Target: Chinese outbound

National Tourism Council okays proposal to provide free visas to tourists from China

SANGAM PRASAIN
KATHMANDU, NOV 11 -

The seventh meeting of the National Tourism Council held recently under the chairmanship of Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal has endorsed a proposal to provide free visas to Chinese tourists in a bid to attract more visitors from the northern neighbour during Nepal Tourism Year 2011.

If the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Home Affairs agrees to the plan, it will be sent to the cabinet for final approval, a government official said.

The Ministry of Tourism and Civil Aviation moved to provide free visas to Chinese tourists in response to the proposal

made by the Chinese side during the fourth meeting of the Nepal-Tibet Joint Tourism Coordination Committee held in Lhasa on Sept. 14. Visas will be provided gratis for the duration of the NTY campaign period.

“Chinese travellers are interested in visiting Nepal, and the free visa scheme proposed by the Tourism Ministry can be a major factor in attracting Chinese outbound,” said ministry spokesperson Laxman Prasad Bhattarai.

China has become one of the world’s most watched outbound markets. According to the China Tourism Academy, the number of Chinese tourists in 2010 is estimated to reach 54 million. China is also projected to become the fourth largest source of outbound tourism in the world by 2020.

Nepal has been providing free visas to visitors from the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC). Other

foreign travellers are charged

US$ 25 for 15 days and US$ 40 for one month.

Nepal has targeted bringing 100,000 Chinese visitors during NTY 2011. Since 2009, there has been a modest growth in Chinese arrivals to Nepal. According to the Nepal Tourism Board, Nepal received 18,677 Chinese visitors in 2009 against 14,076 in 2008, a growth of 32 percent. Arrivals in 2009 accounted for 5 percent of the total inbound.

Chinese arrivals by air as of October 2010 amounted to 20,933 to take the fourth place after India (85,655), the US (27,217) and the UK (26,033). According to the World Tourism Organization, rising middle class incomes and a pent-up demand to see the rest of the world have made China one of the most significant outbound tourism markets. Similarly, easing of controls on foreign travel has also contributed to a surge in Chinese outbound.

In terms of outbound travel spending, China is currently ranked fifth and is expected to be the fastest growing in the world from 2006 to 2015, jumping into the number two slot for total travel spending by 2015, said the WTO. Chinese nationals spent US$ 19.1 billion on tourism abroad in 2004. Chinese tourists are among the biggest spenders when they travel overseas, making them a highly desired market.

China has been the leading source of outbound tourists in Asia since 2003, though most Chinese tourists (71 percent in 2005) only go to Hong Kong and Macau. The WTO said that the impact of Chinese outbound tourism started to be felt in Asia (17 percent in 2005) with far fewer going to Europe (5 percent in 2005) and elsewhere. By 2020, China is projected to produce 100 million outbound trips. “Looking at the huge prospects of the Chinese market and being a close neighbour, issuing free visas will help boost Nepal’s tourism market,” Bhattarai said. If the plan works in 2011, the government could extend it, he added.

Meanwhile, the Tourism Ministry is mulling improving road access to Nepal for Chinese tourists as it has been a major hindrance to increasing arrivals.