“The movement of domestic tourists has increased in Pokhara as people from different parts of the country are coming here to spend their holidays,” Hari Sharma, president of Paschimanchal Hotel Association, told Republica. “The number of domestic tourists was growing throughout the month; it peaked on the New Year weekend.”[break]
According to Sharma, more than half of the total hotel rooms have been occupied by domestic tourists.
“Many tourists went to Mahendrapul and Prithvichowk after they failed to get any rooms in Lakeside,” said Sharma.
The association has been organizing Fewa New Year Festival to celebrate New Year for the past few years.
Sharma said tourists spent around Rs 10 million on Saturday (the New Year eve) alone. “Not only during English New Year, Pokhara is drawing tourists in droves even during Nepali New Year,” he added.
Pokhara hotels had provided 30 percent discount on accommodation and 10 percent discount on food to domestic tourists visiting the lake city on New Year weekend.
Sharma said occupancy rate of domestic tourists in Pokhara hotels has been increasing at a healthy rate over the past few years. “Room occupancy by domestic tourists was just around 5 percent around a decade ago. Now it hovers over 30 percent,” he said, adding, “We have a target to make it 50 percent in the near future.”
Meanwhile, tourist buses operating between Kathmandu and Pokhara are having hard times arranging seats for the domestic tourists and New Year revelers.
Related story
Tourist activity increases in Pokhara: Hotel occupancy reaches...
