India, Jan. 26 -- Hundreds of travellers from Delhi NCR flocked to the popular hill station of Manali recently, lured by the promise of picturesque snowfall and the Republic Day long weekend. What many had envisioned as a dream holiday, however, quickly turned into a nightmare, as massive traffic jams left tourists stranded inside their vehicles - or even on foot - for hours on end.

One such person who spent almost two days stuck inside a car en route spoke to HT.com about the ordeal.

Bharat Sharma, 37, planned a road trip to Himachal Pradesh with three other friends last week. The group spent two days in Solang Valley, located roughly 14km above Manali. On January 23, they decided to start their return journey to Delhi.

When Sharma an...