Over 1.1 million visit Lumbini in 2024

By Our Correspondent,Lumbini, Jan. 9: The number of tourists visiting Lumbini, the birthplace of Buddha, has increased significantly. According to the Lumbini Development Trust, 1,172,304 tourists visited Lumbini in 2024, with an increase of 173,366 compared to 2023.

According to the Trust's information officer, Haridhwaj Rai, 998,938 tourists visited Lumbini in 2023. For the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic, the number of both domestic and international tourists crossed one million.

In 2019, before the pandemic, Lumbini attracted 1,558,326 visitors. This is the first time since then that the number of tourists has exceeded one million.

In 2024, the arrival of Indian tourists set a new record. This year, 388,889 Indian tourists visited Lumbini. In 2023, 266,510 Indians visited the birthplace of the Buddha. Before COVID-19, in 2019, 206,171 Indians came, but in previous years, the number of Indian tourists had been less than 200,000.

Tourists from third countries reached 114,425 in 2024. Rai stated that the number of tourists from third countries has increased by 46.36 per cent. In 2023, 76,210 foreign passport-holding tourists visited Lumbini. In 2019, 174,015 tourists from third countries arrived in Lumbini. 

In 2024, Sri Lankan tourists make up the highest number of third-country visitors to Lumbini. Last year, 23,569 Sri Lankans visited. Similarly, 21,496 tourists came from Thailand, 13,012 from China, 10,517 from Myanmar, 8,500 from Vietnam and 4,646 from South Korea.

In 2024, 759,990 domestic tourists visited Lumbini. Compared to the previous year, domestic tourists have increased by 15.81 per cent. However, compared to the pre-COVID times, the number of domestic tourists has not yet fully recovered. 

In 2017, 1.25 million domestic tourists visited Lumbini. In both 2018 and 2019, around 1.15 million domestic tourists visited. Rai said that the road network conditions and the recent economic downturn had contributed to the decrease in domestic tourism.

Meanwhile, more than 10 thousand foreign tourists visited Manaslu area of Gorkha district in 2024. Conservation Officer of Manaslu Conservation Area Project Office, Bhuwan Raj Ojha, said total 10,605 foreign tourists visited the area in one year.

The number of foreign tourists in Manaslu area was up by 1,428 this year as compared to previous year.  It was 9,177 last year. 

He shared that number of tourists from countries other than SAARC nations visiting the Manaslu area was high this year. The highest number of tourists from France visited the Manaslu area in 2024 which was 1,335.  

Similarly, 1,881 tourists from Germany, 796 from US and 159 from India visited the Manaslu area. Tourists from Netherlands, London, Australia, Spain, China as well as from other countries used to visit Manaslu area, mentioned Ojha. 

Tourists visiting Manaslu area get the opportunity to enjoy natural beauty of Manaslu area along with Kulchhuman (Kal) lake, Manaslu peak, Birendra Lake, Shregi mountain, Rajen monastery.