Tourist footfall declines, hoteliers seek govt help

Hoteliers of Dharamsala have sought the help of the state Tourism Department in digital marketing of destinations in view of a decline in tourist influx. They allege that the region has witnessed a massive decline in tourism activity during the monsoon season from July to September. Even now, online booking of rooms for the coming months is barely 20 per cent.

Sanjeev Gandhi, general secretary of the Hotel Association of Smart City Dharamsala, says that from July to September, tourism in Dharamsala was down to almost a trickle. He adds that the entire state, including Dharamsala, faced a decline in the tourist footfall primarily due to a dip in the arrival of foreign tourists and more domestic tourists opting to go to Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).

Gandhi says that the hotel industry of Dharamsala is now pinning its hopes on the expansion of the Gaggal airport initiated by the Congress government. They are hoping that the tourist footfall in the region will increase once the airport is expanded and airfares come down, he adds.

Ashwani Bamba, president of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Kangra, says that there has been an overall decline in tourism since the Covid-19 outbreak. “Himachal Pradesh is facing competition from other states such as J&K, which are aggressively marketing their destinations. Since most hotels in the state are small and medium sized, they do not have the capacity to market themselves on their own,” he adds.

Bamba says, “We have requested the Chairman of the Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation, RS Bali, to help the hotels of the state in digital marketing of destinations. Bali has assured us that the Tourism Department will soon formulate a strategy to promote tourism destinations of the state.”

According to sources, the low tourist footfall in the region is causing stress to many hoteliers. Satish Kumar, a hotelier in lower Dharamsala, says while still some tourists are arriving in McLeodganj at weekends, the hotels in lower Dharamsala have hardly received visitors for the past two months. He adds that many hotel owners in lower Dharamsala are offering their units on lease but due to low tourist footfall, there are no takers.

Bali told the hoteliers that the government was committed to making Kangra the tourism capital of the state. The Tourism Department had lined up many events in the coming months to increase the tourist footfall. The Department would organise the Kangra Tourism Carnival featuring cultural events in Dharamsala. It would also hold the paragliding pre-world cup at Bir-Billing. He said that the government was devising a strategy to help promote online various tourist destinations in the state.