Mussoorie, which is among the most famous of hill stations in Uttarakhand, is preparing to receive a huge number of tourists since almost all hotels in town are already reserved before the beginning of the New Year festivals. The occupancy rate of the town gets better as the stakeholders in the tourism industry anticipate an increased occupancy rate towards the end of December 31, a time of the year that is characterized by the highest occupancy rate.
According to the owners of hotels and tourism officials, the number of bookings has increased two to three times over the last few weeks, with end-of-year holidays, festivals and favourable winter weather driving the increased bookings. Most of the hotels, resorts and homestays have started special packages during the New Year, like gala dinners, live music shows, DJ shows and cultural programmes that have grabbed the interest of the visitors in the states of Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab and others in the neighbouring states.
The beauty of Mussoorie in winter and the potential of snowfall in Mussoorie have made it an ideal place to visit by families, couples and groups on New Year’s Eve. The most popular localities like Mall Road, Library Chowk, Picture Palace, and Camels Back Road will experience heavy human traffic on 31st December.
The expected influx of tourists has led to increased immigration preparations by the district administration and the local police. The Dehradun-Mussoorie road has also implemented traffic management plans to curb congestion, particularly at the busiest arrival and departure times. More police officers will be assigned to guarantee crowd manipulation, law and order, and offer support to tourists.
Discipline among visitors has also been encouraged, where people are advised to observe traffic regulations, park in proper places, and not to congest major areas. Traffic jams that extend over a few kilometres have been experienced in the past years due to uncontrollable traffic of vehicles and unexpected influxes of tourists.
The high occupancy rate is good news to local companies. Hotels, restaurants, taxi operators, shopkeepers and small traders can expect the income to increase significantly in the New Year period. Tourism is the lifeline of the Mussoorie economy, and the season is the best time to generate revenue following months of lean periods.
Nonetheless, authorities have also been requesting people to be responsible tourists, where they are urged to assist in keeping the places clean and obeying local laws. The civic organizations are trying to make sure that water, sanitation services and waste management are uninterrupted during the celebrations.
In general, on the one hand, hotels are almost full and thousands of tourists are expected on December 31, which means that Mussoorie will celebrate the New Year in a very colorful and busy way, on the one hand, providing guests and locals with a great time without any problems; and on the other hand, the additional administrative preparation ensures a safe and advantageous New Year holiday in the resort.
