Mustang, October 2

Tourist arrivals in Mustang – one of the most popular tourist destinations in Nepal – have hit an all time low this season following the massive 7.6 Richter scale earthquake which struck on April 25.

Tourist arrivals have declined drastically in the aftermath of the earthquake with false rumour circulating in the international community that Nepal is unsafe for travel. The arrival is the lowest of all seasons, said Annapurna Conservation Area Project.

ACAP Jomsom Tourist Assistant Bel Bahadur Pun said the arrival of tourists which had been good before the earthquake struck went down a steep decline and did not revive in the aftermath as expected.

According to Pun, a total of 1,235 tourists had arrived between mid-April and mid-May while the number surged to 527 from mid-May to mid-June and was recorded at 523 and 892 from mid June to July and mid-July to mid-August.

However, the arrival of tourists picked up considerably from mid-August to mid-September with the arrival hitting 1,608. “This is the lowest till date as during this season the place receives a lot of tourists,” he said.

As per a data provided by ACAP Jomsom, the arrival of tourists during the same period last year was much higher. The arrival was recorded at 1,142 from mid-April to mid-May, 4094 from mid-May to mid-June, 2,887 from mid June to mid-July, 2,189 from mid-July to mid-August and 3,954 from mid-August to mid-September.

The sharp decline in the number of tourists has been attributed to the failure on part of the government and the tourist entrepreneurs to convey a positive message to the international community that Nepal remains safe for travel in the aftermath of the quake. Despite the fact that travel to tourist destinations is safe, the inability to convey the message has created problems, ACAP Jomsom Chief Bidur Kuinkel said.

The Annapurna trek route and the surrounding areas are visited annually by thousands of foreign and domestic tourists. The Annapurna area is famous for rich bio-diversity, art, culture and religious centres.