About Us

The UK Team

Christopher at 9000ft in the Langtang National Park!

Following 10 years of service in the Brigade of Gurkhas and combining this with my love of travel and adventure, I founded Ussher Tours in 1989 and specialised in taking people to the Himalayan region and Nepal in particular. My aim was to get people away from the main tourist trails, so they could experience the unspoiled parts of the region, which were and are to this day, still relatively unexplored.

Mike Allen and his wife Helen Ross McGill

I was joined in this venture by my friend Mike Allen, another former Gurkha officer with an even greater knowledge of Nepal than me! Mike had worked as Defence Attaché at our embassy in Kathmandu for two tours of duty and had a very thorough understanding of "how things worked" in Nepal. His family links to the sub-continent go back to the 1790's, when his Great Grandfather brought out the young Rudyard Kipling to India, as a writer for his newspaper, "The Pioneer". Mike's incredible knowledge and detailed understanding of how "things work" in Nepal has helped us put together some spectacular trips, including filming projects with the BBC Natural History Unit; in particular their productions "Land of the Tiger" and "The Himalayas". We also recently assisted Jeremy Wade and his programme "River Monsters" and facilitated one of the last documentaries to be made in West Tibet, "The Search for Shangri-La", which was presented by Mike's brother, Charles Allen.

Mikeʼs wife, Helen has recently joined our team. Helen had worked independently in Nepal, before marrying Mike and knows the country very well. She has trekked and been on safari all over Nepal, not only with Mike but also with her own friends. She will be a great help in leading future trips and we are thrilled she is now on board.

Our Nepal Team

Jagdish

I had always wanted to be involved in bespoke tourism in Nepal and as I was leaving the Gurkhas in 1983, I had long discussions with my then Gurkha Chief Clerk, Jagdish Rai, about going into tourism and developing this concept of bespoke holidays and taking it to a full time business. Jagdish was very enthusiastic and jumped at the idea! He and his family have now been friends and close work colleagues for over forty years. We formed a Nepal company, called Insight Himalaya Treks, to manage all our Nepal operations.

Guides

Under Jagdishʼs stewardship we built up a dedicated Ussher Tours/Insight team of guides and cooks, some of whom have been with us since starting as young boys in 1989! They are very well trained, attend to your every need on trek and are the best qualified guides for trekking and wildlife trips in Nepal.

Binod

Jagdishʼs eldest son, Binod has now taken on the active mantle and manages our Nepal operation on a day to day basis. Binod is an excellent trip leader, guide and companion. He is probably the best all round guide in Nepal. He has fluent English and above all a thorough and detailed knowledge, not only of Nepal but the region as a whole. He has been very heavily involved in all our major filming trips both in Nepal and Tibet, he has led specialist flower hunters to East Tibet and of course has taken our groups all over Nepal at all times of year. We are very lucky to have such expertise.

Rupa and Jaimit

The Rai family are a fantastic team! They are all involved in various different ways behind the scenes. Since my wife Sara first trained the cook team, Jaimit, Binodʼs mother, together with his wife Rupa, continuously train and re train our trek cooks, not only in food preparation but also in kitchen hygiene. They also deal with much of the behind the scenes administration. They coordinate the hotel bookings, flight and transport arrangements and they plan and order all the food for the trips.

It is difficult to summarise the level of expertise within Ussher Tours! Suffice to say that all of us mentioned above are fluent Nepalese and English speakers; all of us have travelled the length and breadth of the country and all of us are thoroughly knowledgeable about the region and have led trips to every part. We constantly strive to show you the unspoiled areas in the region and can arrange trips for all ages and abilities. We are all part of a very close family team and together always work to make sure you have the best holiday when you come with us.

So, please talk to us about the wonderful opportunities that are on offer in the region and letʼs make a plan for your next holiday.

Best wishes and Namaste,
Christopher.

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