Shimla, Dec 22 - How about celebrating Christmas and ringing in the New Year in a snug wooden cottage amid the orchards with the snow-clad Himalayas in the backdrop? Himachal Pradesh is promising tourists a cozy year-end with local cuisine and folk culture shows thrown in for good measure.

Tourism Director Arun Kumar Sharma said the 'home stay scheme' launched by the state government last year has received overwhelming response from the household owners.

Under the scheme, any resident can rent out a portion of his house to the tourists after getting the premises registered with the tourism department.

"At present, 176 private houses are ready to welcome the city slickers who want to enjoy rural tourism in a homely atmosphere. Most of the houses are located in the tourist hubs of Kullu and Shimla," he said.

The Kullu valley has the maximum 56 registered house-owners under the scheme.

"Most of the houses are located in the picturesque Kullu valley. Some of them are located amid thick forest where the tourists get a chance to admire nature. Even in Shimla district, we have 27 registered houses. These are located mainly on the outskirts of popular tourist spots like Narkanda, Naldehra, Theog and Kufri," Sharma told IANS.

According to him, the main attraction of the rural destinations is that they allure a large number of budget tourists - both domestic and overseas.

"We have exempted the registered private houses from luxury and sales tax. Moreover, they will be charged domestic rates for electricity and water. So staying in these houses is not only cozy but also cheaper," he said.

Manav Sachdeva, a home-stay unit owner at Gulaba near Manali in Kullu district, said that due to snowfall the area is attracting a large number of families for year-end holidaying.

Sharma said the 'home-stay scheme', launched on the pattern of the union tourism ministry's 'Incredible India Bed and Breakfast Scheme', not only helps generating self-employment opportunities for the local people but also decongesting urban areas.

"The scheme helps decongesting urban towns and also checks fleecing by hoteliers during the peak season," he said.

To encourage more and more people to adopt the scheme, the tourism department has started imparting training to registered house owners.

"Officials are conducting regular inspections of registered houses keeping in view the rush of the visitors. Very shortly, a directory of all such approved establishments will be compiled. Right now, a tourist can book the home-stay unit at any of the state-run tourism booking centres," he said.

Tourism is an important contributor to Himachal Pradesh's economic development. Last year, 9.37 million domestic and 367,000 foreign tourists visited the state.

Kullu-Manali has emerged as a favourite tourist destination among tourists, followed by Shimla and Dharamsala. (IANS)