Gujaratis flee to hills to escape the heat

Planning a holiday to Shimla, Manali, Kashmir or the North East next weekend? Even if you are prepared to pay higher airfare, you may not get a hotel room.

With more people from Gujarat and other parts of the country escaping to cooler climes to escape the heat, hotels are nearly full in hill stations.

Rooms at five-star properties in Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh and the North East are going for Rs 15,000 per night and upwards, say tour operators in Ahmedabad.

"Most five-star and three-star properties are fully booked or have doubled or tripled tariffs. This summer has been harsh and people haven't taken vacations in two years due to Covid.

As a result of the pent-up demand, there is revenge travel and people are escaping up north.

Room prices in Kashmir, Ladakh, HP and the North East have gone up dramatically.

Even if people book a week in advance, availability is an issue," said Virendra Shah, chairman, Travel Agents' Association of India (TAAI) , Gujarat.