A total of 28, 896 tourists, which includes mostly Chinese citizens, entered Nepal through the Rasuwagadhi border point during the first 11 months of 2019, according to data by Rasuwagadhi Immigration Office.

This is 3,750 tourists short of last year’s data of 32,646 from the same period.

Many people had expected an increase in the number of Chinese tourists following the Chinese premier Xi Jinping’s state visit to Nepal in October. But only 1,793 tourists have entered Nepal in October and November, compared to 2,134 in the same period last year.

Ram Chandra Kafle, chief of Rasuwagadhi Immigration Office, said the reason the number of tourists has not increased as expected is due to the onset of winter. “Snowfall has started in Tibet, and the temperature has dipped,” he said. “The number of travellers has declined due to adverse temperature. The number will shoot up after April.”

Rasuwagadhi border is the major point through which Chinese tourists enter Nepal. Up to 90 percent of tourists who come to Nepal Nepal through Rasuwagadhi are Chinese citizens.

The graph of tourists incoming from Rasuwagadhi was consistently on the rise each year after the 2015 earthquake. Most tourists have been using this border point after the quakes severely damaged the Tatopani border. The Chinese government recently elevated Rasuwagadhi border crossing to international status. Since the declaration, the number of tourists coming to Nepal from a third country has increased, officials say.

But despite the declaration, the Nepali side of the border remains under-equipped and lacks proper infrastructure.