The prospect of spending the first day of the New Year amid snowy hills drove a large number of tourists to the hill stations in Himachal Pradesh thereby choking the highway leading to these destinations and hotels packed to capacity.
A large number of tourists from Punjab, Haryana and Delhi set off to visit Shimla, Manali, Dalhousie and Dharamsala to celebrate the New Year as the weatherman forecast snowfall.
However, the excessive number of tourists choked the highways and many of them could reach their destinations only in the early morning while a large lot returned due to non-availability of the hotel rooms.
Heavy traffic jams were witnessed at Mubarakpur, Nangal, Bharwaain, Jasoor and Gaggle or at upper Dharamsala.
"Our daily buses from Chandigarh and Delhi to Shimla, Manali and other places ran at snail's pace and reached their destinations about four to six hours late due to heavy traffic jam," a spokesperson of the Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC) Nanak Chand said.
The hotel owners of Dharamsala, Mecleodganj whose business had taken severe hit post-demonetisation welcomed the instant boost the New Year has triggered in their business.
"Recently, even the advanced bookings were being cancelled. The last two months was a saggy period for the tourism industry in Dharamsala. But the New Year's Eve has changed (our) fortunes," a hotel owner Ram Swroop said.
General Secretary of Hotel Association of Upper Dharamsala Sanjeev Gandhi hoped that the euphoria remains for at least a week.
"The business was not as expected this Christmas, but the weekend has proved profitable. We hope that the tourists will stay till the first week of the next year," he said.
Mcleodganj, the main tourist hub in Dharamsala region, is abuzz with activity as hotels and restaurants are arranging new parties.
While the snow still eludes the Dhauladhars it did not stop the tourists from welcoming the New Year in style as many were seen celebrating and dancing by the roadside on the New Year's eve.
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