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Rooted in Meghauli
Community & Local Development
We did not build a lodge in a community — we are a community building a lodge. Everything we do starts with the people of Meghauli.
100%
Local Team
Meghauli
Founder's Home Village
Since 2008
Planning & Investment
Tharu & Nepali
Communities Served
The Founding Vision
Coming Home to Build Something Real
Ram Pariyar grew up in Meghauli, Chitwan. After finishing school, he moved to Pokhara to work — first as a safety kayaker for a rafting company, then as a trekking guide, introducing international visitors to rural Nepal and its culture.
In Pokhara, Ram met his wife Petra. Since 2008 they have lived in Switzerland. But Ram never stopped dreaming of returning to his home village and creating something that would benefit the people he grew up with.
That dream became Chitwan Bamboo Lodge — a business built on the conviction that tourism should work for the community, not extract from it.
“I wanted to give people the opportunity to discover the beauty of this place — and to make sure the people of this place benefited from sharing it.”
How We Work With Our Community
Local Employment First
Every member of the Chitwan Bamboo Lodge team is from the local community. Our founder Ram Pariyar returned to his home village of Meghauli with a clear vision: build a tourism business that creates stable, dignified employment for local families rather than importing staff from outside.
Local Sourcing
We source food and supplies from local farms and markets wherever possible. Supporting local farmers, producers, and craftspeople keeps money circulating within the community and reduces the environmental footprint of our operations.
Natural & Traditional Building
The lodge is built using bamboo, mud, sand, thatch grass (saccharum spontaneum), and other locally harvested natural materials. This building approach employs local craftspeople in traditional techniques, preserves indigenous architectural knowledge, and eliminates the environmental cost of concrete construction.
Community Welfare Programs
We run and support community welfare programs in and around Meghauli. These include support for local education, women's initiatives, and youth programs that create pathways for the next generation of local tourism professionals.
Community Tourism
Our guided village walks, Tharu cultural programs, and local market visits are not packaged tourist performances — they are genuine connections with real communities. Proceeds from these activities go directly to local families and cultural groups.
Sustainable Development Vision
Ram and Petra founded the lodge to demonstrate that sustainable tourism is not just an ecological concept — it is an economic one. When tourism works for the community, the community protects the environment that makes tourism possible.
About Meghauli
Meghauli is a small village in Chitwan District, located in Nepal's Terai lowlands. Historically an agricultural community home to indigenous Tharu people, Meghauli sits adjacent to the western sector of Chitwan National Park.
Unlike Sauraha — Chitwan's more commercialized tourist hub — Meghauli remains quiet, authentic, and less visited. This is precisely what makes it special. Guests experience a genuinely local environment rather than a tourist infrastructure overlay.
The Rapti River forms the boundary between Meghauli and the national park. Wildlife — including rhinoceros and crocodiles — can often be spotted directly from the village riverside.
Be Part of the Story
Every stay at Chitwan Bamboo Lodge supports a family business, employs local people, and invests in Meghauli's future.