Foreigners to pay $50 daily fee to visit Upper Mustang

MUSTANG: Foreigners visiting Upper Mustang, located near the Nepal–China Korala border, will now be required to pay a daily fee of $50.

Government Spokesperson and Minister for Communications and Information Technology Jagadish Kharel announced the decision while briefing the media on the latest Cabinet meeting. He stated that the change was made by amending Schedule 12 of the Immigration Regulations, 2051.

With this decision, foreign visitors will no longer need to pay the previous lump-sum fee of $500 for a 10-day trekking permit. Instead, they will pay only for the number of days they stay in Upper Mustang.

Previously, foreign tourists entering Upper Mustang had to pay a minimum trekking fee of $500 for 10 days, and those staying longer were charged $50 per day after the initial period.

Loghekar Damodarkunda Rural Municipality Chairman Lopsang Chomphel Bista said that although their demand to remove Upper Mustang from the list of prohibited and controlled areas was not fully met, the government’s new decision has partially addressed their concerns. Lomanthang Rural Municipality Chairman Tasinarbu Gurung also welcomed the move.

Upper Mustang falls under the Annapurna Conservation Area Project and has been designated as a restricted and controlled region. Due to the high trekking fees, most foreign tourists used to return from Kagbeni or Muktinath instead of entering Upper Mustang.

Out of approximately 150,000 foreign tourists who visit Mustang annually, only about 3–4 percent used to travel further to Upper Mustang.