Tuesday, 19 December 2023 | AFZAL FAUJI | NAINITAL
Hoteliers and others involved in the hospitality and tourism business in Nainital are prepared for the tourists expected to throng this hill station for Christmas and New Years celebrations. The big hotels in the city have mostly been booked in advance. The district administration has also started preparing for the occasion and has decided that two-wheelers from outside will not be allowed to enter the city on December 31.
As in the past, most hotels here are offering two to three days packages which also include entertainment programmes. Those in the hospitality and tourism industry are enthusiastically looking forward to Christmas and New Years celebrations. Programmes related to Christmas have already started in some of the hotels and historical churches in the city. The Shervani Hilltop and Nainirit hotels have been fully booked in advance. The Swiss Hotel is 75 per cent booked while Vikram Vintage hotel is 80 per cent booked. About 75 per cent of the rooms in local hotels have already been booked for Christmas. Various hotels have planned different entertainment events from December 30. Performers from Delhi, Mumbai and local artistes are slated to perform in various hotels in addition to the recreational games and other activities planned for the occasion. Programmes on the Kumaoni theme will be organised in hotels of the Kumaon Mandal Vikas Nigam.
Meanwhile, the sub divisional magistrate Pramod Kumar held a meeting with officials of the municipality, police and hotel association representatives on Monday. Preparations for the occasions and traffic arrangements were discussed in the meeting. Apart from this, the SDM also directed the municipality to start lighting wood stoves/bonfires in various localities of the city within the next couple of days. These will be lit till midnight in major locations of the city on New Year’s eve. The SDM further said that two-wheelers from outside will not be allowed entry in the city on December 31. The riders will be provided a shuttle service to reach the city so that unnecessary traffic congestion can be avoided. After the parking lots in the city become fully occupied, vehicles coming from Kaladhungi will be parked at Narayan nagar while vehicles from Haldwani will be parked at Rusi bypass. The travellers will be brought to the city by shuttle service. Police teams will be posted at popular tourist spots to ensure the safety of tourists and prevent hooliganism, he added.
