Recession forgotten, New Year vacations booked

Updated on: 27 December,2009 11:33 AM IST |
Varun Singh |

Party happy Mumbaikars check out of the city to ring in 2010 in Goa, Mahabaleshwar and other destinations

Party happy Mumbaikars check out of the city to ring in 2010 in Goa, Mahabaleshwar and other destinations

All is well for 2010. According to hotel owners, tour and travel operators who confirm that Mumbaikars are headed to Goa, Alibaug, Mahabaleshwar, and even to hill stations up north to usher in the new year.

The beaches of Goa that were left barren last year are bursting with revellers. Deepak Lutharia managing director, Sun City resort, Goa says, "All the rooms in my resort are full. Goa is overcrowded and more than 65 per cent of the crowd is from Mumbai." Last year, people stayed away from Goa because of the security threat. "After 26/11 Goa was on the terror radar. We suffered heavy losses."u00a0

u00a0Avinash Dongare (24) will hitu00a0 Bhimashankar for a trek with his friends. He says, "Staying in Mumbai on a New Year day doesn't seem too appealing for me. Last year, I went to Alibaug." Saroja Shankaran is planning to go to Kashid beach. Suvarana Rane, response executive of Sam San travels says, "All the hotels in Mahabaleshwar are full. We cannot give an exact count, but there is a heavy response from Mumbai from people who want to get out of the city to celebrate New Year."

"Recession mattered last year, but the economy and security seemed to beu00a0 fine now," says Shankaran.

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