Nepal's tourism picks up after 2015 earthquake

Updated:7 years, 6 months ago

Bhaktapur (Nepal), Apr 20 (ANI): On April 2015, a magnitude of 7.8 earthquake hit Nepal that killed nearly 9,000 people and injured over 20 thousand. The worst natural disaster made hundreds of thousands homeless with entire villages flattened across many districts of the country. Centuries old buildings were destroyed at UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the Kathmandu Valley. The country’s tourism industry was badly affected as majority of tourists decided to stay away. Life is back to normal three years after the devastating earthquake and tourist inflow has been improved. At the World Heritage Site in Bhaktapur city, tourists are visiting the centuries old temples, which were hugely affected by the earthquake. Some of these damaged temples have been restored. The inflow of foreign tourists in Nepal, via both land and air routes, has increased by 14.2 per cent to 288,918 in the first three months of 2018 compared to the same period last year. A majority of tourists in Nepal come from neighboring India, China, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Europe. According to Nepal Tourism Board, tourist inflow from European nations witnessed growth of 17.2 per cent in January, 16.4 per cent in February and 35.9 per cent in March as compared to the same months last year. Tourism not only helps generate foreign exchange but creates more than 1.02 million jobs directly and indirectly. The industry was expected to create more than 1.32 million jobs directly and indirectly by 2028.