Tamish Giri

February 5: With the fall in number of Covid-19 cases in Nepal, the number of foreign nationals arriving in the country has grown in January compared to the previous months.
According to the data provided by the Department of Immigration, a total of 8,874 foreign nationals visited Nepal in the first month of 2021. Among them, 6,225 were male, 2,635 were female, while 14 were unverified, as per the department’s data.
The reported number of tourist arrival is the highest since March 2020, when 42,776 tourists had visited Nepal.
Mani Raj Lamichhane, director of Nepal Tourism Board, informed that the number of foreigners arriving in Nepal has increased following the air bubble agreement between Nepal and India and the drastic fall in Covid-19 cases.
"News about Covid-19 vaccination in the western countries, the introduction of vaccination in Nepal and a drastic decline in Covid-19 casualties have motivated the foreigners to travel to Nepal," Lamichhane added.  
Likewise, online promotions of NTB through various channels and virtual meets have also attracted the foreigners to Nepal.
Nepal recorded the lowest number of tourist arrival with just 14 visitors in April last year and 9,420 foreigners between April and December 2020.
According to the Department of Immigration, foreign nationals of 121 different nations had visited Nepal in January this year, while 39,946 Nepalis left the country.
Altogether 4,028 Indian nationals, 1,877 Chinese and 874 Americans and 39 UN officials had entered Nepal in January along with 47,267 Nepalis.