Yuletide spirit brings tourists back to Hills... hotels booked.. unexpected tourist flow

Deep Gazmer | TNN |  Dec 25, 2017, DARJEELING: Much to the surprise of the tourism industry, the Yuletide spirit has brought in the otherwise reluctant tourists to the Hills, giving tour operators and hoteliers hope of making up for the loss caused by the three-month agitation.

Some of the heritage hotels are fully booked till the first week of January and restaurants are working on a war footing to cater to the unexpected rush of tourists. "We have 25 rooms and all are packed till the first week of January," said Badal Majumdar, manager of The Elgin.

The hotel has prepared a mouth watering spread for the Christmas and New Year programmes. Along with complimentary wine, the hotel will offer continental dishes like roast lamb with brown sauce, roast pork with apple sauce, grilled fish, Chicken a la Kiev and a variety of salads and plum pudding with brandy sauce. 

"Besides the food, we will also have carols for two days, a bonfire with cocktail and a cultural programme for Christmas. For New Year, we have hired a DJ to entertain our guests," Majumdar added.

Deep Arora, owner of the Park Restaurant — popular for its Thai dishes — was pleasantly surprised by the sudden rush. "There is an increase in the number of tourists. It happened a couple of days back. But it's good for the Hills," he said. 

Tourists will get to enjoy authentic pan-Asian food like Chicken Taipei, Dimsum (Buddha delight) and Khai Luk Khai (half-moon eggs tossed in tamarind sauce) and roast pot chicken (in special herbs).

Glenary's will continue to dish out traditional delicacies for Christmas and New Year. 

"Our products will be the same as they were 70 years ago. We will have the traditional plum cake, mince pies and pudding. We will also serve our popular steaks and mixed sizzlers," said owner Ajay Edward, adding that the Christmas dinner would be skipped this year.

The Cathedral of Immaculate Conception (Loreto Church), which is celebrating its 125th year, will hold the midnight mass with youths at the forefront. 

"We will have our usual midnight mass. Celebratory programmes of the 125 years of existence are already in progress," said Stephen Lepcha, the pro-vicar of the church.