Mysuru Dasara hotel rates have risen sharply as tourist bookings increase ahead of the festival, with some rooms reportedly becoming three times more expensive than on regular days. Luxury rooms priced at around ₹5,000 a day are being offered for ₹15,000, while deluxe lodges charging ₹3,000 have raised rates to as much as ₹12,000, according to a report by Prajavani – Mysuru. Goods and Services Tax is charged separately.
The increase is being driven by a rise in visitor demand as schools and colleges close for the Dasara holiday. Tourists from Bengaluru, other Karnataka districts and outside the state are travelling to Mysuru to visit the festival and its major attractions. Advance bookings through online platforms have also increased, particularly for the Dasara period and the days around the Vijayadashami Jamboo Savari procession.
High visitor numbers have been reported at the Amba Vilas Palace, the Chamarajendra Zoological Gardens and Chamundi Hill. Hotels, restaurants and messes serving Mysuru specialties, including Mysuru pak, different varieties of dosa and biryani, are also seeing more customers. Buses and trains arriving from Bengaluru, other districts and neighbouring states are reported to be crowded.
A representative of a corporate company told the newspaper that several hotels were contacted to reserve rooms for senior officials, but the rates quoted were about three times higher than usual. The account illustrates how the seasonal surge is affecting not only leisure travellers but also organisations seeking short-term accommodation in the city.
A hotel owner told Prajavani – Mysuru that room rates had increased because of higher tourist demand and could rise further during Dasara and closer to the Jamboo Savari. The owner said bookings at better-equipped accommodation facilities had gained pace, with ministers, legislators, businesspeople and foreign visitors making advance reservations.
Government guest houses and tourist lodges have reportedly been reserved for elected representatives and officials, while forest department guest houses are also unavailable. Service apartments and homestays, which have expanded in Mysuru in recent years, are being booked online by visitors from outside the state, in some cases for stays lasting several weeks.
Hotels, homestays and service apartments in Mysuru and its surrounding areas together offer about 18,500 rooms. C. Narayan Gowda, president of the Mysuru Hotel Owners Association, said the city had more than 420 hotels and that their rooms had not yet been fully booked. He said vacancies were expected to disappear as the Jamboo Savari approached, while acknowledging that rates had increased at star hotels.
The immediate accommodation pressure puts attention on how Mysuru manages short-duration visitor surges during its largest annual festival. For visitors, final room availability and pricing are expected to remain closely linked to booking demand through the Dasara period and the Vijayadashami procession.
