BENGALURU: While a few pubs in the city have decided to go for limited-ticket New Year parties to regulate crowds, several other large hotel chains in Bengaluru have shifted gears, choosing to host only intimate New Year dinners, instead of club party nights, responding to the scare of rising Covid cases. However, while some people have decided to celebrate New Year’s Eve in the city, others have preferred heading out of Bengaluru, with travel agencies seeing a spike in online bookings for buses and other modes of transport, to getaways such as Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru.
In contrast to earlier events featuring DJs and nightclubs that welcomed large groups of party animals, the quintessential New Year party this time around will adopt a more intimate approach with a dinner setting and only two DJs outside the buffet venue, a human resources executive from Taj Hotels told TNIE.
Due to a surge in Covid cases, the hotel chain has prioritised safety by dividing people according to their tickets. The dinner festivities will be hosted simultaneously across three distinct restaurants within the hotel. The whole change is aimed at minimising congregation at a single place.
Despite the party extending until midnight, the primary focus is on adhering to guidelines that advise against large gatherings, while still providing a hospitable experience for guests, the executive said, adding that while the hotel chains across the city have decided to continue with these arrangements, “we have been receiving multiple calls from guests inquiring about why the ticket prices remain unchanged, despite the hotel only offering dinner and no nightclub arrangements. Additionally, a few people are also questioning whether the party will still be held if Covid cases continue to rise as the tickets priced at Rs 8,000-11,000 are non-refundable”.
While most of the hotels altered their arrangements, the city’s pubs will throw their usual New Year parties, with night-clubbing activities, but with limited reservations. “Although ticket prices remain the same, there is restricted registration, with fewer reservations being given as compared to last year, to prevent large gatherings,” informed Santhosh H, manager at an upscale pub in Koramangala.
Online travel and staycation registrations for getaways including Nandi Hills, Kodagu and Chikkamagaluru are fully booked too, with most of the reservations made two months ahead of the New Year that falls around a weekend, a travel agent with Greenline Travels said. So far, no cancellations have been made. People booked tickets under the belief that since these destinations are small, Covid restrictions would be enforced at a later state here, even if the cases surge, he added.
STATE RECORDS 103 NEW COVID CASES
Karnataka recorded 103 new cases of Covid-19, with one death (a 53-year-old man in Mysuru), on Wednesday. The total number of active cases in the state is now 479. Of these, 19 are in ICU, 38 in general beds, and 422 in home isolation. Meanwhile, the health department has ramped up testing and conducted 7,262 tests, with the state clocking a positivity rate of 1.41 per cent.
BMTC to operate additional buses on Dec 31
For the convenience of commuters on New Year’s Eve, BMTC will operate additional buses from MG Road and Brigade Road to different parts of the city, between 11 pm on December 31, 2023, and 2 am on January 1, 2024. The additional buses will operate from MG Road and Brigade Road to Kadugodi Bus Station - HAL Road and Hoodi Road, Sarjapur, Electronics City (Hosur Road), Bannerghatta National Park, Kengeri KHB Quarters, Janapriya Township (Magadi Road), Nelamangala, Yelahanka 5th Stage, RK Hegde Nagar, Bagalur (Hennur Road) Hoskote. Apart from additional bus services operating from MG Road and Brigade Road, BMTC, in the backdrop of the New Year, may provide complementary bus services from other bus stations including Yelahanka, Indiranagar, Koramangala, Shanthinagar, Banashankari, Sumanahalli, Goraguntepalya, Kadugodi, Nagasandra, Hebbal and
Central Silk Board on December 31.