Jan 01: Arrivals up by over 27%

Numbers do drive us. It is heartening to know that the growth of tourism in Nepal is over three times the international average. Yet, arrivals by air have yet to cross the 400,000 mark... maybe it is better, as this means that Nepal is still pristine and quality tourism can still be offered. I remember how messy it was in 1999 when we nearly reached 500,000 arrivals.

From www.nepalnews.com :

Tourist arrival increased by one-third in 2007

Confirming what tourism entrepreneurs had been saying all along, the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has come out with a statement saying that the year 2007 saw growth of 27.1 percent in the arrival of tourists by air.

The board has said that in the month of December alone, the arrival grew by 13 percent.

The NTB statement says that the arrival figure for 2007 reached 360,350 - an all time high since 2000 and against 283,516 in 2006.

"In 2000, the number of visitors arriving Nepal by air was 376914. Since then, it has continued to plummet due to various socio-political reasons," the NTB statement says.

"One of the main reasons for inspiring growth in 2007 in tourist arrivals is the ongoing peace process and political stability in the county. Another reason is the good air connectivity with many destinations ushered in by the operation of nine new international airlines to Nepal in 2007," it says.

The board has expected that the year 2008 will be very promising for Nepalese travel trade "as more new airlines are coming and existing airlines are also extending their flight frequency to Nepal." nepalnews.com sd Jan 01 08