Holiday Rush and Heatwave Fill Mustang-Myagdi Hotels, 30,000 Tourists in Four Days

Myagdi/Mustang – Tourist destinations and hotels across Myagdi and Mustang are packed to capacity as a surge of visitors floods the region. The rush, fuelled by Indian tourists escaping the heat and domestic travellers making the most of a four-day public holiday, has left hotel operators struggling to keep up.

According to Raju Hamal, a hotel entrepreneur from Bhurung Tatopani in Annapurna Rural Municipality-2, hotels are overflowing with guests arriving from India to beat the summer heat and from various parts of the country enjoying the extended break. Guests who could not find rooms in Mustang have been redirected and accommodated as far as Myagdi, Baglung, Kushma, and Pokhara, he said.

Data from the District Police Office, Mustang, shows that over 30,000 tourists entered the region via the Beni-Jomsom road in the last four days. Records from the Ghasa Police Post indicate that 5,586 tourists entered Mustang on Wednesday, 7,827 on Thursday, and 9,086 on Friday. Police Inspector Santosh Basyal confirmed that a similar number of tourists arrived on Saturday.

While hotels in Mustang have a daily capacity to accommodate 10,000 guests, and Myagdi can hold about 2,000, the sheer volume of arrivals has exceeded available space. The region’s appeal lies in the Muktinath pilgrimage, Himalayan scenery, and road access all the way to the Korala border point. Authorities have also launched awareness campaigns to caution tourists heading to higher altitudes about altitude sickness.

However, some tourists have complained of travel difficulties along the Myagdi section of the Beni-Jomsom-Korala road due to floods, landslides, and ongoing road upgrades causing occasional vehicle stoppages.