Domestic tourism in Nepal surged during the Dashain festival in October 2026, with major destinations such as Pokhara, Chitwan, Mustang, Manang, Rara, Lumbini, and Bandipur seeing high local tourist volumes. Popular trekking routes including Annapurna Base Camp, Mardi Himal, Langtang, and Everest Base Camp experienced heightened domestic interest.
Hotel and resort occupancy in Pokhara, Chitwan, Dhulikhel, and Nagarkot ranged from 80% to 100% during this period. Despite this, foreign tourist arrivals fell short of expectations, with the industry anticipating an 18 to 20 percent increase that did not materialize.
Floods and Landslides Disrupt Trekking Routes
Continuous rains, floods, and landslides in late September 2026 damaged trekking
routes, notably the Manaslu route in Manang, Mustang, and the Budhi Gandaki corridor. This caused tourists to divert from Manaslu to routes such as Annapurna Base Camp, Mardi Himal, Poon Hill, and Khopra, leading to overcrowding. Krishna Acharya, former president of TAAN Gandaki, stated these changes forced shifts in tourist destinations.
International Media Impact and Tourism Board Challenges
Negative international media exaggerated flood damage, generating false perceptions that Nepal was extensively destroyed. Foreign tourist hesitancy resulted from this misinformation combined with weak and delayed crisis communication by Nepal’s tourism authorities. The Nepal Tourism Board (NTB) has been without a CEO for five and a half months, and
its budget approval came only about a month before the main tourist season, weakening promotion efforts. Former CEO Deepak Raj Joshi cited these leadership and budget delays as major handicaps.
Industry Leaders Cite Causes and Effects on Tourism
Krishna Acharya confirmed that domestic tourists outnumbered foreign visitors during Dashain 2026 and caused congestion at destinations. Binayak Shah, President of Hotel Association Nepal, highlighted that despite satisfactory domestic demand, foreign arrivals did not meet hotel capacities. Shah criticized NTB for lacking leadership and delayed budget, impairing promotion. He also pointed out that although the government declared Wellness Tourism Year 2027, no secretariat or budget had been allocated as of
Dashain 2026.
Deepak Raj Joshi identified natural disasters, weak crisis communication, and Middle East geopolitical tensions as reasons for the foreign tourist shortfall. Surya Thapaliya, senior NTB officer, noted European tourists canceled October-November bookings after international news on continuous rains and floods, while Indian tourists kept arriving steadily by land routes without significant decline.
Tourist Behavior and Market Trends
Foreign tourists canceled or diverted trips due to safety concerns from floods and landslides. Domestic tourist enthusiasm was somewhat reduced due to national mourning but still filled hotels and resorts near trekking and cultural sites. Tourism infrastructure and hotel capacity have grown significantly in recent years,
partially offsetting foreign arrivals decline during Dashain 2026. The sector is gradually recovering post-COVID-19 but faces ongoing environmental and institutional challenges.
