At Peak Bloom, Valley of Flowers Set to Draw Even More Visitors Over Next Three Months

Uttarakhand's Valley of Flowers, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, has emerged as this year's top tourist destination, with visitor numbers in just the first two months of the season already outpacing the entire previous year's tally.

Forest department figures show that 16,462 tourists visited the valley between June 1 and July 30 this year — 86 of them foreign nationals, with the rest domestic travellers. In comparison, the valley recorded 15,924 tourists through the whole of last season, including 416 foreign visitors. Although foreign footfall has dipped this year, a surge in domestic tourists has driven the overall numbers to a new high.

The spike in visitors has translated directly into higher earnings for the forest department. Chetna Kandpal, Forest Range Officer at the Valley of Flowers, said the department collected Rs 30.35 lakh in revenue in just two months this season, compared to Rs 33.28 lakh for the entire previous season. With the valley set to remain open to tourists for roughly three more months, officials expect both footfall and revenue to climb further.

The valley's popularity comes even as it faced a brief closure last week. Heavy rainfall had prompted authorities to shut the site to visitors as a precaution on Friday, but it reopened on Saturday once weather conditions improved, drawing over 300 tourists on the very first day back. Kandpal noted that the valley is currently at peak bloom, with the widest range of colourful flower species visible this season.