Kullu-Manali bounces back: Winter hope dawns after tough monsoon

After an unusually harsh monsoon season that caused extensive damage to road infrastructure across Mandi and Kullu districts, tourism stakeholders in Kullu-Manali are now looking forward to a strong revival in visitor numbers with the onset of winter.

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The monsoon-triggered landslides, road blockages and travel disruptions significantly reduced tourist inflow during peak months, resulting in one of the leanest seasons in recent years for the region, which heavily relies on tourism. Official figures for 2025 highlight the overall tourist movement to the region, revealing a total of 20,48,584 Indian and 7,923 foreign tourists visiting during the first nine months. While the early months of the year performed fairly well with January (2,85,266 Indians; 689 foreigners), February (2,37,272; 773) and March (2,65,388; 831) maintaining steady numbers, the situation improved further in April and May, which recorded 3,17,840 and 3,37,181 domestic tourists respectively.