge provides vehicles, boats, elephants, manpower and other support for anti-poaching patrols and wildlife monitoring projects.
13. Road/bridge building:
The Lodge assists in repairing monsoon-damaged roads and also builds roads and bridges with a conscience -- to enable essential irrigation channels for village crops.
14. Telephone service to villagers:
The Lodge makes its radio phone available to villagers at cost, thus sparing them a 9 kilometre walk to the nearest telephone. This provides a lifeline for families who are separated or forced to live apart because of the lack of local employment opportunities.
15. Recycling programme:
Villagers and school children are paid to bring in old plastic, thus helping in the recycling effort and keeping the villages clean.
16. Women's literacy and empowerment:
Classes are conducted at the Bote School and Tiger Tops Swissair Pre-School at night. The women have raised money to pay 2 young teachers, and meet 6 days a week by candle light and oil lamp. They are proudly learning the basics of reading, writing and doing sums, and are also studying hygiene, women's rights, cultivation, counting money and dealing with wild animal threats
17. Snowball Goat-Breeding Project:
Snowball goat-breeding project: is an income source for needy villagers and a way of sharing one's good fortune and a means of strengthening community spirit. A kid from "Snowball" (a lovely goat donated by a good friend and colleague) is given to a financially challenged village woman, and when it has bred, she in turn passes an offspring to another villager, and so on and on and on?., thus helping good fortune to, yes , snowball!
Tiger Tops Swissair Pre-school
The Tiger Tops Swissair Pre-School was inaugurated on 10 December 1996 as a free head start development programme for young children from poor families near the Tiger Mountain Tharu Lodge operation. The students are carefully selected from different ethnic communities (Mushahar, Bote, Tharu, Kammi, Damai, Gurung, Kamal etc) on the basis of financial and nutritional need, the objective being to prepare them for primary education in Government schools, and to give them the skills and confidence they will need to carry on with their schooling.
The programme is funded jointly by Tiger Tops and Swissair (Staff Foundation for Children?s Relief) and is also assisted by donations from guests and friends. In addition to schooling, the project also covers meals, uniforms, books, school supplies, immunizations, health care, and any special needs..
In addition to a headmaster and 4 trained teachers who instruct the School?s 78 students in Nepali, maths, social studies, health & hygiene, wildlife & environment, arts & crafts and English, the school has a doctor who looks after their health, plans school menus and monitors the students' growth. Since 1998, a total of 96 students have graduated from the Tiger Tops Swiss Air Pre-School and have been enrolled in Government school. The onward education of all graduates is also being funded and carefully monitored.
The school has expanded its programme to include 2nd grade and now has four classrooms and a library. The library, which is open to all village children on the weekends for reading and special programmes, is a way of reaching out to many more children.
The School does not charge any fees, but in exchange for their schooling, students' parents are asked to work in the school vegetable gardens for several hours a month. The gardens are organically grown and are being developed with the aim of becoming self-sufficient in seasonal vegetables for school meals. The school buffalo provides milk for the children as well as fuel for the bio-gas unit for cooking the children?s meals. With funds donated by the International Trust for Nature Conservation, students have also planted a tree nursery, which provides an income for the school as well as a positive conservation experience for the children.
Donations can be made by cheque to Mountain Travel P. Ltd (Swissair Pre-School) and sent to the following address by courrier (mail service is often unreliable):
Tiger Mountain
Dhapasi
Gongabu
Ward No. 6
Kathmandu
(Tel No. 977-1-4361500
Further information on the programme may be obtained from:
Tiger Tops Swissair Pre-School
c/o Tiger Tops
PO Box 242
Kathmandu, Nepal
Tiger Mountain Organic Farms :
Tiger Mountain Farms currently comprise two farm stations, Tharu Farm in the vicinity of Tharu Lodge and Bhanga Farm about 5 km north of Tiger Tops Jungle Lodge. The total land area of the two stations is 28 ?biga? or 42 acres (16.5 hectares). The idea of growing food for the hotel operations was originally conceived in times when important food items like chicken or pork were not readily available in the local market. The farms still produce fresh poultry, meat and eggs, but over the years have shifted and concentrated their focus on high quality foods and specialities.
Vegetable growing is now fully organic; the use of mineral fertilisers and heavy duty chemical insecticides has been banned. Instead emphasis is put on high quality seeds to produce vegetable plants, and a compost economy for fertilizing and soil improvement. Pests and diseases are controlled through natural insecticides such as marigold, artemisia, neem (Antelaea azadirachta) and tobacco juice, and companion planting. A sophisticated crop rotation system is worked out in order to keep performance high and to reduce the probability of pests and diseases.
Apart from rice grown during the monsoon season, we are specializing in vegetables that cannot be found in the local market or the quality of which is not up to our standards. The hotel menus include fresh organic salads made from a variety of lettuces and greens. In season, aside from the more standard vegetables, the Farms produce asparagus, baby corn, broccoli, red cabbage, eggplant, beetroot, leek, okra and fennel, and a variety of spinaches and kales as well as herbs including basil, dill, chives, coriander, parsley, turmeric, ginger, lemon grass and peppermint. Pineapple, papaya, bananas, mulberries round out the offerings, topped off by coffee which will be ready to harvest by 2008.
Livestock is carefully reared, providing optimum space and feed to the individual animal. You will not see chicken in battery cages at the farms. Milk produced at the farm is used for making ice cream, yoghurt, and cheeses.
Aside from the aspect of being self-sufficient, the freshness of our products is one of our main advantages -- all produce reaches the kitchens very soon after harvest (1? hours). You will notice this while breakfasting, lunching or having dinner at the hotel.
A number of research and development activities have been implemented at the farms. We are crossbreeding genuine Wild Boar with domestic Large White-type pigs in order to gain more tasty pork. Quail meat and eggs have become very popular. They now are a regular feature on the hotel menus. By choosing a mobile bee-keeping system, i.e. moving the hives to the flowers, we have increased the amount of unifloral honey from our 20 hives. The quality of honey collected from wild flowers such as 'Kapok' and 'Rudillo' in the jungle has resulted in such a demand within the Tiger Mountain Group of Companies that we have had to increase production. Workshops introducing new products are offered to local villagers in the hopes of increasing crop yields (SRI rice), improving nutrition (mushrooms), and providing income generating possibilities.
team of up to 40 staff is working at the two stations. Most of the work is done manually, oxen are used for ploughing and oxen carts fullfill our transport needs. Important decisions such as the timing of rice planting are made jointly thus profiting from local knowledge about climate and other general natural conditions. All staff is permanently trained on the job hence improving their knowledge in vegetable growing and farm management.
You are very welcome to visit the farm, just mention it to our hotel staff, they will arrange for you to literally see your dinner growing
Guest Feedback :
Excerpts from Tharu Lodge Guest Book
?My wife and I wish you every success and happiness, and we will treasure our memories of our time in Nepal; probably one of our best holidays in over 25 years of exotic travel ? Hampshire, England?
?One of life's great experiences ? Tokyo, Japan?
?The staff is outstanding, the food delicious and the surroundings absolutely majestic! ? Stamford, Connecticut, USA?
?A welcoming heaven ? Londdoyi, South Africa"
"Everything was superb ? American Embassy, Kathmandu"
"I could stay here a month. It is paradise! - Birmingham, England"
"I don't wanna leave. Very Peaceful ? Dhahran, Saudi Arabia"
"Tremendous service, relaxing, unforgettable ? Shanghai, China"
"Bella! ? Rome, Italy"
"Time stands still here ? Paris, France"
"Pure, natural luxury ? Youngstown, Ohio, USA"
"Very friendly staff, beautiful garden, good food ? Bangkok, Thailand"
"Fantastic. Nicest people anywhere! ? Vancouver, Canada"
"Beautiful, calm, serene ? great people ? Edmond, Oklahoma, USA"
"Loved it! Loved the village and the ox carts ? Norfolk, Virginia, USA"
"Wonderful, peaceful, spiritual ? San Diego, California, USA"
"Charming, peaceful, a very special place ? London, England"
"Sejour enchanteur hors du temps ? Boulogne, France"
"Our second delightful visit! ? Bangkok, Thailand"
"Like a hammock slung between sunrise and sunset. Moments of paradise. ? Shaftesbury, Dorset, UK"
"Old world charm at its very best ? Sydney, Australia"
"Grateful for the efforts made for the community ? Beijing, China"
"Fantastic and imaginative ? Muscat, Oman"
"Very happy ambiance, fantastic murals ? I shall be back! ? London, UK"
"A small piece of paradise ? Chevy Chase, Maryland, USA"
"Excellent safari; great caring staff. Thank you for an unforgettable experience ? Westchester, NY, USA"
"Like home but with deer ? Marbella, Spain"
"Fabulous staff and activities ? Hillsborough, California, USA"
"Excellent service, outstanding facility, beautiful people! ? Maryland, USA"
"Wonderful hospitality ? to be recommended ? London, England"
"Absolutely splendid!- Fairfield, Connecticut, USA"
"What an oasis. Loved the room and the geckko in the bathroom! Pacific Grove, California, USA"
"Very helpful, courteous and affable staff. The staff is the resort's pride ? Mumbai, India"
"The village walk is not to be missed ? Kent, UK"
"Wonderfun ? Buenos Aires, Argentina"
"Great experience in getting to know the culture here ? Singapore"
"Wonderful staff and location ? Surrey, England"
"Such a treat after 2 weeks trekking ? Oxford, UK"
"One of the best places in the world! ? Oxford, UK"
"Glad we made a last moment switch to be here ? Wayne, New Jersey, USA"
"Himmel auf Erden ? Basel, Switzerland"
"Thank you again and again for providing these incredible surroundings and excellent, tasty home-grown food!!! ? Buenos Aires, Argentina"
"A wonderful retreat ? Reading, Pennsylvania, USA"
"Your lodge is an excellent mix of nice hospitality, great nature and good organic food! Frankfurt, Germany"
"Charged by rhino. Lived to tell the tale! Excellent! Lympne, Kent, UK"
"Nothing too much trouble. Super food, Excellent in every way. Thank you - Surrey, UK"
"Wonderful. The staff are a credit. May the gods keep them safe ? Derbyshire, UK"
"Lovely. Does the farm do deliveries to Australia? ? Brisbane, Australia"
"Excellent staff. Thank you for the special attention ? Oberaegeri, Switzerland"
"Fantastic. Magical. Paradise. ? Denbigh, N. Wales"
"Great tour of the village. Very happy to have been invited to a wedding. Thanks ? Singapore"
"Not a holiday, but an experience not to be missed! Telford, UK"
"A most pleasant contrast to other hotels. Thank you. ? Leeds, UK"
"Enjoyed the morning flute - Sweden"
"Will definitely come again. The best of all things ? Devon, UK"
"One of the best 2 days we've ever had! ? Leicester, England"
"How can it be any better than this! ? La Crosse, Wisconsin, USA"
"Lots of birds. All magical. Many thanks ? Lincolnshire, England"
"Unsurpassable service in all ways- Halexowen, UK"
"All expectations exceeded! ? Oxon, UK"
"Great place to do Tai Chi. ? Ontario, Canada"
"Tranquil, very inspiring ? London, UK"
"Tonic for body, mind and soul ? Warwicks, UK"
"It was great to be spoiled like this ? Lasne, Belgium"
"May I come again, please? ? Essex, England"
"Wonderful and very comfortable. A special thank you for my birthday elephant ? Luton, UK"
"A warm, friendly place to stay ? London, England"
"Brilliant organisation ? Kathmandu, Nepal"
"Simply fantastic. Keep up your wonderful work in the village ? Norfolk, England"
"This place is magic ? Dublin, Ireland"
"Excellent facilities ? ideal for spending at least a week, if not a lifetime! ? Ealing, London, UK"
"I thought about many things - nature, all people, myself - and felt happy. Thank you for all staff! ? Tokyo, Japan
We're sorry we discovered Tharu Lodge so late! - Pokhara, Nepal
Keep up the great work. This place sets the standard. Thanks ? Sheffield, England"
"One fault : our stay was not long enough ? Bucks, UK"
"Adventures. Beautiful days. ? Harrington, Northants, UK"
"Our 3rd visit and we'll be back ? British Embassy, Kathmandu"
"A platinum thread in Nepal's rich tapestry ? British Gurkhas, Kathmandu"
"Peace and tranquility. Everyone should have a week here ? Dorset, England"
"The best stop so far. ? North Yorkshire, UK"
"Very moving village visit. Thank you for everything ? San Luca, Italy"
"Many thanks for a great taste of the wild ? Surrey, UK"
"All modes of animal transport. What a treat ? Argyll, Scotland"
"Rustic charm ? London, UK"
"Thanks for this place ? Kalamos, Greece"
"Bliss. Thank you ? Kathmandu, Nepal"
"We loved the river trip and visits to the villages ? Ashbourne, England"
"Cuisine and service excellent. Accueil chaleureux et unbelievable fun ? Paris, France"
"Fantabulous!! ? London, UK"
"Four days of heaven with a wonderful and caring staff and management that foresees every wish! ? Kathmandu, Nepal"
"My original birthday plan did not include Chitwan. What a mistake that would have been!! Wonderful ? Abu Dhabi"
Really super place with truly excellent, understated service ? Glasgow, Scotland
"Very relaxing - loved the wake-up call by flute and cup of bed tea ? Wales"
"Magic restorative to the soul ? Somerset, England"
"Wonderful sanctuary and friendly attentive staff - Essex, England"
"Paradise Flycatcher in paradise. Wonderful! ? Suffolk, England"
"Outstanding service. Many small details. Great time ? UK"
"Once more ? under the charm ? Beijing, China"
"The perfect place to recharge the batteries ? friendly, knowledgeable and scenic environment ? Kathmandu, Nepal"
"We have seen so much. It is the most beautiful holiday we could wish for ? Sicily, Italy"
"A lovely, happy atmosphere ? Lincolnshire, UK"
"Compliments to the chef! Thanks to you all for looking after us so well. Aix-en-Provence, France"
"Wonderful trip with such helpful staff and guides ? Herts, UK"
"Best food so far ? Wirral, England"
"Thank you all for a wonderful time. Nowhere can match this place ? London, UK"
"Attention to detail superb ? Kent, UK"
"Words cannot suffice, Amazed! ? Canterbury, Kent, UK"
"Inspirational place, fantastic staff ? W. Yorks, England"
"And the food!!! ? Koln, Germany"
"Peaceful environment. Felt very welcome here ? Hertford, England"
"One of our most enjoyable visits in the world. Thank you ? Bishopstone, UK"
"Not really a hotel ? a place filled with love and kindness ? London, UK"
"Beautiful, peaceful, gentle place ? Kathmandu, Nepal"
"Lovely, so serene and such a discovery. Real Nepal ? US Embassy, Kathmandu, Nepal"
"You've created a wonderful slice of heaven here ? Maryland, USA"
"Paradise found! ? Co. Durham, UK"
"Superbe sejour. Accueil royal. Merci. ? French Embassy, Kathmandu, Nepal"
"Sunset from the river splendid! ? Paris, France"
"I have never met such lovely people, and how kind they were, always making sure the visitors were looked after ? London, UK"
"Hello all you lovely people at Tharu Lodge! I am writing to tell you that I have left something behind with you all in Nepal ? namely, my Heart! ? Sherringham, UK"
Website:
www.tigermountain.com
Telephone:
+977 (01) 436 1500
