Spiti Valley will Remain Closed to Tourists in 2020

Made plans to travel to Spiti Valley in 2020? We have some bad news for you.

The picturesque valley in Himachal Pradesh will remain closed to all tourists for the rest of the year. A circular saying as much was issued by the Spiti Tourism Society.

Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh had announced the opening of its borders to visitors.

The circular mentions that no tourism activity will be allowed in the area, including trekking, camping, package tours and jeep safaris. The decision was taken after talking to local residents and stakeholders such as travel associates, villagers, hoteliers, guides, homestay owners, cab drivers, panchayat spokespersons, Mahila Mandal, Yuva Mandal, Vayapaar Mandal and the local committee formed by villagers in their fight against COVID-19.

Several meetings were held before arriving at this decision, which will be a difficult one for  people as the economy of Spiti Valley is mostly dependent on tourism.

Spiti Tourism Society announces that its closed for tourism for the year 2020

#spiti #covid19 pic.twitter.com/JaQUhqbQNE

— Ajay Banyal (@banyal_9) September 17, 2020

The high altitude locales of Spiti Valley is one of the most stunning places to visit in India. However, an absence of developed infrastructure and medical facilities in a remote area with harsh geographical conditions (especially in winter) makes it tough to tackle COVID cases. A person has to be taken outside the valley if they are in need of any medical assistance.

As of now, Spiti does not have a single case of COVID-19 in the local population. Hence the decision to keep the region tourist free is beneficial for the people.