Nepal has recorded an all-time high of over 4, 48000 tourist arrival during the year 2010 even as the country is gearing up to observe 2011 as the Nepal Tourism Year. According to an official figures released by Nepal Tourism Board, this was first time in 12 years that tourist arrivals have crossed the 400,000 mark. The last time that Nepal had received so many tourists was in 1999 when over 421,000 tourists came to the country.The official figure shows that tourist arrivals have increased by 18.5 percent last year. Traditionally, Indians make up the largest number of tourists visiting Nepal and last year too, India topped the chart with over 1,04,000 tourists followed by the US, the UK, China and France. Official sources say Chinese tourist arrivals have jumped by an encouraging 36.8 percent in 2010 with a total of over 25,000 tourists from China who visited Nepal in 2010. Hence the Nepal Tourism Year Implementation Committee has targeted arrival of 2, 65,000 tourists from India and 100,000 tourists from China in 2011. Nepal Tourism Year has set a target of attracting one million tourists in the country during the year. AIR Kathmandu Correspondent reports that an air of optimism has prevailed in the tourism sector, one of the mainstays of Nepal's economy, to make the best use of the natural beauty of the country with its majestic Himalayas, high altitude trekking trials, adventures sports, lakes and holy religious sites revered both by the Hindus and Buddhists.