Arrivals up 22pc in first nine months of NTY
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KATHMANDU, OCT 15 -
Nepal received 496,401 tourists in the first nine months of Nepal Tourism Year 2011 (NTY 2011), up 22.32 percent compared to the same period last year. The arrivals amount to nearly 50 percent of the target set for NTY 2011 when the country has envisioned welcoming one million tourists.
According to government statistics, arrivals by air amounted to 369,844 while the country welcomed 126,557 overland tourists in the first nine months of this year. Total arrivals in 2010 reached more than 600,000.
According to the Department of Immigration, tourist arrivals through land entry points during the period January-September last year amounted to 104,331. Land arrivals have increased 21 percent compared to the corresponding period last year. The overland figure does not include Indian tourists as they are not included in the arrivals data unless they enter Nepal through Kodari.
Among the seven land entry points (Kodari, Kakkarbhitta, Birgunj, Bhairahawa, Kanchanpur, Dhangadhi and Nepalgunj), Bhairahawa accounted for 56.50 percent of the arrivals. According to the department, 153,757 tourists entered Nepal overland in 2010, against 130,634 in 2009.
Similarly, arrivals by air were up 23 percent in the first nine months of 2011 compared to last year. “Although the target set for 2011 is unlikely to be met, the increased tourist movement has shown a positive result for the country’s tourism industry,” said Nepal Tourism Board spokesperson Aditya Baral.
Baral added that international airlines increasing their frequency for the October-November period, the peak tourist season, shows that arrivals are likely to increase during these months. Arrivals during the period October to mid-December account for more than 40 percent of the annual holiday makers in Nepal, particularly from the long-haul market.
Travel trade entrepreneurs said that rafting, trekking and mountaineering, among other adventure opportunities, were the major attractions for tourists. Hoteliers have also reported full occupancies of late.
Total arrivals (Jan-Sept)
Month 2010 2011
Jan 33,645 42,599
Feb 49,264 56,339
March 63,058 68,536
April 45,509 59,714
May 32,542 46,184
June 33,263 46,015
July 38,991 42,304
Aug 54,672 71,438
Sept 54,848 63,272
Total 405,792 496,401
Stronger dollar boosts revenue
An appreciation of the US dollar has brought cheer to the country’s foreign exchange earnings received from the travel trade sector. Foreign currency income from tourism jumped 24 percent in the first month (mid-July to mid-August) of the current fiscal year compared to the same period in the last fiscal year.
According to Nepal Rastra Bank’s macroeconomic situation report based on the first month’s data of the fiscal year 2011-12, ?the country earned Rs 1.89 billion against Rs 1.53 billion in the same period last year.
Although, tourist arrivals to Nepal saw a significant growth in the last fiscal, foreign exchange earnings from tourism had declined 28 percent to Rs 24.61 billion. The country received Rs 28.13 billion from tourism in the previous fiscal year. “The rise in tourism income is due to the US dollar becoming stronger,” said tourism entrepreneur Ram Kaji Koney.
Posted on: 2011-10-15 09:38
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