CHANDIGARH: Tourists now prefer vacationing in Himachal Pradesh over Jammu and Kashmir after the Pahalgam terror attack in which 26 persons were killed. Approximately 15-20% of both domestic and international bookings have shifted from Kashmir to Himachal's popular destinations including Manali, Shimla and Dharamshala; however, the surge in footfall is not as expected as tourists have adopted a 'wait-and-watch' policy amid prevailing uncertainties and hostilities between India and Pakistan.
Ashwani Bamba, president of the Hotel and Restaurant Association of Kangra, told TNIE that, after the terror attack, tour operators and potential tourists inquired for booking in Himachal and Uttarakhand and that they expected the surge to be significant.
"But, actually only 15-20% of tourists shifted from J&K to Himachal and the rest probably prefer to not venture out during this summer season owing to the escalating tensions between India and Pakistan. Thus, the occupancy of hotels across the state at present is around 40% only, the same as last year. Bookings that were shifted were that of tourist groups traveling from Maharashtra, Gujarat and other states, not the immediate bookings in Kashmir which had gotten cancelled," he said.
Bamba added that, in Himachal, Manali had the maximum number of shifted bookings at about 20%, while Dharamsala, Dalhousir and Shimla had much fewer. He said that advance bookings had already been made for the IPL matches in Dharamsala.
Mohinder Seth, president of Himachal Pradesh Tourism Stakeholders Association, said that tourists are adopting a wait and watch policy due to India-Pakistan tensions.
"On everyone's mind, there is only one question: What will the Union government do in the coming days? The common is just waiting for that. There were a lot of inquiries after the unfortunate incident as people got diverted from the Kashmir Valley, but the actual number of bookings are very less. In May, generally, there is about 30-40% occupancy across the state, after May 15 we are expecting that it may touch 60-70% as advance bookings are already been done," he said.
This tragedy not only upended the tourism sector in Kashmir, but has also impacted the neighboring states of Himachal and Uttarakhand.
Ex-President of Manali Hotel Association Mukesh Thakur said that after terror attack there was lot of expectation that the tourist rush will shift to Himachal and lot of queries had also come.
"But the number of booking which are less as, first, the tourists have to get their booking cancelled and take a refund and then again they will think where to go. Already as predicted that the summers will be hot this year so already there are lot of booking done in advance as far as Manali is concerned. At present around 30-40% occupancy in the hotels here and after May 15 as summer intensifies the occupancy is expected to touch more than 80% as already people have booked. Also is expected that in coming days more online bookings will be done."
The tourism industry contributes 7.78 per cent to the GDP of the hill state. As per the Economic Survey report for Himachal Pradesh for 2024-25, the number of domestic visitors increased to 1.8 crore in 2024 from 56.32 lakh in 2021 while the surge in foreign tourists was 83,000 in 2024 from 5000 in 2021. On the other hand the tourism industry contributes 7.2 per cent to the GDP of Jammu and Kashmir.
