Rannotsav to be held from mid-November

Ahmedabad: Craving for a getaway in 2020? Well, the state government will soon add some silver lining to the hopes of travellers! Gujarat’s signature tourism festival, Rannotsav, which is held every year from November to February, will be held this year too. At a time when tourism industry has seen a drastic decline in bookings, the state government is all geared up to host the festival, revealed sources, from mid-November onwards till February-end. “The government will soon make an official announcement about the festival which is expected to begin in mid-November and bookings will shortly open. The tent city is being readied to welcome tourists under a new normal and we are taking all precautions to ensure social distancing and utmost hygiene is maintained. We are also reorganizing the dining space, where more people congregate and spacing it out and have deployed additional buses which will only ferry tourists at half the capacity or less,” said Nikhil Aggarwal, partner of the event management company which organizes Rannotsav. The annual festival attracted at least 50,000 tourists last season, including people from Gujarat and other parts of India, NRIs who visit their home state during the winter months and even a few foreign nationals. The organizers have slashed package prices to woo tourists. “We have reduced the package price across categories by 20% to encourage more tourists to visit the festival. We have not reduced itinerary but have worked on ensuring social distancing and safety of tourists in the wake of the pandemic,” said Aggarwal. Industry sources, however, said the footfall may take a hit by at least 30% in the wake of the pandemic and even a likely reduction in number of international travellers. Tour operators however, feel that the decision to hold the festival will help revive tourism in the state.