NAINITAL/MUSSOORIE: Even as the state government extended the curfew in Uttarakhand for a week (till June 8 morning), some hotels and resorts in Nainital and Mussoorie have started opening up for tourists. The hoteliers said that they have been suffering losses for the last several months and it has become untenable for them to keep their establishments shut.

Speaking to TOI, Arvind Singh, a hotelier from the Pangot area of Nainital, said that he has lost several lakhs of rupees in the last two months. “We have had no income for more than two months now. How can we pay staff and maintain the hotel if we don’t earn anything?” he said.

Another hotelier said currently, rooms are being given only to the people seeking ‘workation (working vacation) packages’ and willing to spend a few weeks working from hills. “We do not want to take any risks either, that's why Covid-negative report is mandatory for bookings. Besides, we only rent rooms if people are willing to stay for a few weeks,” said the hotelier.

Meanwhile, hotel associations said that they expect the state government to ease tourist restrictions as Covid cases are declining. “Even though a few hotels on the outskirts have opened up, most of us have chosen to keep our establishments shut because there are no tourists. We expect that the government will soon ease Covid restrictions and by the middle of June, we can have good tourist footfall,” said Ved Sah, secretary of Nainital Hotel and Restaurant Association.

Similarly, in Mussoorie, about a dozen hotels have opened up recently. "With Covid-19 cases going down and people getting vaccinated, hoteliers are expecting tourist activities to pick up in the latter half of June. Therefore, some hotels have started opening up in anticipation," said Sandeep Sahni, president of Hotel and Restaurant Association of Uttarakhand.