November 3: As the present weather is considered favourable to visit the mountainous district of Manang, the number of tourists visiting this picturesque region has started increasing. According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), a total of 9,752 foreign tourists visited the district in the past six months.
The incoming tourists visited both the Annapurna Circuit and the Larke pass in Narpabhumi, said ACAP chief Dhak Bahadur Bhujel. According to him, 928 tourists, both domestic and foreigners, visited the Annapurna Circuit, and 528 tourists toured the Larke pass.
Until mid-October alone, 4,357 foreign tourists entered the area. According to Bhujel, 3,266 tourists visited the area in the Nepali month of Baisakh (mid-April to mid-May), 661 in Jestha (mid-May to mid-June), 259 in Asar (mid-June to mid-July), 296 in Shrawan (mid-July to mid-August), and 913 in Bhadra (mid-August to mid-September). A total of 1,072 tourists had visited the area in the corresponding period of last year.
The number of visitors increased significantly this year compared to last year, he said.
"The main income source here is tourism. There is low revenue collection without the arrival of tourists. The tourism sector has helped the local people sustain," he said.
The locals here are involved in agriculture alongside hotel and tourism business.
The people welcome visiting tourists with locally made food items instead of imported goods, said Binod Gurung, president of the Tourism Entrepreneur Association. "This season, the arrival of tourists has been significant. This has encouraged businesspersons. Nowadays, the inflow of tourists has increased."
The number of tourists, both domestic and foreign, has increased significantly, he said. "Foreign tourists have already booked hotel rooms. So, the arrangement for their stay has been ensured. On-arrival hotel booking often creates problems. I want to urge aspiring tourists to inquire about the availability of hotel rooms as they might be already booked online." -- RSS
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