Kathmandu, Jan 1 (PTI) Nepal welcomed around 1.15 million tourists in 2024, signalling a gradual recovery of the country's tourism industry after the COVID-19 pandemic, but the number of Indian visitors saw a slight decline of nearly one per cent.

According to the latest data released by the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB), 11,47,567 foreign visitors entered Nepal by air during the January-December period in 2024, marking an 8.8 per cent increase compared to 1,014,817 visitors in 2023.

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Despite the increase, the number of overall Indian tourists declined by almost one per cent this year, according to the NTB data.

In 2024, 317,773 Indians visited the country by air, down from the 319,936 Indians registered in the previous year, a decline of 0.68 per cent.

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This drop can be attributed to factors such as road accidents and landslides, according to Mani Lamichhane, director at Nepal Tourism Board.

In July, two buses carrying dozens of Indian tourists went missing in the Trishuli river, while landslides and floods triggered by heavy monsoon rain in September killed around 250 people across Nepal, said Lamichhane.

The NTB data also shows a decline in tourist arrivals by air in December. In December 2023, 96,568 tourists visited the country by air, compared to 92,034 this year, registering a 4.7 per cent decline.

Indian visitors in December also decreased significantly, with 32,692 Indians arriving in 2023 compared to just 24,541 in 2024, a 24.9 per cent decline.

Although the arrival of tourists fell short of the government's target of welcoming 1.6 million tourists in 2024, the NTB data show a notable revival in the Himalayan nation's hospitality industry.

During the pre-COVID period in 2019, Nepal saw the arrival of 1.197 million foreign visitors by air. Last year's tourist arrivals show that Nepal recovered by 99 per cent in tourist arrivals compared to the pre-COVID period.

Tourism is one of the mainstays of the Nepalese economy. It is also a major source of foreign exchange and revenue. It contributed 6.6 per cent to the country's gross domestic product in 2023.

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