CHITWAN, July 30: Chitwan National Park saw an increase in arrival of tourists in fiscal year 2023/24 compared to FY 2022/23.

A total of 306,837 tourists visited the park in the last fiscal year compared to 299,412 travellers in the previous fiscal year.

While 274,299 tourists entered the park through the Sauraha area in the last fiscal, an increase from 271,731 in the previous year,  27,956 entered the park through Bharatpur metropolis in the same period, an increase of 23,257 than in 2022/23, said Ganesh Prasad Tiwari, information officer, at the park.

Bishwa Subedi, a tourism expert from Bharatpur, attributed the rise in park visitors to the Chitwan Visit Year 2024, an initiative of the Bharatpur Metropolitan City to promote tourism.

“Various religious and recreational events such as the Devghat Dham festival, jungle safari, and a marathon will be organised later this year,” said Subedi.

Diyalo Bungalow, the residence of the former royal family of Nepal where King Mahendra had passed away, was recently opened to the public. It has become a new tourism destination in Chitwan.  -- RSS