KATHMANDU: The number of tourists visiting Nepal increased noticeably this past year, Nepal Tourism Board said.

More than one million tourists from around the world visited Nepal in 2018. According to the statistics of Nepal Tourism Board, 1,173,072 tourists arrived in the country.

"The tourist arrival rate increased by 24.55 per cent in comparison to last year."

Deepak Raj Joshi, Chief Executive Officer of Nepal Tourism Board said, "The spike in tourist arrival has created optimism for the tourism development sectors across Nepal."

He added that it has created a reliable foundation to meet the target of Visit Nepal-2020.