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Research Finding: Who visits Nepal (arrivals data to 2019)

Field Value
Version v1
Status reviewed
Date 2026-09-22
Source ../sources/Travel-Data-Analysis-till-2019.pdf — 39-page internal analysis of official arrivals data (charts per country, month, age, purpose, revenue, stay, trekking, Lumbini, Pashupati, parks, paragliding, tourist-police incidents) · raw data: ../sources/nepal-arrivals-data-2012-2021/ — the 14 spreadsheets behind the charts; arrivals by country run to 2021
Decision owner Prakash Dahal

1. Decision this supports

Which travellers NepWalk goes after first (decision B5 beachhead; open item O3, confirm by 30 Oct 2026) — and whether a USA-first focus is supported by the numbers.

2. Key numbers

Arrivals by country (exact, from Nation Arrival Year.xlsx):

Country 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
India 160,832 194,323 254,150 40,336 64,672
China 104,664 153,633 169,543 19,257 6,198
USA 79,146 91,895 93,241 17,767 22,854
UK 51,058 63,466 61,144 11,762 8,680
Sri Lanka 45,361 69,640 56,316 13,328 463
Thailand 39,154 52,429 41,660 20,778 576
Others (all remaining countries) 174,460 214,718 202,589 38,908 26,013
Total 940,218 1,173,072 1,197,191 230,085 150,962
  • USA was the 3rd-largest single country in 2019 and the 2nd in 2021, behind India, while China fell to 6,198: American travel recovered faster than most.

  • The USA is a steady ~6% of all arrivals (6.1% in 2012, 6.3% in 2014; 7.8% in 2019), up from about 47,000–54,000 a year in 2012–2016 to 93,241 in 2019.

  • Total visitors: 1,197,191 in 2019, collapsing to 230,085 (2020) and 150,962 (2021) during COVID.

  • By air: 77% of arrivals; 23% by land.
  • Average stay: 12 days (data since 2010).
  • Purpose: 49% holiday · ~16% trekking and mountaineering · 9.7% pilgrimage · ~4% official · ~3.6% business · ~12% other.
  • Age: largest groups 31–45, then 46–60, then 16–30, then 60+.
  • Busiest months: October–November and March–April. The USA appears among the top countries in most months, including October, November and December.
  • Tourism earnings: NPR 68,521.7 million in fiscal year 2018/19, rising every year.
  • Most visited parks: Annapurna Conservation Area, Chitwan National Park, Sagarmatha National Park.
  • Tourist-police incidents: lost or missing items are by far the most common. Tourist Police: 1144, 01-4247041.

2b. Recent official figures (checked 22 Sep 2026)

Year Total visitors USA USA rank
2019 1,197,191 93,241 3rd
2024 1,147,548 — —
2025 1,158,459 (record) 112,316 2nd, after India

2025 top markets: India 292,438 (25.2%) · USA 112,316 · China 58,684 · UK 57,545 · Bangladesh 49,357 · Australia 37,550 · Sri Lanka 30,243 · Thailand 30,227 · Germany 24,763.

2026, January–August: 777,672 visitors, +5.6% on the same months of 2025 (736,562). Monthly: Jan 92,573 · Feb 105,441 · Mar 120,516 · Apr 107,934 · May 102,626 · Jun 91,363 · Jul 71,775 · Aug 85,444.

  • January 2026 (NTB report): USA 8,406 (9.1%); total +15.7% on Jan 2025, +13.9% on Jan 2019.
  • August 2026: total −3.6% on Aug 2025; USA 6,293 (7.37%).

Headline: the USA overtook China after COVID — 3rd in 2019, 2nd in 2025.

Confidence: 2025 totals and top markets — NTB via The Himalayan Times (2 Jan 2026). January 2026 — NTB Tourism Insights report. August 2026 — NTB via Nepal News (7 Sep 2026). Feb–Jul 2026 monthly figures — a licensed trekking operator citing NTB; they sum correctly to the stated Jan–Aug total but were not read from NTB directly. For anything quoted in writing, download the NTB report for that month.

Sources:

3. What it means for NepWalk

Finding Implication
USA is the 3rd-largest single country (93,241 in 2019) and was 2nd in 2021, recovering faster than China Supports a USA-first focus for marketing and the beachhead (B5). India and China are bigger but need different channels, languages and price points.
Average stay is 12 days Fits the 7–10-day itineraries (Pailas) and the church group's 9–10 nights.
77% arrive by air The airport pickup is NepWalk's first moment with most travellers — worth getting perfect.
Ages 31–60 are the majority Comfort, clear plans and safety matter more than adventure — exactly the NepWalk promise.
49% holiday, ~10% pilgrimage The culture-first day plan fits the largest segment; faith-based travel is a real niche.
Oct–Nov and Mar–Apr peaks Hold hotels early in those months (rule R9 "book early"); spring 2027 groups must be booked by Dec–Feb.

4. Limits of this data

  • Country data runs to 2021; most other charts stop at 2019. Travel collapsed in 2020–21 and has recovered since. Get the latest official figures (2023–2025) (Nepal Tourism Statistics, Ministry of Culture, Tourism & Civil Aviation) during numbers week, 8–14 Oct 2026.
  • The report says "due to covid in 2019 the visitor has declined little". That's a slip: COVID hit in 2020. The 2019 chart shows growth for most countries.
  • The raw data has gaps: some countries show 0 in early years (Malaysia, Myanmar, Thailand, Bangladesh, South Korea), and UK 2015 shows 204,469 — almost certainly a data error (UK is ~36–63k every other year). The sheet's own note says its "Total" row is not valid; use "Total Given".
  • "Others" groups many countries and cannot be compared with single countries.

5. Recommendation

Use "The USA is now Nepal's second-largest source market — 112,316 visitors in 2025, up from 93,241 in 2019" as the market evidence for a USA-first beachhead. For written use, cite the NTB report for the period quoted.