Chitwan National Park is introducing an online ticketing system to make entry easier and more convenient for visitors, reducing the need to wait in long queues at ticket counters. The service is set to begin at the park’s Sauraha entrance from Thursday, October 15, allowing tourists to submit their details and pay entry fees online before entering the protected area. Once the process is completed, visitors can present the generated QR code at the entrance for verification.
The new system is expected to save time for tourists, nature guides, and tourism businesses while improving the overall visitor experience at one of Nepal’s most popular wildlife destinations. The park is initially introducing the service on a pilot basis at Sauraha, its busiest entry point, with plans to expand online ticketing to other entrances in the future.
Online Booking to Simplify Park Entry
Under the new system, visitors will be able to enter the required personal details and pay the applicable entry fee online. After completing the process, the system will generate a QR code that can be scanned by park staff at the entrance. The park will deploy personnel equipped with QR-code scanning devices to verify tickets and facilitate entry. According to senior conservation officer Dil Bahadur Purja Pun, all necessary preparations have been completed, and tourism entrepreneurs will receive a brief training session on how to use the online ticketing system before the service begins.
The park will also publish an instructional video on its social media page to help visitors and tourism businesses understand the booking process. Until now, visitors have generally had to obtain handwritten tickets at park counters. Nature guide Doma Poudel said tourists and guides often had to reach the counters as early as 4:30 or 5 a.m. to secure their place in the queue, even though the counters usually opened around 6 or 6:30 a.m. The online system is expected to reduce such waiting times and help guides take visitors into the park more efficiently.
Sauraha Selected as the First Entry Point
Chitwan National Park has 12 entry points, and Sauraha has been selected for the initial rollout because it receives the largest share of visitors. According to park records, a total of 272,923 tourists visited the park in the previous fiscal year, including 237,025 who entered through Sauraha. The high volume of visitors makes the area a suitable location to test the digital ticketing service before expanding it to other counters.
Chitwan will become the second national park in Nepal to introduce e-ticketing, following Shivapuri Nagarjun National Park. Park officials said the experience gained from the existing system at Shivapuri Nagarjun helped inform preparations for the new service in Chitwan. The initial implementation at Sauraha will allow the park to assess the system and make improvements before wider expansion.
Chitwan, Nepal.
Entry Fees and Wildlife Attractions
Established in 1973, Chitwan National Park is one of Nepal’s leading wildlife tourism destinations. It is known for its one-horned rhinoceros, Bengal tigers, gharial crocodiles, diverse birdlife and rich plant biodiversity. The park attracts visitors interested in wildlife observation and nature-based experiences, contributing to tourism activities in and around Sauraha.
The current daily entry fee is Rs. 150 per person for Nepali visitors, Rs. 1,000 for visitors from SAARC countries and Rs. 2,000 for tourists from other countries. By allowing visitors to complete ticketing and payment online, the park aims to make access more convenient and reduce delays at entry counters. If the pilot programme operates successfully, the service will gradually be extended to the park’s remaining entry points.
