Shimla hotels packed to capacity

Kuldeep Chauhan

Tribune News Service

Shimla, December 31

Hotels in Shimla are packed to capacity as revellers have landed the popular hill station for the New Year bash.

Tourists are coming from Delhi, Punjab, Haryana, Chandigarh and as far as Kolkata and Mumbai and enjoying sunshine and bands, dance and song performances on The Mall and The Ridge. Some hoteliers have arranged special New Year functions.

The tourists are also visiting Narkanda and Kufri to enjoy snow. Hotels, rest houses and guest houses in Chail, Kasauli and peripheries of Shimla such as Narkanda and Fagu were packed,said hoteliers.

The tourist arrival was about 20 per cent less as compared to that of last year because of the chill and fog prevailing in the plains, said Harnam Kukreja, president, Shimla Hoteliers and Restaurant Owners Association. “But today, most hotels were almost full as tourists have arrived in large number”, he added.

HP Tourism Development Corporation (HPTDC) hotels are also offering special packages, offering gala night with orchestra, DJ, dance competition and prizes in Manali, Shimla, Dalhousie, Dharamsala tourist circuits, said Harish Janartha, vice-chairman, HPTDC.

Ice skating at Asia's biggest natural rink is another attraction in Shimla. Tourists make it a point to visit or to have glimpse of the rink.