Rishikesh in Uttarakhand has observed a flurry of travellers more than the previous couple of months considering that Covid-19 restrictions have been eased and folks have picked up the self-assurance to venture out for vacations as infections decline steadily. On weekends, hostels and hotels are practically complete and in spite of the truth that there are no foreign vacationers, these locations are not feeling the pinch. Long a spiritual town, Rishikesh, in the Himalayan foothills on the banks of the Ganges, has also turn out to be popular for river rafting and got a luxury touch with a quantity of upmarket hotels opening up.
Rishikesh is also benefitting mainly because folks really feel safer going for holidays in their personal autos considering that the pandemic, and the town is inside comfy driving distance of locations like Delhi.
Dr. Shagun Sabbarwal and his wife from Yamunanagar in Haryana chose to devote their initial vacation just after the lockdown in Rishikesh this month. “We are here for the weekend to celebrate our anniversary,” he tells us. “We came to Rishikesh because it was a change from the usual crowded hill stations and we wanted some peace of mind.”
With a new railway station opening this year, more folks are probably to make their way to this town. Earlier the closest railway station was Haridwar but now the Yog Nagri railway station is operational with a handful of unique trains.
Over the years as Rishikesh became well-known for rafting and as a centre for yoga, several foreigners and backpackers produced their way right here. To cater to them, a quantity of well-known hostels have cropped up such as Zostel, Hashtag, goSTOPS and Moustache. Recently Leisure Hotels launched The Hideaway Bedzzz, a boutique hostel-cum-hotel – as it presents each bunk beds as effectively as rooms.
Despite the truth that foreigners are no longer coming, most of the hostels are reporting higher occupancies, as folks cooped up for months choose to venture out.
But the premium traveller is also lured to take a look at this scenic town and therefore several luxury hotels have opened up in the previous couple of years. Taj Rishikesh Resort & Spa, The Roseate Ganges, Lemontree Premier, Sterling Palm Bliss are some of them.
Some of these hotels have opened slightly away from the major town on the Rishikesh-Badrinath Road but enterprise is fantastic for them mainly because luxury travellers choose to be away from the buzz of the town.
At the The Roseate Ganges in Rishikesh, there has been an upswing in occupancies month on month considering that its reopening in July final year and by October, it was sold out on all weekends. For such hotels targeting micro markets is the important now. “International travel cannot resume immediately hence there is a need to tap the domestic market where there is more than enough,” says Namit Agnihotri, Area General Manager, Roseate Hotels & Resorts. He adds that access to the private beach and clean air, water and atmosphere have enticed Indian guests, generating domestic vacationers a hallmark for the resort.
The Glasshouse on the Ganges, a Neemrana hotel, is about 20km ahead of major Rishikesh. It has observed fantastic enterprise considering that it revamped and opened in mid-December. “People are driving down from Delhi, Punjab, Haryana and Gurgaon,” says hotel manager Makrand Bhardwaj. “In addition to this, we have people coming from Mumbai and Bangalore because they have direct flights to Dehradun. Fifty percent of the guests have come from metro cities.” They are hunting forward to a fantastic season from February onwards.
The hotels also really feel that as upmarket domestic vacationers can no longer travel overseas, they are prepared to devote funds in luxury hotels in scenic destinations giving them with brisk enterprise.