A total of 90,356 foreing tourists have visited Mustang district in 2023, according to the Annapurana Conservation Area Project (ACAP) area office.
In comparision to 2022, there has been an increase of 24,425 tourists in Mustang in 2023, Padamraj Regmi, chief of ACAP was quoted in RSS. He attributed this growth to the connectivity with the national road network, the promotion of the Annapurna Circuit trek on the world’s top 10 destinations, and the opening of hotels due to increased publicity.
“The visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Muktinath and Mustang has also contributed to the rising number of Indian tourists visiting Mustang,” he said while adding that before the pandemic, Mustang used to receive a maximum of 60,000 tourists annually. Mustang had received 65,940 tourists, 2,300 in 2021 and 2,347 in 2020.
In 2023, out of the 90,190 tourists who visited Mustang, 72,190 were from South Asian Regional Cooperation (SAARC) countries, and 18,166 were from other countries. Additionally, 7,333 tourists passed through Thorang La Pass in Thorangla, entered Manang, and eventually arrived in Mustang.
Foreigners need to pay $500 for a seven-day tour from Kagbeni to Korala Nakas, covering the lower part of Mustang. SAARC citizens are charged one thousand rupees individually, and citizens from third countries are charged three thousand rupees for the exploration of the ACAP area, which includes Lamjung, Kaski, Manang, Mustang, and Myagdi districts in Gandaki Pradesh.
