E-Paper
Foreign tourist arrivals in Hiamchal set to touch post-Covid peak
Himachal has already logged 38,882 tourist arrivals till June and is primed to surpass the 63,000 who visited the state in 2023
The tourism sector in Himachal has experienced a revival following a period of slowdown caused by Covid-19 and monsoon mayhem, with a particular increase in the arrival of foreign tourists.
The state has already logged 38,882 tourist arrivals till June and is primed to surpass the 63,000 who visited the state in 2023. This year’s figure has already surpassed the 29,333 mark from 2022.
Once a favourite among international tourists, Himachal, a picturesque hill state, saw a significant decline in tourist numbers during the Covid-19 outbreak and hit a low of just 5,000 arrivals in 2021. To put things in perspective, 3.83 lakh foreign tourists had visited the state in 2019 before the pandemic hit.
After the Covid-19 woes, heavy rains in August last year triggered floods in the state, causing massive damage to road infrastructure and resulted in a dip in tourist influx.
This year’s trend, however, is now hinting at a resurgence. According to the data shared by the state tourism department, a maximum of 14,095 foreigners have visited Kangra district this year till June, followed by 13,881 visiting Shimla. Meanwhile, 5,114 foreign tourists visited Kullu, and 1,917 visited Kinnaur.
Foreign tourists this time are going to Manali, Dharamshala, Kullu, Dalhousie and the remote tribal valleys of Lahaul and Kinnaur. “There were a lot of foreign tourists this time m and we were delighted to see them back,” said Lara Steering, who runs a hotel in Kaza.
The state government’s efforts to promote tourism and improve infrastructure have also contributed to the industry’s resurgence. Initiatives like the development of new tourist circuits, improvement of road connectivity, and enhancement of hospitality services have made Himachal an even more attractive destination for foreign tourists.
Tourist arrival is one of the main indicators of the demand for tourism in a particular destination. After the Covid-19 pandemic, domestic tourist arrivals also increased from 32.13 lakh in 2020 to 56.37 lakh in 2021 and further to 150.99 lakh in 2022 and 160.05 lakh in 2023 in absolute terms. It shows that the tourist arrivals are reaching pre-pandemic levels. The need of the hour, given our fragile ecosystem, is to ensure that this growth continues sustainably.
Tourism director Manasi Sahay Thakur said the arrival of tourists sees a variation in terms of year-on-year growth rate in the state.
“The tourist arrival hugely improved after the Covid-19 pandemic-induced lockdown. In 2022 the tourist arrival was around 150.99 lakh which was higher than 56.37 lakh tourists reported in 2021. In 2023, this number reached 160.05 lakh and this year we have already crossed the 100.86 lakh mark and we expected these numbers to improve this year,” she said.
Kangra an emerging hotspot
Meanwhile, the foreign tourist arrival to Kangra has also significantly increased this year with 1,4095 arrivals recorded till June. In March alone, 5,822 foreign tourists had arrived in Kangra. Last year, only 6385 foreign tourists arrived till June in Kangra.
Foreigners in large numbers throng Dharamshala and Mcleodganj where the 14th Dalai Lama resides. Dharamshala is also emerging as a sports tourism destination with Indian Premier League and international cricket matches being played at Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) stadium in the city – which is often dubbed as one of the world’s beautiful cricket venues. Kangra also boasts of Bir Billing, the paragliding capital of India.
Kangra Tourism deputy director, Vinay Dhiman, said, “Sports tourism is emerging in Dharamshala and international cricket matches have contributed a lot. We saw that during the test match played between India and England here in March, around 5000 tourists from the UK were reported, which has highlighted this area. The World Cup matches played here last year also helped tourism here. The number of foreign tourists is increasing now.”
Dharamshala Hotel Association president Ashwani Bamba reiterated that the travel restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic had hit the arrival of foreign tourists
“Last year also due to the Israel-Gaza conflict, Israeli tourists declined. However, this year starting in March, both adventure and leisure tourism kicked off aggressively, and religious tourism as well. Till April, the tourists from Israel and European countries started coming and the numbers of foreigners increased in May and June,” he said.
“This revival was witnessed after some years in Himachal. The rush of tourists which we witnessed between 2015 and 2018 was again witnessed this year,” Bamba added.
