Foreign tourist arrivals to Nepal in May were up 9.6 percent year on year, the Department of Immigration said. According to the stats, 68,825 international tourists visited Nepal in May, with arrivals from China, India and several European countries showing a robust growth.

Arrivals to Nepal from January to May totalled 454,855 individuals, up 12.5 percent over the same period in 2017. Arrivals from India swelled 8.6 percent to 21,728 individuals in May. The figure shows that overall arrivals from Saarc (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) countries registered a growth of 2.2 percent year on year. However, arrivals from Bangladesh plunged 49.3 percent.

Visitor arrivals from China continued to soar. In May, Nepal received 9,151 Chinese tourists, up 25.2 percent compared to the same period last year. Arrivals from Asia (other than Saarc) recorded a strong growth of 14.2 percent to 15,209 individuals.  Visitors from Thailand and Singapore to Nepal increased by 62.1 percent and 11.3 percent respectively.

Meanwhile, arrivals from the European market observed a negative growth. The stats show that arrivals from Europe dropped 18 percent to 12,061 individuals in May. However, arrivals from France and Germany recorded a strong growth of 26.8 percent and 49 percent respectively. Tourist arrivals from the UK dropped 7.4 percent in May.  

The number of visitors from Australia and New Zealand increased 10.4 percent and 28.7 percent respectively in May compared to the figures for 2017. Likewise, visitors from the US and Canada grew by 7.4 percent and 5.3 percent respectively in May.

Arrivals to Nepal hit a new record in 2017 but remained short of the much ballyhooed target of 1 million individuals as national elections in November and December resulted in weaker-than-expected growth. The country received 940,218 tourists last year, up 24.86 percent from 2016.

The federal budget statement presented by Finance Minister Yubaraj Khatiwada last May announced the launch of Visit Nepal version 3.0 in 2020. The promotional campaign has set the goal of attracting 2 million foreign tourists. The budget mentioned focusing on the two giant neighbours, China and India, which have the world’s highest outbound numbers.

TOP SOURCE MARKETS

Country     Number

India    21,728

China     9,151

US    6,982

UK             3,186

Germany            2,060

(Source: Immigration Department)