The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has achieved its target of one million foreign tourists by 2023, marking a significant development in the Himalayan country's tourism sector after the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted life in previous years, media reported.
During the year, Indians visited Nepal the most.
According to the reports, Maniraj Lamichhane, director of NTB, said that the target of bringing in one million foreign tourists by 2023 has been achieved.
"There are still a few days left in December. But the government's target was reached three days ago. This is the highest number of arrivals since 2019," Lamichhane was quoted as saying.
"It has brought more excitement to the tourism sector," the NTB official added.
This is the first time since 2019 that Nepal's tourism sector, which was badly affected by the COVID-19 infections, has seen people visiting the country in such large numbers.
The arrival of foreign tourists has been affected till 2022, the media reports said, adding that the highest number of foreign guests entering Nepal was in 2019.
In 2022, the number will be 614,148, according to a report. In 2021, 150,962 foreign visitors entered Nepal. The number of foreign visitors entering Nepal in 2020 was 230,085, the paper said.
"The tourism sector, which was weakened by the Covid-19 pandemic, has recovered in a short time. If we had done a better job of marketing, arrivals would have increased this year," Lamichhane was quoted as saying by the media.
He also expressed hope that when international flights resume from the international airports in Pokhara and Bhairahawa, the number of arrivals will increase further.
"It is not that the tourism sector has not been affected due to some conflicts at the international level, but the target set by the government for this year has been met," according to the Nepal Tourism Board official.