Long weekend sees Punekars rushing at tourist places
The Ghat section of the Pune-Mumbai expressway is seeing a lot of traffic jams with people travelling between cities over the weekend
With continuous holidays on Tuesday, August 15 and Wednesday, August 16 on the occasion of Independence Day and Parsi New Year, respectively, many Punekars have planned extended weekend holidays at one or the other tourist destinations such as Mahabaleshwar, Lonavala, Kolhapur, Konkan and even forts across Pune district.
Suryakant Jadhav, vice-president, Mahabaleshwar Hotel Owners’ Association, said, “There is a heavy rush of tourists in Mahabaleshwar, especially at waterfalls and the Venna Lake. Many people are visiting old Mahabaleshwar during the rain; there is a Bushi Dam-like scene at tourist spots in Mahabaleshwar. Hotel rates, too, have risen by 30%.”
Keshav Jamage, owner of a three-star hotel in Mahabaleshwar, said, “All 18 rooms of our hotel are fully booked for the next few days and hotel accommodation rates have gone up in Mahabaleshwar. There is a heavy rush of tourists from all over Maharashtra and even other states.”
Piyush Mhatre, manager of a private resort in Lonavala, said, “As there are continuous holidays for four to five days, tourists not only from Pune and Mumbai but even smaller cities like Satara and Ahmednagar are visiting Lonavala along with their families. The entire city and its tourist spots are packed with people. There is a rush at tourist spots in Lonavala since Sunday morning and by Tuesday, the crowd will only increase.”
Rohan Nalawade, a citizen, said, “We are visiting the Konkan belt: Diveagar Beach and nearby pilgrimage places, with the family for three days. We began our journey Sunday morning and we have done hotel booking for the next three days…”
The Ghat section of the Pune-Mumbai expressway is seeing a lot of traffic jams with people travelling between cities over the weekend.
