Himal Press 
Tourists enjoy views of mountains at Poon Hill in the Annapurna Region in this undated photo. (Photo Courtesy: NTB)
KATHMANDU: Tourist arrivals to Nepal by air in August increased by 8.28% to 72,719.
Data released by the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) on Monday shows that total tourist arrivals over the first eight months of 2024 increased by 19.78%, reaching 720,334.
Nepal welcomed 601,360 foreign tourists by air during the same period in 2023.
Although tourist arrivals saw a healthy 8.28% growth in August, the number remains significantly below pre-COVID levels. In August 2019, a total of 94,749 foreign tourists entered the country by air.
August marks the end of the off-season for Nepal’s tourism industry. Historical trends show that tourist arrivals start to increase in September, and peak in October and November.
Nepal welcomed the highest number of tourists so far this year in March, with 128,167 arrivals, while the lowest was recorded in July, with 64,599 tourists.
The June-August period is considered the off-season for Nepal’s tourism industry, largely due to monsoon rains. Although tourists heading to the Kailash-Mansarovar region used to provide some relief to Nepal’s travel trade during this period, China has still not resumed issuing visas for Indian travelers.
India remained the largest source market for Nepal in August, with 25,832 arrivals. In the same month last year, Nepal had welcomed 26,665 Indian tourists. Nepal does not count Indians entering the country through land routes as tourists.
China ranked second with 6,614 arrivals, up from 5,027 in August last year. The US was in third place with 5,614 tourists, up from 4,629 in August last year.
