Travel Nepal: Nepal witnesses 39 per cent growth in Indian tourist arrivals by air

By: TBM Staff
Source: http://www.travelbizmonitor.com
Catagory: Travel Nepal
Posted By: www.gilttravels.com 

Nepal Travel

It seems Nepal is making its way to Indian outbound travellers’ preferred destination list. This trend is clearly visible in the fact that the number of Indian tourists to Nepal by air increased by 39 per cent to 145,338, in 2011 as compared to 2010’s arrival figure of 104,470 by air. The number of foreign tourists by air to Nepal has also witnessed an increase of 21.4 per cent over the 2010 figure of 448,769 visitors, official sources said. The number of Chinese visitors also witnessed 77.6 per cent growth registering 45,400 arrivals this year, according to the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB).

However, the NTB admitted that it has failed to meet the set target of attracting 1,000,000 tourists during the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign as the year witnessed only 544,985 foreign visitors by air including 145,338 Indians. The low arrivals can be attributed to a number of factors such as the insufficient number of aircraft owned by Nepal Airlines, the national flag carrier, and the economic slowdown in Europe, said Sarad Pradhan, Media Advisor, Nepal Tourism Board, according to a report by PTI.

Besides a lack of effective promotional campaigns abroad by Nepal's tourism authority, political instability and the frequently observed shut downs and strikes have also contributed to the slowdown in tourism sector, Pradhan pointed out. According to a survey, there were more than 50 days of general strikes and shut downs in the year 2011 despite leaders of some 20 political parties pledging no strikes or agitations affecting the tourism sector during the Nepal Tourism Year 2011 campaign.

Source:http://www.travelbizmonitor.com/nepal-witnesses-39-per-cent-growth-in-indian-tourist-arrivals-by-air-15310