With the Himachal government imposing night curfew in four districts of the state from Tuesday to contain spread of Covid-19, the hoteliers said the decision will destroy tourism completely which was slowly coming back on track after the lockdown. Four districts of Himachal -- Kullu, Shimla, Kangra and Mandi – will observe a complete curfew from Tuesday to December 15. No vehicle other than those engaged in emergency and essential supplies will be allowed on roads between 8pm and 6am. Hoteliers said the tourism was coming back on track after a long time but this curfew will create panic among visitors who have planned to visit the state. Manali and some other tourist destinations of Himachal are reachable from Delhi after a travel time of over 14 hours. In such a condition, 10 hours’ night curfew will stop them from reaching their destination. Hoteliers said the government should give relaxation to the tourists otherwise it will be a nightmare for those who are already in transit and those who have already booked their flights and other conveyance that will not match the curfew timing. They said snowfall was attracting tourists to the state but curfew in the main tourism districts of Himachal will adversely affect tourism. A hotelier Anil Sharma said, “Be it towns or villages, Himachal wears deserted look in the nighttime in winter months when people mostly remain indoors. The government should impose a ban on functions to avoid public gatherings which is the main reason for the spike in Covid-19 cases in Himachal." "There should be some strict restrictions on marriages and other parties. We will welcome the decision to fine tourists heavily for disobeying protocols to contain Covid-19 but night curfew is not the solution but it will harm the tourism which has already suffered huge
With the Himachal government imposing night curfew in four districts of the state from Tuesday to contain spread of Covid-19, the hoteliers said the decision will destroy tourism completely which was slowly coming back on track after the lockdown. Four districts of Himachal — Kullu, Shimla, Kangra and Mandi – will observe a complete curfew
After witnessing a sudden surge in tourist footfall that left both hotels and roads choked in Manali last week, the hoteliers on Thursday said hotel occupancy has dropped to 60-70 per cent while traffic congestion too has finished in the tourist town. The long-weekend last week took toll on the infrastructure of Manali. As the maddening crowd and multiple traffic jams for hours that irked tourists have ended, the hoteliers said they are inviting tourists to Manali to enjoy cold and calm environment. The taxi fares too have come down to half of what was being charged until few days back. They said if tourists want to see the miracle of nature in the form of snowfall in mid-June, this is the right time to visit Manali. Manali Hoteliers’ Association president Anup Thakur said 30 to 40 per cent of the rooms in most hotels are empty. “We confess that tourists had to face some problems like traffic jams, non-availability of rooms, high taxi fare and room tariff. We assure tourists that things have improved now. The problem of traffic jams has almost gone due to better traffic management and spreading of tourist vehicles to other tourists attractions of the district like Hamta, Jana, Naggar and Manikaran,” he said. He added that rooms are easily available in hotels at reasonable price and buses from Delhi and Chandigarh are reaching Manali on time. “As many tourists are visiting Lahaul and Rohtang together, taxis for Rohtang pass are easily available. The taxi operators of Manali are charging fair price. The traffic at some points is moving very slow due to road construction works but we have got rid of hour-long jams starting from Kullu,” he added. Hoteliers said the availability of high mountains of snow at Rohtang pass has ensured prolonged tourism
After witnessing a sudden surge in tourist footfall that left both hotels and roads choked in Manali last week, the hoteliers on Thursday said hotel occupancy has dropped to 60-70 per cent while traffic congestion too has finished in the tourist town. The long-weekend last week took toll on the infrastructure of Manali. As the
As the general elections have ended, tourists who gave a miss to hill stations in May have started to make a beeline to Manali to get respite from the scorching heat of the plains. The elections have badly hit the summer tourism of Himachal as hoteliers claim they have never seen such a poor business in May month. With elections ended and hills of Manali still experiencing fresh snowfall, hoteliers believe they see a good tourist crowd till the end of June. The tourist footfall is increasing gradually but most of the tourists are ending up stuck in traffic jams for hours. The charm of snow along Manali-Rohtang road is attracting tourists to Manali. A number of tourist vehicles entering Manali is increasing every day. But the long traffic jams at multiple places between Bhuntar and Marhi are ruining their holiday mood. While a one-way bridge at Dobhi has become the worst bottleneck, NHAI has failed to stop sliding of a small stretch at 16 Mile where sometimes vehicles are forced to wait for 1 to 2 hours for their turn. The traffic is moving at snail’s pace on Bhuntar-Ramshila stretch of the highway where road construction is continuing. It has become a routine to face traffic jams from Manali to Marhi, the snow point of Manali. The hoteliers say May and June are the months when lakhs of tourists throng Manali and most hotels remain occupied. They rue that not just elections but it is poor infrastructure that is irking the tourists and putting a negative impact on the tourism industry. Manali Hoteliers’ Association president Anup Ram Thakur said the condition of the road from Kiratpur (Punjab) to Manali is not good which is affecting the tourism. “Unscientific construction of four-lane highway without conducting proper study of the area
As the general elections have ended, tourists who gave a miss to hill stations in May have started to make a beeline to Manali to get respite from the scorching heat of the plains. The elections have badly hit the summer tourism of Himachal as hoteliers claim they have never seen such a poor business
MANALI: After many cities of the country boycotted Make My Trip and Goibibo over the monopoly of online hotel booking giants, Manali hoteliers have offered them to work at their terms and conditions, failing to which may force hoteliers to consider boycotting them. Manali Hoteliers’ Association president Anup Ram Thakur said they have asked officials of Online Travel Aggregators (OTAs) to hold a meeting with them in Manali where they will discuss on the 11 agenda points for the benefit of both the parties and also the customers. “We want to fix a commission rate with them as many hotels complain that some online agencies are charging very high commission from them by taking advantage of their helplessness. The commission would be charged on room tariff, not on meal. The reviews written by guests should have option to include hotel’s version.” Hoteliers blamed that the companies are giving star ranking to the hotels themselves and were showing any tariff on the website which was misleading and illegal. “The category of the hotel and room’s tariff are finalized by department of tourism. Hotel or agency has no right to give star category to hotel only to mislead the tourists. Some online agencies give huge discounts and offers to customers. In such cases, the discounted amount would be borne by agency, not the hotel. And they need to display the original tariff approved by government,” Thakur added. Hoteliers have more such demands from the OTAs which they have demanded to be fulfilled to maintain a healthy relation. While many hoteliers say it the hotel owners who themselves were offering huge commission to the companies to get booking, others said it was the monopoly of the companies as most bookings were coming through them. Some hoteliers were demanding to boycott Make My Trip, Goibibo and
MANALI: After many cities of the country boycotted Make My Trip and Goibibo over the monopoly of online hotel booking giants, Manali hoteliers have offered them to work at their terms and conditions, failing to which may force hoteliers to consider boycotting them. Manali Hoteliers’ Association president Anup Ram Thakur said they have asked officials of Online
Marking World Tourism Day, Himachal Pradesh tourism development corporation (HPTDC) and Manali hoteliers’ association officials on Tuesday accorded a warm welcome to tourists arriving Manali. All the passengers arriving by flight and HPTDC buses were offered flowers and traditional Himachali caps. Kulluvi folk dance was arranged on Mall to make them cheered. Some tourists too joined the dance and enjoyed the moment. Happy to have this unexpected honor, a tourist from Kochin, Rajan Chanderkumar said at first he was upset as the bus was taken beyond the bus stand but he was surprised to see the arrangements for their welcome. “We had not expected of this honor. It was fantastic. We are feeling so proud of being part of this wonderful hospitality,” he said.
Marking World Tourism Day, Himachal Pradesh tourism development corporation (HPTDC) and Manali hoteliers’ association officials on Tuesday accorded a warm welcome to tourists arriving Manali. All the passengers arriving by flight and HPTDC buses were offered flowers and traditional Himachali caps. Kulluvi folk dance was arranged on Mall to make them cheered. Some tourists too
