The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has recently released the monthly tourism statistics for March 2024, showcasing a remarkable upsurge in tourist arrivals following the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic. In this period, Nepal warmly greeted 128,167 tourists, marking a substantial 28.9 percent increase from the 99,426 tourists received in March 2023, as the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) reported.
The tourism sector in Nepal, a vital component of the national economy, encountered significant hurdles during the COVID-19 crisis. The Nepal Rastra Bank data indicates that this sector employs 20 percent of Nepal’s workforce and contributes approximately three percent to the GDP. Post-pandemic, Nepal has observed a consistent rise in tourist numbers, notably illustrated by the positive trend witnessed in March 2024.
The top ten countries of origin for tourists visiting Nepal in March 2024 comprised India, China, the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Sri Lanka, Germany, Thailand, Australia, France, and Myanmar. Regarding geographical distribution, the breakdown of tourist arrivals in March 2024 was as follows: visitors from SAARC nations constituted 31.8 percent, non-SAARC Asian countries represented 22.4 percent, Europe contributed 21.5 percent, North America accounted for 9.8 percent, Oceania stood at 4.8 percent, and the Middle East comprised one percent of the total influx.