Covid restrictions relaxed, tourism industry on revival path

Bhanu P Lohumi

Tribune News Service

Shimla, January 8

The tourism industry that struggled for survival due to the Covid-19 lockdown for nearly eight months is in the revival phase following lifting of curbs and night curfew in four districts. Hoteliers are upbeat after a surge in tourist inflow during Christmas and New Year.

The occupancy in hotels was nearly 90 per cent during Christmas and all hotels in Shimla were packed to capacity on New Year’s eve. Snowfall towards the end of the year also contributed to the surge in the number of tourists. “The hoteliers are upbeat as the occupancy was 60 to 70 per cent in spite of the fact that snowfall eluded the capital,” said Sanjay Sood, president, Shimla Hotel and Restaurant Association.

“The lifting of night curfew and opening of shops on Sundays provided the much-needed breather to the tourism industry. We are expecting a good business in the coming days and hopefully forget the lockdown as a nightmare,” he added.

Meanwhile, interstate Volvo buses, which were suspended due to the pandemic, resumed yesterday after 10 months. Hoteliers are optimistic that snowfall in the coming days would further increase the tourist inflow.

A large number of tourists who thronged Shimla and adjoining areas are also enjoying the chilly weather, but “touts” of hotels are creating a nuisance and chasing tourists. “We were taken for a ride by touts who claimed to provide rooms in Four Star hotel with parking, but when we reached the destination it turned out to be a lie,” said Jaideep, a tourist from Delhi.

Tourists should make advance booking online and directly go to hotels and not fall into the trap of touts, who take tourists to hotels of their choice and fleece them, he said.

About 1.5 lakh vehicles crossed (to and fro) Shimla from December 25, 2020, to January 5, 2020, and accommodating such a huge tourist inflow became a daunting task for 450 policemen deployed for traffic management in the town as all parking lots were full and roads were chocked.