The tourism industry in the state is on a rebound after a dull patch during the Covid-19 pandemic. The threat of Bird Flu adding to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic woes, has, however, barely dented the sector, which is seeing a revival with people stepping out of their cities, towns and villages with a vengeance following months of restrictions.
Dfficials and experts from tourism and hospitality sectors observe that tourist crowds have increased so much that roads leading to Mysuru, Ooty, Kodagu and other places from Bengaluru often seeing traffic gridlocks as most tourists from within the state prefer taking their own vehicles rather than rely on trains or government or private buses.
Six months from June to November 2020 saw Mysuru Palace registering 1.53 lakh tourists. But December alone registered 1.15 lakh footfalls and over 70 per cent of rooms in hotels were booked during the last week of December. The figure has slightly dipped now, more due to schools reopening than over fears of Bird Flu.
Also, with the corporate sector encouraging Work From Home (WFH) and schools and colleges starting their offline classes, with an option of continuing online sessions, people are considering this as a “break” and travelling, giving a boost to tourism in the state again. A recent meeting of tourism department officials with all the stakeholders found that towards December-end, there was 80-90 per cent occupancy at hotels and homestays in Chikkamagaluru, Hassan and Kodagu, especially at the facilities run by the Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation, Jungle Lodges & Resorts and established private properties.
Chikkamagaluru, with about 400 home stays, is known for its tourist destinations like Sringeri, Horanadu, Kalasa, Datta Peetha and Kemmannugundi. The owner of tourism department-approved tourist travels, Inayat, says footfalls — domestic and international — stood at 6,67,350 in January-February 2020, but fell to 1,23,104 in March with the Covid-19 outbreak, and April-May recorded zero visitors. But since November, the situation has improved, and although there is a threat of Birhid Flu looming, it has not impacted tourism in the district for now, he adds.
Home Stays Owners’ Association vice-president Holadagadde Girish says, “Business has started picking up with 1,4,555 visitors coming to Malnad region. But Bird Flu may impact it again if cases start here.” On December 25 and 26, 2020, resorts, home stays and lodges were booked to their capacity across Kodagu. The district had closed its doors for five months before opening it in August, although with stringent Covid-19 standard operating procedures in place. It started with a trickle with less than 10 per cent of tourist inflow in August-September, but the arrival of the festive season changed all that.
“When all the rooms were booked, it felt like a major boom to the sector and that the industry was suddenly supplied with a lot of oxygen to recover,” says Nagendra Prasad, president, Kodagu District Hotels & Resorts Association. Chandrashekhar Hebbar, president, Karnataka Hoteliers’ Association, says that the hospitality sector should stabilise now, as it is all about people’s trust. Once they get over their fears and exercise caution, tourism will increase further.
The news of Covid-19 vaccine coming, too, has given a fillip to the sector, he points out. But the Bird Flu scare has hit the number of tourists visiting the Old Mysuru region, where a few popular bird sanctuaries and a zoo are located. C Narayanagowda, president, Mysuru Hotel Owners’ Association, says that the Bird Flu scare has indeed led to a slight drop in bookings since January 5. “Between December 24 and January 4, over 70 per cent of hotel rooms were booked and saw a good number of tourists, but there are lesser check-ins after January 5,” he adds.
The Ranganthittu Bird Sanctuary, Kokkare Bellur and Sri Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens that are some of the major tourist attractions are experiencing lesser number of visitors than in December.
But Mysuru zoo executive director Ajith Kulkarni says that all precautionary measures are in place on the zoo premises and there is no need to worry. Sudhesh Shetty, a tourism industry expert from Udupi, denies that Bird Flu has impacted coastal tourism. He says the initial trouble caused by Covid is now fading. With the pandemic being managed well now, tourists are visiting beaches, temples and sight-seeing destinations in large numbers.
In December, there were signs of recovery and now it is only gaining traction, he says. Rajshekar Moolya, a tour operator at Maravanthe in Kundapur taluk, says “In fact, we never thought recovery will be this fast.” According to a senior official of Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), “Every day, around 2,000 tourists throng the world-famous monuments at Pattadakalu, which is a UNESCO-recognised world heritage site, Badami caves, Gol Gumbaz and other historical places in Bagalkot and Vijayapura districts.” Since December third week and the beginning of 2021, there has been a mad rush of tourists to the historic fort, Chandravalli caves, Adu Malleshwara zoo and the Jogimatti forest in Chitradurga and the historic Vasantha Mantapa in Santhebennur, and Shanthi Sagar lake in Channagiri taluk of Davanagere district.
Tourist operator Channamallikarjun, who owns tourist cabs in Davanagere, says that for the last eight months, his income had touched the rock bottom and he was even unable to repay debts, “but now since last month, there is a recovery in incomes and vehicles are moving daily and a respectable income is being generated”. Across Uttara Kannada district, bookings at home stays and resorts are full up to January 31. The sector, which is on a path to recovery after a slump due to pandemic, appears to be sustaining the new Bird Flu threat as well.
— With inputs from: Bosky Khanna, Prajna GR, B Thipperudrappa,Karthik KK, Prakash Samaga, Mahesh Goudar, Ramakrishna Badseshi,G Subhash Chandra, Subhash Chandra NS