Annapurna Cable Car brings hope amid tourism gloom

The gondola lift from Phewa Lake to Sarangkot has carried 85,000 passengers since it opened in February.

A decade ago, Japanese tourism entrepreneur Takashi Miyahara constructed the Hotel Annapurna View on Sarangkot hill in the northwest of Pokhara. As the road alone would not be enough to attract high-class tourists to Sarangkot, he envisioned a cable car service from the shores of Phewa Lake to Sarangkot.