Raising hope in tourism

There is some improvement in the tourism sector. Corona virus infection is declining and the tourism sector is showing slight improvement.

The current plight of the tourism sector is not only in Nepal but also in the tourism industry and tourism-related businesses around the world. The main reason for this is the outbreak of the ‘Novel Coronavirus’, which started spreading from Wuhan, the capital of China’s southeastern province of Hubei, in late December 2019.

By declaring Nepal Tourism Year 2020, the government has succeeded in attracting 2 million foreign tourists and earning a total of 25 billion Nepali rupees from foreign tourists visiting Nepal. According to the Department of Tourism, the revenue of the tourism sector in 2020 is 80 percent more than in 2019.

In that year, the number of tourists decreased not only in Nepal but in almost all countries of the world. The world’s average tourist arrivals fell by 73 percent.

Corona virus infections are on the decline and tourism is improving due to unarrival visas. Domestic tourism activities have also increased. Because of that these days, people who have not been able to walk for a long time have started going out for sightseeing and now the internal tourism is in rhythm. Due to this, hotels in Kathmandu, Pokhara, Chitwan and Terai are demanding staffs.

Hotels that have reopened with only 5 to 10 percent employees in the blockade. Hotels have started hiring employees again.

Nepal now needs to come up with an effective policy to increase tourism arrivals. With the expansion of vaccine access to corona, there are indications that the epidemic will gradually decrease.