GANDAKI: As many as 246,575 foreign tourists visited the Annapurna Conservation Area from January to October this year.

During the period, 146,968 tourists from the South Asian countries and 99,607 tourists from other countries turned up in the area.

According to the Annapurna Conservation Area Project (ACAP), April recorded the highest inflow of tourists with 44,763 while January received the lowest with 9,359.

It may be noted that a total of 244, 045 foreign tourists had visited the area in 2024. The inflow record has been already exceeded in the first 10 months of 2025.

Number of tourists’ arrival has increased in all months except May and September this year in comparison to the previous year, informed ACAP chief Dr Rabin Kadariya.

The Annapurna Area – a globally recognized spot for trekking tourism normally receives increasing number of tourists from September to November and from March to May.

Number of tourists travelling to several tourism destinations, including Muktinath area through the surface route is also high here.

The Annapurna Circuit Trekking has been a preferred destination for tourists across the globe, he said. As per the ACAP data, 191, 666 foreign tourists had visited the area in the year 2023. Number of foreign tourists reaching the area was only 18, 836 in the year 2020, Dr Kadariya shared.