With the start of the Tihar holiday, the crowds at Pokhara's hotels and tourist destinations have not yet diminished. Due to the favorable weather and the holiday season, the number of tourists in Pokhara has increased significantly since the day after Tihar. Apart from domestic tourists, tourists from India and other countries are also busy traveling.

Due to the Gen-G movement, the tourist flow was very low during the Dashain holidays. It was not the same during Tihar. Some tourists found it difficult to find a room to stay in Pokhara. Chandra Bahadur Thing from Hetauda was surprised to see the crowd of tourists in Pokhara in the last two days. ‘They didn’t come according to the season before.’ This time, there were a lot of people. Today there are even fewer than yesterday,’ he said when met at Barahi Ghat on the banks of Fewa Lake. He said that it took him about two hours at night to find a hotel in Pokhara.

The culture of going out for sightseeing during the festive holidays of Asoj and Kartik has increased a lot among Nepalis after COVID-19. Apart from this, foreign tourists also come to Pokhara for trekking and sightseeing during this time, i.e. in September, October, and November. Pokhara is a 'transit' for visiting the Annapurna Circuit including Mustang, North Annapurna Base Camp in Myagdi, Punhill, South Annapurna Base Camp in Kaski, Mardi, Khafuche, Kori, Khumai-Korcha, and Tilicho Lake in Manang.

This is the reason why many tourists stay overnight in Pokhara and head towards their destination. This is also one of the reasons why Pokhara is full of tourists. Apart from those who make a 'transit' to visit, the number of people who come to visit Pokhara alone with their families and friends is also not less. Tourists also flocked to the tourist villages near Pokhara, Sikles, Lwang, Ghandruk, and Tangting. Businessmen of all the popular destinations in Gandaki Province had to request people not to come without pre-booking.

A crowd of tourists taking and returning life jackets to take a boat ride at Barahi Ghat on the banks of Fewa Lake. Photo: Anup/Kantipur

There are 1,200 hotels in the lakeside and market areas of Pokhara. These hotels have a capacity of 40,000 beds. Laxman Subedi, president of the Hotel Association Pokhara, said that the influx of tourists during Tihar has been a great relief to them. He said that 90 percent of the hotels were booked as of Tuesday. ‘There was a movement at the beginning of the main season.’ He added that the order was issued to not go out of the house due to the weather,’ he added, ‘There used to be a heavy presence of tourists from Ekadashi to Purnima of Dashain.’ This time it was not like that. There was a very good booking during Tihar.’ According to him, last year, hotels used to have up to 80 percent occupancy during Dashain. He said that this year, only 35 percent occupancy was available during Dashain.

Fewa Lake, Begnas Lake, Pumdikot Mahadev Temple, Talbarahi Temple, Vindhyavasini Temple, Shanti Stupa, Patale Chhango, Gupteshwor Cave, Chamere Cave, Mahendra Cave have been crowded with tourists. The crowd of people taking boat rides in Fewa Lake and going to Talbarahi Temple has been making it difficult for boat drivers since the day after Tihar.

Fewa Boat Traders Association President Balram Giri said that the crowd of visitors and tourists that is usually seen until the full moon of Dashain has been seen this time during Tihar. He said that the drivers of all eight boat ghats have not had any free time for four days. ‘Earlier, there used to be a lot of crowds on the full moon.’ Now, there are so many domestic tourists that they cannot cope,’ he said.

Tourists going by boat to visit Talbarahi Temple in Fewa Lake. Photo: Anup/Kantipur

He said that an estimated 20,000 tourists have been taking boat rides at Talbarahi Temple and Fewa Lake since the day after Tihar. ‘We have eight ghats. The pressure has increased as the boatmen have been operating them,’ he added, ‘The weather is also good after Dashain. It has also become a tourist destination. It seems that the pressure has increased dramatically.’

Trekking Agencies Association of Nepal (TAAN) Gandaki President Krishna Prasad Acharya says that the tourism sector has felt a lot of relief in recent years as the culture of traveling and hiking-trekking has developed among Nepalis. He believes that the culture of traveling has developed due to the feeling of traveling in the country before abroad, easy access to transportation, and the discovery of new destinations. ‘Young people are liking adventure tourism. It seems that the feeling of visiting one's own country first has also developed. It is customary for those who are abroad to come and visit the country at this time,' he said.