Kathmandu [Nepal], July 21 – Nepal’s Annapurna Conservation Area recorded its highest-ever foreign tourist arrivals in the last fiscal year, welcoming more than half a million international visitors with Indian travellers accounting for nearly three-quarters of the total.
According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP) 5,08,476 foreign tourists from 169 countries visited destinations within the conservation area during the fiscal year 2025-26. The figure marks a sharp increase from 2,78,113 visitors recorded a year earlier more than doubling annual arrivals and setting a new record for the protected Himalayan region.
Of the total 3,84,145 visitors came from South Asian countries while 1,24,331 arrived from the rest of the world.
India remained by far the largest source market with 3,75,797 visitors. China ranked second with 12,539 tourists, followed by the United States with 9,884. The United Kingdom contributed 9,859 visitors while France, Malaysia, Germany, Bangladesh, Australia and Israel also featured among the leading source countries.
ACAP chief Dr Rabin Kadariya said the latest figures represent the highest annual foreign tourist arrivals since the conservation area was established.
The project attributed the sharp rise in Indian visitors to stronger promotion of destinations such as Pokhara and the Muktinath pilgrimage site. The improved transport connectivity and increased exposure through social media also increased the tourist arrival.
During May and June, arrivals from India and other South Asian countries surged by nearly 300 percent compared with the previous year. Tourism officials said many Indian travellers visited Pokhara and nearby mountain destinations to escape the summer heat with hotel occupancy in the city reaching as high as 90 percent during the peak season. Approximately 40 percent of Indian visitors to Pokhara also travelled onward to Muktinath.
