Golf and global brands signal rising prospects for the Himalayan kingdom

The hills are alive with the sound of golf balls. The hills in question are the highest in the world: the Himalayas. And golf is the new buzzword in Nepal. A global sport, golf attracts high-net-worth tourists, especially from South Korea and China, which have recently begun direct flights to Kathmandu’s Tribhuvan Airport. That’s good news for the Nepalese economy. Golf tourists, bags crammed with gleaming titanium Big Bertha drivers, spend more per head per day than the penny-pinching backpackers who previously made up Nepal’s tourist population. Caddies get decent cash tips and entrepreneurship flourishes among the children who perch on the perimeter wall, waiting to sell you back your golf ball after you’ve shanked it into the trees. Back at the resort and spa, your package will include airport pick-up, three nights’ accommodation, all meals and drinks, unlimited golf and a half-day city tour — all for the price of a modest meal in London.