Shimla, Nov 29 (IANS): The popular tourist destination Manali in Himachal Pradesh on Friday saw the season's lowest temperature of minus 0.6 degree Celsius.

However, it remained bereft of snow but hills in its vicinity received plentiful snowfall, turning them even more picturesque.

As news of the snowfall flashed across the plains, tourists started booking Manali resorts to enjoy the snowy landscape.

The Solang ski slopes were covered by snow. So were tourist destinations Kufri and Narkanda in Shimla district that experienced mild snowfall, giving tourists a chance to enjoy it.

Peaks overlooking other popular tourist resorts like Dharamsala and Palampur have also received fresh snow.

"The higher reaches in Kinnaur, Lahaul and Spiti, Shimla, Kullu, Sirmaur and Chamba districts witnessed moderate snowfall in the past two days," an official of the meteorological office here told IANS.

The temperatures remained below the freezing point at most places in the state after widespread rain and snow, said the official, adding it is likely to snow across the state till Saturday.

Keylong, headquarter town of Lahaul and Spiti district, was the coldest at a minimum temperature of minus 5.9 degrees Celsius.

Kalpa in Kinnaur district recorded a low of minus 4.4 degrees Celsius, while the temperature was 5.8 degrees in Dharamsala.

Kalpa saw 3 cm of snow in the past 24 hours.

The state capital, which experienced rains, saw a low of 4.8 degrees Celsius.