His Holiness Dalai Lama is scheduled to visit Sikkim from December 11 to 14.

The visit of the spiritual and temporal leader of the Tibetan people to Sikkim is expected to generate interest beyond the Himalayan state as followers from across the region are expected to attend his events.

Sikkim chief secretary V.B. Pathak chaired a preparatory meeting for the upcoming visit with elaborate discussions on logistics and security, said a source.

“A comprehensive list of tasks related to security, logistics, communication, coordination and cultural aspects was assigned to various departments and officials,” said a source, adding that the meeting was attended by heads of departments.

The spiritual leader was earlier scheduled to visit Sikkim between October 16 to 22 but the devastation caused by the flash flood on the intervening night of October 3 and 4 led to the visit being cancelled. He directed the Dalai Lama Trust to donate Rs 10 lakh to the Sikkim chief minister relief's fund.

Dalai Lama’s visit to Sikkim is also expected to encourage people to travel to Sikkim.

Since the flash flood, tourism has virtually come to a standstill in the Himalayan region which normally gets some 16 lakh tourists annually.

On Monday, the tourism and civil aviation department of Sikkim issued an advisory stating most destinations were open for tourists now.

“It is to inform all tourists that only the extreme northern part of Sikkim is not accessible. All the other destinations of the state are open for tourists and there is no untoward situation as the impact of flood in Teesta has since normalised,” the advisory issued by Bandana Chettri, additional secretary of the department, states.

Tourist points in the districts of Gangtok, Namchi, Soreng, Pakyong and Gyalshing are safe to visit, the official said.

“Sikkim is all set to welcome the guests as a proud state in India to be featured in the prestigious list of Coolest Destination to visit in 2024 by National Geographic,” stated Chettri.

“Until now, bookings for December have not picked up. The festive season, usually a major tourist season, was a complete washout,” a hotelier said. “We only hope things get better.”