Despite Snowfall, Shimla Sees 40-Year Drop In Hotel Occupancy On New Year's Eve
Despite tactics to woo tourists to Himachal Pradesh this year, hotels in Shimla recorded a 50-60 per cent occupancy, which is ¡°the lowest in the last 40 years¡±. Whether it was the prediction of weekend snow or the Chief Minister's directions to not be harsh with drunk revelers on New Year, the efforts failed.
In the previous year, Shimla experienced an over 80 percent occupancy rate on New Year's.
What happened?
Despite the anticipation of a "white New Year," the likelihood of snowfall is minimal.?The Mall Road and The Ridge, central locations teeming with tourists due to the winter carnival's festive lights and cultural events, did not translate into high hotel room occupancy, as noted by MK Seth, the president of the Shimla Hotel and Tourism Stakeholders Association.? ? ??
Speaking to news agency PTI, he said that the occupancy ¡ª 50-60 per cent ¡ª this year is lowest in the last 40 years, adding that, even during the Covid-19 Pandemic, the New Year tourist rush was more than this.
Himachal govt's efforts
Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu had directed the police to follow 'Atithi Devo Bhava', and facilitate tourists and make adequate arrangements in all districts for the smooth flow of traffic.
Besides allowing food joints and pan shops to remain open 24x7, he said drunk tourists will not be arrested, but will be taken to their hotels by the cops to ensure their New Year experience is not spoiled.
Reasons for low footfall in main areas
The unregistered tourism units are eating into the sales of registered hotels, home stays and other such accommodations, said Mr Seth, adding that the tourists coming by train and luxury buses are "captured" by touts who take them to unregistered accommodations.
¡°We are surprised to see such a drop in tourist inflow when all things are favourable. This is the lowest occupancy in my living memory,¡± said Prince Kukreja, Vice President of the stakeholders association.
Shishu, a local hotelier, said that majority of the tourists prefer isolated stays in the suburbs amidst nature, forest cover and peace. He added that those wanting to plan private parties also go out of the city.The hotels in the main town, that are normally packed during this time of the year, are not occupied to capacity.
Tourism stakeholders said that unnecessary publicity on social media and digital channels over traffic jams made tourists change their destination choice.The local weather department had predicted snowfall and rainfall at isolated places in high-and-mid hill ranges over the weekend as a fresh Western Disturbance laid over the Himalayan region. However, key tourist resorts did not witness any snowfall in the vicinity.
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