Top 6 reasons to avoid celebrating New Year in Manali

A reveller in Manali during New Year's Eve.

If you are looking forward to a peaceful and smooth start to your New Year then skip Manali. Here are the top reasons why you may like to avoid celebrating New Year in the Manali town.

1. Noisy and over-crowded

An over-crowded Manali on New Year's Eve. — An overcrowded Manali on New Year’s Eve.

Also called the winter’s heaven, Manali turns into more of a lost paradise on New Year’s Eve. Manali is noisy and super-crowded as it’s thronged by lakhs of visitors from all over the country during the festive last week of December from Xamas till the New Year’s Eve.

All the places of interest in Manali including the Hadimba temple, the Mall Road, Old Manali etc are chock-a-block. There is constant honking on the main and internal roads of the town. The crowd of visitors is so huge in Manali during this time of the year that you may actually bump into your neighbour here.

2. Hooliganism

Revellers in Manali on new year's eve — Revellers waving liquor bottles in Manali on New Year’s Eve.

By nightfall, the jam-packed Mall Road of Manali becomes a hub of drunk people and even hooligans on the eve of the New Year. By midnight, there are people, mostly males and drunk, shouting, screaming, popping off fizzy drinks and waving liquor bottles despite a good presence of police personnel. It’s their idea of a party on the Mall Road.

So, if you are thinking of rolling into the new year in a quiet and peaceful manner then Manali or at least the Mall Road is not the ideal place for you to do so.

3. Horrible traffic jams

Manali-traffic-jam-cover — A massive traffic jam near Manali on the Atal Tunnel road. This photograph had gone viral few years back.

There are frequent and often horrible traffic jams in and around Manali during Xamas and New Year due to the huge rush of the visitors. You may encounter traffic jams at the entry point to Manali, on the internal roads of the town and in the nearby Old Manali, Bahang, Palchan etc. At certain locations, traffic jams are so horrible that you remain stuck for hours. If you don’t want to start your new year with such dreadful traffic memories then avoid visiting Manali on New Year’s Eve.

4. Surge in hotel rates

Hotels start charging exorbitant rates during new year

As the number of tourists to Manali surge, so do the hotel rates during this time of the year. The room rates are exorbitant, to say the least, from Xmas till the New Year’s Eve due to the great rush of visitors. Moreover, finding a decent accommodation of your choice also becomes rather difficult.

The price surge can also be seen in other goods and services in Manali. Your lunch and dinner become dearer in dhabas and restaurants and adventure activities like rafting more expensive. So, avoid visiting Manali, if you can, during this time of the year.

5. Overcrowded Atal Tunnel

An overcrowded Atal Tunnel on Christmas in 2023.

Now, who doesn’t want to visit the Atal Tunnel if you are in Manali especially if you are here for the first time? But again, this is not the best time to head for the Atal tunnel due to traffic jams and crowds. In 2023, the crowds of visitors were so huge during Xmas and the New Year’s Eve that even the Atal Tunnel got choked due to vehicle rush, leading to traffic jams inside the tunnel!

According to the Lahaul Spiti district police, a record 28,000 vehicles crossed the Atal Tunnel in just 24 hours. That’s a huge number for a small place like Atal Tunnel. Moreover, you may also face a number of traffic jams on your way to the Atal Tunnel due to heavy rush.

Read here why you should not visit Atal Tunnel in December-end.

6. Rare snowfall possibility

There was a time when Manali used to receive snowfall in December and people would come here on Xmas and the New Year for this very reason. But in recent years, the snow season in Manali seems to have moved ahead a bit. If we look at the recent weather trends, the probability of snowfall on Xmas or New Year’s Eve in Manali is no longer as strong as it used to be, say ten years back.

And just like Shimla, Manali has not received snowfall on Xmas or New Year’s Eve in years. So, if you are thinking of celebrating white Xmas or a snowy New Year in Manali, then I should tell you that the chances are not that bright. Read here the Manali snowfall guide.

Alternatives to Manali

A view of Naggar village from the Roerich Gallery.

For a peaceful and quiet start to the new year, you can stay away from Manali but still near it. There are some good, offbeat places near Manali where you can celebrate the new year in a peaceful and quiet atmosphere. Some of these places near Manali include Naggar, Raison, Kalath, Jagatsukh, Vashisht etc.