Tamluk, June 25: Digha is bursting at the seams this weekend.

The unrest in the Darjeeling hills has prompted many people to tweak their travel plans and visit the sea resort instead during the extended weekend that have stretched on to Monday.

According to the hoteliers' association, nearly 1.5 lakh tourists have flocked to Digha and nearby Madarmani and Tajpur since Saturday. Many have been forced to return home, with a majority of the hotels displaying "no rooms available" boards.

"This weekend, Digha has witnessed a massive swell of tourists. The unrest in Darjeeling has almost closed the doors on visitors to the hills. Mandarmani and Tajpur have also witnessed similar footfall," the additional district magistrate in charge of tourism, Prasanta Adhikari, said.

Sources said many tourists had been putting up at the houses of local residents in the absence of hotel rooms. There are around 600 private hotels in Digha, Mandarmani and Tajpur and some government-run accommodations.

"During Christmas and New Year, Digha gets additional footfall of picnickers. But this weekend, it's huge. Our estimate is that over 1.5 lakh tourists have visited Digha this weekend," said Bipradas Chakraborty, the joint secretary of the Digha-Sankarpur Hoteliers' Association.

The manager of a private hotel in Digha, Subhas Mishra, said: "We have 30 rooms and all are booked from Friday to Monday. We have had to refuse accommodation to many tourists."

A private firm employee from Calcutta, Pannalal Banerjee, said: "I had originally planned this weekend in the hills with my wife and five-year-old son. But we were forced to cancel the trip and visit Digha instead."