Heaven on Earth
The Shangri-La Village nestles in the tranquil heart of Pokhara. The great getaway of Nepal - Beneath a towering rampart of majestic show peaks. Every room offers a spectacular view. Architecture inspired by the forms and textures of Village Nepal, charming gardens, reflecting pools that mirror that splendour of the Himalaya, a swimming pool that uses also a waterfall…. These are some of the wonderful surprises that the Shangri-La Village has in store for its guests.
In total the shangri~La Village Resort has 61 standards rooms, all of which are more or less identical in their boarding capacity and general layout and décor. The resort is now 19 years old and in some places showing its age, but for the most part, seems to be holding up- though not ageing all that gracefully, given the fact it is under-utilised in the so-far unsteady tourism market.
The Story behind the Shangri-La Village Resort
The story of how, the Shangri~La Village Resort in Pokhara came to be, began in the year 1952. Toni Hagen, took a photograph in pokhara, facing north towards the Annapurna range. This Photograph went on to become somewhat representative to the 'outside world's of the beauty of Pokhara, a classic picture if you like.
In the year 1990 Shyam Bahadur Pandey, hotelier and patriarch of the Shangri~La hotel in Kathmandu, recognizing an opportunity for creating a deluxe hotel in Pokhara. the site? The very spot (more or less), from which Hagen took this famous panorama of the Annapurna Mountains.
This view is in fact one of the key features defining not just the location of Shangri~La Village Resort in Pokhara, but the way it has been designed and built Traditionally. This placement guarantees easy access to the tourist area around the lake, as well as automatically enhancing the architectural appeal of buildings.
So what can be said about this resort that came to be because of man’s vision, and another man’s photograph? This, that the Shangri~La Village resort is a functional resort for the most. It is also comfortable, and fulfils a brief where it manages to incorporate village elements in its design. The overall effect is pleasing, especially, as noted before, the garden, which is really spectacular. The way the profile of the Shangri~La Village Resort is spread out and broken up into split levels is a cleaver feature, saving it from becoming a concrete block trying to call itself a village.
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