October 6: The number of internal tourists visiting Pokhara during holiday of Dashain festival has increased in the recent days. Tourist influx in Pokhara started to rise after Ghatasthapana and the number steadily rose till the full moon day.

Tourism entrepreneurs said that more than 400 hotels are operating in Pokhara at the moment and the number of internal as well as external tourists has increased since the onset of Dashain festival. Govinda Sharma, a tourism entrepreneur, said that more people visit Pokhara during the Dashain and Tihar vacation. According to Sharma, the trend of visiting new places among Nepalis is being gradually developed. The crowd has grown bigger in Pokhara also because of people visiting Mustang, a new destination of internal tourists, according to Sharma. “Students have a long vacation during Dashain and Tihar which is appropriate for traveling. As a result, the number has grown in the recent days,” Sharma told New Business Age. “The influx of tourists has added enthusiasm among tourism entrepreneurs.”

Bharat Raj Parajuli, vice president of Pokhara Tourism Council and president Western Region Hotel Association, said that the number of tourists has surged since the beginning of Dashain festival. According to him, the tourism industry has been seeing less flow of foreign tourists while the continuous influx of internal tourists has covered up the loss.

Parajuli informed that the hotels in Pokhara have 70 percent pre-booking during the peak tourism season of October. He informed that during Dashain festival, the occupancy in hotels increased to 80-90 percent. “October and November are the main season of tourism and there are signs of improvement in tourism industry this year in comparison to the previous year,” he further added.