Nepal Welcomes Over 1Million Foreign Tourists in 2024, But Annual Target Remains Out of Reach

Nepal has welcomed over one million foreign tourists via air in the first eleven months of 2024, according to the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB). A total of 1,055,533 international visitors arrived between January and November, showing a strong recovery for the sector.

However, meeting the annual target of 1.315 million tourists appears challenging, with NTB projecting an additional 70,000 arrivals in December, bringing the total to approximately 1.125 million. Despite this shortfall, the number of tourists arriving in November marked a 5.4 percent increase compared to 2023.

NTB Director Maniraj Lamichhane noted that total arrivals for 2024 will exceed last year’s figure of 1,014,871, reflecting a 10 percent growth. While the target of surpassing the pre-pandemic high of 1.197 million tourists in 2019 remains unmet, Nepal’s tourism recovery rate stands at a remarkable 96 percent, according to the United Nations World Tourism Organization.