With long weekend over I-Day, tourism boom in region

Nagpur: In an added attraction for tourists visiting Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve (TATR), the buffer zone will start kayaking facility at lakes in Mohurli and Gondmohadi from Thursday. A ‘treasure hunt’ has also been organized in MP Pench.
A kayak is a low-to-the-water, canoe-like boat in which the paddler sits facing forward, legs in front, using a double-bladed paddle to pull front-to-back on one side and then the other in rotation.
Deputy director (buffer) G Guruprasad said, “Buffer is drawing crowds like core area owing to regular tiger sightings. Tourists have been reporting regular tiger sightings in Nimdhela, Sikada, Alizanjha, Dewada, Agarzari and Junona safari areas. On August 3, a tigress with three cubs was sighted in Agarzari zone too.”
“All online bookings are full. Besides, there is demand for discretionary quota too. As there are no rains in the past few days, people have been enjoying safaris in a landscape that has turned beautiful,” said Guruprasad.
The kayaking facility seems to have been introduced keeping in mind the influx of tourists during the weekend. Most of the tourists are flocking to wildlife destinations, mostly Tadoba and MP Pench, with three consecutive holidays from August 14-16 ensuring a full house for resorts.
“August 14 is a Saturday followed by Sunday and Parsi New Year on Monday. All accommodation facilities in the buffer zone are almost full in Mohurli and Kolara,” said naturalist Himanshu Bagde.
Not only wildlife areas, there have been visitors like Swapnil Ajne, whose group of 11 members will be visiting Chikhaldara hill station, though there is no room there. “No hotels and lodges are available in Chikhaldara from August 14 to 16, but we still plan to go and stay at Paratwada, 40km away. Similar is the situation in Pachmarhi, where last-minute travellers are facing difficulty in getting accommodation.”
“After being at home for long due to Covid-19 restrictions, most of the visitors are from Vidarbha region. Tourists are avoiding long-distance travel to other states owing to corona fears. A number of tourists are visiting TATR from Hyderabad also,” said Bagde.
MP Pench Local Advisory Committee (LAC) member Sandeep Singh said in Pench almost all the resorts and lodges are booked during the three-day vacation. “To attract tourists, a group of dozen resorts has organized a treasure hunt on August 15, to villages in the buffer zone,” he said.
“The resorts have tied up with safari vehicles, who will take tourists 70-80km around forested villages in the buffer, to showcase the uniqueness of the villages. It may be art and culture, folk dance, delicacies, historic monuments etc. The guests will win prizes for exploring these activities,” said Singh.
Wildlife lover Nikhil Abhyankar says, “Resorts have been receiving many inquiries at short notice for bookings. People are booking two safaris with one night stay. Apart from safari, there is a need to start other attractions like cycling and machan stays.”