Puri, June 23: Hotels rooms here have been sold out months before the rath yatra. This holy occasion is one time of the year when pilgrims prefer hotels on Bada Danda (Grand Road) to the sea-facing luxury accommodations.

Sources said finding a room on rath yatra day had become next to impossible. The rooms have to be rented at least for three days, be it for rath yatra or bahuda yatra.

Rooms that usually cost Rs 1,000 or less have been rented out for over five to 10 times that price for the festival.

While an air-conditioned room in a standard hotel along Grand Road is charging around Rs 10,500 and above for three days, a regular guesthouse with air-conditioned rooms cost between Rs 12,000 and Rs 15,000.

Puri hotel association president Ramkrushna Das Mohapatra said: "Various agencies book the rooms much in advance for tourists. But, we have given instructions to our members that no one should take advantage of the rus. No one should charge more than the decided tariff."

Srihari Grand Hotel owner Nilakantha Mohapatra said: "A standard hotel never changes the tariff. Otherwise, it will give the wrong message."

"I am a Jagannath devotee and I never miss any opportunity to see the Lord when he comes out of his temple. It costs me around Rs 12,000 for three days during rath yatra. But I never mind spending money," said Vikash Kanungo, a defence official.

But small-time hotels and lodges reduce their rent during the bahuda yatra. "We normally decrease the tariff during off-season and we increase the rate during peak season. Rath yatra is the best time of the year for our business. All the hotels raise the room tariff," said a hotel owner.

Though dharmasala owners said they had been providing accommodation to people at cheaper rates, these facilities sell tickets at hefty rates to people who want to watch the raths from their balconies and rooftops.