The state government allowed hotels and resorts across Bengal to reopen from June 8 as part of Unlock 1, but it’s been a mixed bag.

The state tourism department has gone ahead and reopened five of its properties.

However, those running private accommodations in popular transit points and tourist hotspots, be it Siliguri and Dooars in the north or Digha in the south, are still wary of letting in guests despite crippling losses.

The Telegraph speaks to hoteliers at some of the top tourist magnets in Bengal to understand their concerns.

Siliguri

Most hoteliers are hesitant to reopen their properties though in the past 80 days of lockdown, over 250 hotels in and around Siliguri incurred a loss of around Rs 150 crore.

A major problem is the shortage of staff as most hail from other districts.

“After the lockdown was announced, they left for their homes. If we call them back now, they will have to be in quarantine. Also, most properties were closed for almost three months and it would take time to clean and sanitise the buildings and do maintenance jobs. That is why we need some more time,” said Greater Siliguri Hoteliers’ Welfare Association joint secretary Ujjwal Ghosh.

The hoteliers also pointed out the lack of any mechanism to screen and sanitise a prospective guest and his luggage in most hotels.

Siliguri could have a few business travellers even now, but Ghosh said the cost of opening the properties would be huge. “There has to be a balance in expenditure and earnings,” he said, indicating that costs could weigh heavy.

Dooars

In the Dooars, from Lataguri to Madarihat to Jayanti, most resort owners rued lack of inquiries.

“By opening the resorts now, we will only lose more money as there are no bookings in sight. Even if people from Calcutta and other parts of the state want to come here, there is only one train these days. There are containment zones in some areas of the Dooars and Covid-19 cases are on the rise in some places. We doubt how many guests will turn up here during the next couple of months. There were some bookings this month but those got cancelled,” said the Dooars Tourism Development Forum assistant secretary Biplab Dey.

Resort owners also said that like every year, forests would close from June 16 and reopen on September 15.

“During these months, there is always a decline in tourist flow. This year, the situation is unprecedented because of the pandemic. This is yet another reason why we want to wait and watch,” said Lataguri Resort Owners’ Welfare Association secretary Dibyendu Deb.

Digha & Mandarmani

The hoteliers’ association in Digha, which kept its 600-odd hotels shut since March 25, held a meeting on Wednesday where they decided that hotels in the “interiors” of the town would be closed till June 30.

Around 100 hotels in Digha set to open are “sea-facing” and “close to the main roads.”

“Concerns include hygiene standards for staff and guests and the worry that we may not be able to cover operating costs upwards of Rs 1 lakh a month with low footfall,” said a source in the association, adding they had not received any new inquiry or booking. “Also, there are no trains, and only a few buses have hit the roads.”

In nearby Mandarmani, the situation is different. Almost all 10-odd resorts reopened with 25 per cent occupancy as of Wednesday. Hotel operators attributed it to tourists driving their own vehicles to Mandarmani, instead of taking a bus or a train.

“We decided to reopen our hotels on getting inquiries from Calcutta residents who needed a release from the lockdown,” said Mandarmani Hoteliers’ Association secretary Debulal Das Mahapatra, adding they were following safety and social distancing norms.

Sources in Tajpur said hotels were set to reopen in a phased manner from June 15. The accommodations owned by the state — including the DSDA guest houses and youth hostels — are still closed.

Additional reporting by our Jalpaiguri and Alipurduar correspondents