Tourism in Nepal: Remarkable 20.5% Visitor Increase in 2023

In a piece of exciting news for Nepal, its tourism sector has made an impressive recovery in 2023, following the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. As per the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), around 700,000 tourists, 692,372 to be exact, visited the country within the first nine months of 2023. This indicates a 20.5% increase compared to the same timeframe in the previous year. The number relates to that of tourists entering the country by air. Hence it is bound to be higher as Nepal has an open border with India and as such many Indians also enter the country by road. 

In the month of September alone, Nepal welcomed 91,012 tourists, showing that its tourism industry has successfully overcome pandemic-related hurdles and anxieties. Looking at this good position, the government of Nepal is now determined to attract one million international tourists by the end of 2023.

Regarding visitor data, Indian tourists led the way in September with 28,694 arrivals in Nepal. They were followed by travelers from China and the USA, accounting for 8,174 and 7,364 arrivals respectively. Other significant contributions were from Bangladesh (3,176), the UK (3,640), Sri Lanka (3,011), Germany (2,852), South Korea (2,018), and Israel (1,734). The regrowth in tourism though can mainly be attributed to people's increasing ease with issues related to COVID-19, but it also shows that tourists have been eager to discover this beautiful country as they usually would.

For Nepal, revenues from tourism are very important and necessary. It not only helps the local economy but also significantly impacts its foreign currency reserves. With limited exports from the country, Nepal does not have many sources of foreign currency, which is necessary for foreign trade. As Nepal imports most of its required goods, lack of foreign currency means, they would not be able to do so. The situation and its disturbing effects were recently observed in Sri Lanka, which is also a tourism-dependent country. Hence a flourishing tourism industry is essential for sustaining Nepal's position in global trade.