Arrivals via air down 3.9pc

WITH three major international airlines suspending their services to Nepal and a slump in Indian tourist arrivals, the number of tourists visiting Nepal via air has dropped by 3.9 percent in the first six months of 2013. Nepal received 282,429 tourists in the first half of the fiscal year, against 294,019 in the same period last year. Arrivals from the South Asian region, which hold around 35 percent share in the total arrivals, dropped by 19.2 percent to 88,149 tourists, according to figures released by the Nepal Tourism Board (NTB). Among them, arrivals from India — the major source market — fell 20.9 percent. Despite a significant fall in Indian tourist numbers, the sector still accounted for 27.2 percent of the total arrivals. Arrivals from the European region dropped 6.3 percent to 66,535, with the number of tourists from Spain, Switzerland, Germany and Italy falling significantly. Arrivals from the United Kingdom, the biggest source market in the Europe for Nepal, grew by 1.8 percent to 16,002. The European market holds around 25 percent share in the total arrivals. However, arrivals from Asia (other than South Asia) grew by a significant 18.5 percent in the review period mainly due to the surge in Chinese tourist arrivals. Nepal received 28,832 Chinese visitors, up 25.9 percent. Chinese share in total air tourist arrivals amounted to 10.2 percent. According to the NTB, arrivals from Australia and New Zealand grew by 24.2 percent and 15.4 percent, respectively, while those from the US increased by a healthy 9.7 percent to 21,875 in the first six months. Travel trade entrepreneurs attributed the slump in tourist numbers to the drop in air seat capacity since 2012-end. A number of carriers like Kingfisher Airlines, Gulf Air and Bahrain Air have suspended their Nepal services. “Besides, soaring airfares due to inadequate air seat capacity have promoted tourists to choose other destinations,” said Ram Kazi Koney, managing director of Gandaki Travels and Tour, adding the drop in tourist numbers has also upset a number of big hotels in Kathmandu. “The major setback for hoteliers has been the falling numbers of Indian visitors.” Except for February, arrival figures have so far remained in the negative territory. Arrivals in June decreased by 4.6 percent to 41,259, NTB data showed. Indian arrivals in the month dropped 15.3 percent to 19,760, while arrivals from China grew by 25.7 percent. Arrivals from Malaysia and Singapore also increased by 195.1 percent and 3.5 percent, respectively, in June. Japan, South Korea and Thailand markets saw declines of 10.5 percent, 23.4 percent and 18.8 percent, respectively. A total of 50,312 tourists departed from Tribhuvan International Airport (TIA) in June. The number of Nepali arrivals stood at 57,931, while 82,167 Nepalis departed from TIA in the month. Nepal received 282,429 tourists in the first half of the fiscal year, against 294,019 in the same period last year