 "Rajasthan tourism on rise as New Year nears, hotel tariffs skyrocket")
Hotel tariffs are skyrocketing in Rajasthan as tourists continue to flock to the state with the New Year closing in.
Hoteliers said star-category and famous heritage hotels in the state may hit full occupancy soon. Even budget hotels may go out of tourists’ reach between December 30, 2023 and January 2, 2024, they said.
Surendra Tanwar, a hotelier, said that though the number of rooms had increased in the state, the number of tourists visiting Rajasthan has also jumped.
According to the state government data, over 108.5 million tourists visited Rajasthan in 2022. For the first six months of 2023, the number of domestic and foreign tourists is estimated at about 60.5 million.
More than 150,000 tourists visited the state capital Jaipur during the Diwali week from 9 to 15 November.
Trade experts estimate that the number of tourists this year may be 10 to 12 per cent more than 2022.
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“Leaving aside the major tourism centres, rural tourism and resort tourism has developed quite well in places like Hadoti, Shekhawati and western Rajasthan,” said Karan Singh, who runs a tourist agency. “A tourist may find room in these places at competitive rates even during the New Year period. My advice would be if you want to book a room in the desert state then do it fast otherwise it would be difficult,” he added.
“Youngsters usually travel around New Year; hence we are expecting a good inflow of tourists in Rajasthan. Of the tourists coming now, 70 per cent are domestic and the remaining are foreigners,” he said.
Surendra Singh, managing director of Shahpura Hotels, said that between October to March, hotel occupancy ranged between 75 and 80 per cent but the bookings were almost full on Christmas, New Year and weekends.
Tour operator Sanjay Kaushik of Rajasthan Holiday Makers said that hotels of Udaipur and Jaisalmer were almost full for New Year, even as tourist enquiries keep coming. “In such a situation, we are anticipating a big jump in the arrival of tourists,” Kaushik said.
Apart from the major tourist destinations, tourists are also visiting other state destinations. Kaushik said that after Udaipur and Jaisalmer, tourists' choices ranged from Jaipur, Kota, Bundi, Shekhawati in the Hadoti region, Ranthambore, Alwar, Sariska, Keoladeo National Park, among others.