Guwahati, Oct. 2 -- Assam's Manas National Park reopened to tourists on Friday with a new tourism model that puts conservation, community livelihoods and responsible travel at the centre of the visitor experience.

The new approach seeks to move beyond the traditional safari-centric model by making trained local guides compulsory, opening up new tourism zones in the buffer landscape, introducing premium full-day routes and setting up a dedicated waste-management facility at the park entrance.

The changes come as tourism to Manas continues to grow. Visitor numbers rose from 52,962 in 2021-22 to 63,723 in 2025-26. International arrivals have increased particularly sharply, from just 45 foreign visitors in 2021-22 to 4,951 last season. Indi...