Shimla, Apr 15 (PTI) Hotel occupancy shot up to 70-80 per cent in Shimla during the extended long weekend (April 10, 12, 13 and 14); however, hoteliers and tourism stakeholders expressed disappointment as it could have been more had the toll tax collection process not acted as an irritant.

According to the Shimla Hotel and Tourism Stakeholders Association, the long queues at state’s entry point in Parwanoo due to manual collection of entry tax from outside vehicles forced some tourists to return.  “During the long weekend, the room occupancy in Shimla, which shot up to 70-80 per cent, could have surpassed 90 per cent, had the collection at entry point not acted as an irritant,” the association president, M K Seth, told the PTI on Tuesday.

He said the manual collection of tax and disbursal of receipts created long waiting lines of cars at the state border, forcing some tourists to return.

A couple from Delhi told a local hotelier they had planned a trip to Shimla last weekend but changed their plans after hearing about a bad experience with a friend who had to wait at the entry point.

“We have opted for Kalesar in Haryana,” the couple reportedly told the hotelier while cancelling a booking in Shimla.

  The inconvenience at the entry point affects the whole Shimla-Kinnaur tourist circuit as people visit Kufri, Chail, Narkanda, Sarahan and Kinnaur, besides Shimla, on this route.

The tourism stakeholders called for the toll tax collection process to be made automatic and also advocated for introducing the broad gauge rail line to Shimla in the absence of good air connectivity in the state.

According to data from the state tourism department, a total of 30,25,296 tourists (domestic and foreign) visited the Shimla and Kinnaur districts in 2024. PTI BPL AMJ AMJ AMJ