About 3,500 tourists visit Upper Mustang, govt collects Rs 230 million in revenue from tourists

KATHMANDU, Jan 17: The number of tourists visiting Upper Mustang has increased of late. According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), the number of tourists visiting the area has surged in 2023 compared to 2022. The government has earned Rs 229.14 million from tourists.

Pramod Raj Regmi, head of ACAP Jomsom branch, said that 3,487 tourists visited Upper Mustang in 2023.

"In the year 2021, a total of 602 tourists visited Upper Mustang, and in 2022, the number increased to 3,212," he said. "Easy access to transportation service, promotional activities, and developmental programs have contributed to the growth of tourism in Upper Mustang," he added.

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In the review year, a total of seven foreign tourists visited Upper Mustang in February, 162 in March, 425 in April, 712 in May, 149 in June, 108 in July, 278 in August, 407 in September, 830 in October, 280 in November and 23 in December.

The government has declared the area from Kagbeni to the upper reaches of Mustang as a prohibited and controlled area. The Department of Immigration has set an entrance fee of US$500 for tourists visiting Upper Mustang.

By paying that fee, foreign tourists going to Upper Mustang get a ten-day entry permit. After 10 days, an additional 50 dollars per day has to be paid to the government. Foreign tourists who visit Upper Mustang are restricted to travel beyond Nechung in Choser of Lo Manthang Rural Municipality-2. The government opened Upper Mustang for tourists in 1992.

Bikal Sherchan, a member of the Gandaki Provincial Assembly, said that it is necessary to determine the fees suitable for tourists of all classes and economic status. People's representatives demanded that Prime Minister Pushpa Kamal Dahal and Home Minister Narayankaji Shrestha remove Upper Mustang from the semi-prohibited zone.

Scenic mountains, desolate desert-like geographical features and mud houses, mountain lifestyle, ancient Tibetan culture, palaces of historical importance, monasteries, Chorten, Kora la border are the main attractions of Upper Mustang.