The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra, also called the universe’s axis point, is now open for visitors after a five-year gap. It was closed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic for the first time since its inception in 1981.
The reopening of the yatra has renewed hope for Hindus, Buddhists, Jains and Bon followers. Likewise, it has revived expectations of economic relief for the region.
Travel Resumption
The Indian Ministry of External Affairs announced that the Yatra will resume this season, although the border point was opened earlier in April 2024.
Despite the partial reopening, the government has allegedly turned away almost 50,000 Indian pilgrims who had put their tickets on a visiting trip there. As a result, the closure of the pilgrimage route extended beyond the pandemic, following the Galwan Valley clash of mid-2020 and China’s prolonged border restrictions.
After Beijing agreed to relaunch the pilgrimage and thaw ties with New Delhi, Indian officials have greenlit the journey again via Nepal as the transit route.
The Kailash Mansarovar Yatra will reopen in 2025 after a five-year closure. It was shut down due to COVID-19 and India-China tensions. Interestingly, the pilgrims are chosen through a computerised lottery system. And 750 out of more than 5,500 applicant pilgrims were selected this year.
Authorities have reported groups of Indian pilgrims arriving at Simikot Airport (Humla) in late June 2025. Among them, 250 are travelling via the Lipulekh route and 500 via the Nathu La pass. The first batch will enter China via Lipulekh on July 10, and the last batch will depart on August 22.
By contrast, pre-pandemic flows were on a completely different scale, as travel industry data shows over 20,000 Indian pilgrims reached Kailash via Nepal in 2018, rising to nearly 30,000 in 2019.
In other words, current numbers are only a fraction of the 2018–19 peak. This annual yatra is organised between June and September using two routes: Lipulekh Pass in Uttarakhand and Nathu La Pass in Sikkim.
Economic Fallout
The five-year Yatra suspension inflicted heavy losses on Nepalgunj, Humla and surrounding districts.
Before the pandemic, approximately 15,000 tourists used to cross the Hilsa border to visit Kailash Mansarovar in Nepal alone. The absence of Indian pilgrims had devastated the multimillion-dollar businesses of hotels, porters, airlines, and helicopter services.
Similarly, Banke District (capital Nepalgunj) had geared up for booming Indian tourism. By 2020, the local hotel association estimated that over Rs 12 billion had been invested in new hotels and resorts to serve the Kailash pilgrimage. Those hopes evaporated when the border closed.
“We are struggling to survive even though everything is normal now,” Gorakh Thapa, owner of a small Nepalgunj hotel, says. “Nepalgunj used to be a hub for Indian tourists transiting to Tibet. It is no longer a lucrative business,” he explains.
With occupancy rates in 2023 at just a fraction of 2019 levels, many landlords have cut room rates in half or faced closure. A Hotel Federation official confirms that big hotels have slashed prices (about Rs 1,500 per night) to lure the few guests there.
In the hills of Humla, travel companies and locals also felt the pinch. One Kailash tour operator warned in 2023 that they would be “ruined” if the Hilsa border stays closed. Experienced guides and porters report that there were simply no pilgrims to pay their wages. Even in Nepal’s off-peak months (May–Aug), dozens of Indian groups used to transit via Humla each season.
“Hotels from Pokhara to Kathmandu would have been filled, and travel firms, their workers, airlines and taxis would be bustling,” recalls Basant Baral, owner of a Kailash tour company. “Now work is happening at a tiny fraction of previous levels,” he laments.
Across western Nepal, the loss of Kailash traffic reverberated through the economy, from banks and airlines to roadside teashops, leaving many businesses idle.
Signs of Revival
Nepal expects over 20,000 Indian pilgrims, boosting tourism. The pilgrimage previously brought millions in revenue. With the Yatra’s restart, a trickle of pilgrims is now reviving commerce. Even small mountain towns on the border routes are seeing new demand. Immigration officials note that hotels in Rasuwagadhi (Timure) and Rasuwa Valley (Ghattekhola) are witnessing fuller bookings as pilgrims overnight near the checkpoint. Nepali tour operators anticipate over 20,000 Indian bookings.
The average package for Indian pilgrims is estimated to cost around Rs 300,000 – approximately $2,250 – per person this year. This represents a significant economic opportunity for the region, particularly for Nepal, which serves as a critical transit point for pilgrims.
Before the closure, the pilgrimage brought approximately 60,000 tourists annually to Nepal, making it a cornerstone of the country’s religious tourism sector.
This revival sits at the intersection of spiritual devotion, economic opportunity, and geopolitical complexity. If sustained, it could deepen economic ties across the Himalayas and strengthen Nepal’s niche in “pilgrimage diplomacy”, especially as South Asia’s geopolitics continue to shift.
Pratikshya Bhatta is a junior editor with Nepal Connect.