Kathmandu: The number of foreign tourists visiting Nepal in May 2026 increased significantly. According to the Nepal Tourism Board, a total of 102,626 foreign tourists arrived in Nepal by air during the month of May alone. This figure represents a 19 percent increase compared to May 2025 and a 31 percent increase compared to May 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to the Board, Nepal welcomed 86,216 foreign tourists in May 2025, 90,211 in May 2024, and 78,329 in the same month of 2019. Senior Manager of the Nepal Tourism Board, Surya Thapaliya, stated that tourist arrivals in May this year increased by 19 percent compared to 2025 and by 31 percent compared to the same period in 2019.
He said, “May is considered an important month for tourism activities such as mountaineering and trekking. As the summer season begins in India during this period, the number of Indian tourists seeking relief from the heat tends to rise. In addition, citizens of South Asian countries have increasingly begun to view Nepal as an affordable tourist destination, resulting in nearly a 42 percent increase in arrivals during May compared to the previous year.”
Mr. Thapaliya further noted that the strengthening of the US dollar and the Indian government’s measures to curb overseas travel expenditure due to pressure on foreign currency reserves have made Nepal a comparatively inexpensive destination for Indian tourists. As a result, the number of Indian visitors increased by nearly 40 percent in May alone.
According to him, while 28,160 Indian tourists visited Nepal in May last year, the number rose to 40,782 during the same period this year.
Statistics show that among tourists arriving in Nepal in May, the highest number came from neighboring India with 40,782 visitors, followed by China with 11,514, the United States with 9,001, Bangladesh with 5,298, and Australia with 3,375 visitors.
Similarly, by regional distribution, tourists arriving in Nepal comprised 47.2 percent (48,461) from SAARC countries, 19.9 percent (20,662) from other Asian countries, 13.1 percent (13,440) from Europe, 10.3 percent (10,618) from the Americas, 1.5 percent (1,511) from the Middle East, and 4.1 percent (4,612) from other regions.
More Than Half a Million Tourists Arrive in Five Months
More than half a million foreign tourists visited Nepal during the first five months of 2026. According to Nepal Tourism Board statistics, a total of 529,063 foreign tourists arrived in Nepal by air between January and May 2026.
In comparison, Nepal received 501,264 foreign tourists during the same period in 2025 and 506,280 in the corresponding period of 2024. The Board reported that tourist arrivals in 2026 reached 92,573 in January, 105,414 in February, 120,516 in March, and 107,934 in April.
