Battery-operated vehicles for tourists at SGNP from 2015

In a bid to reduce pollution inside the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the national park authorities to ply battery-operated 14-seater vehicles at the park in Borivali. Once these eco-friendly vehicles begin plying, private vehicles will be banned from inside the park.

The battery-operated vehicles should be available for the tourists by January, said officials from the MTDC. “With this project, we will bring out the first sustainable tourism initiative in Mumbai. We want to market the national park as a tourist destination, keeping with the green and eco-friendly nature of the park,” said Rahul Vasaikar, executive engineer, MTDC.

Fifteen vehicles will take tourists from the entrance to the safari counters, Kanheri caves and boating counters and other destinations inside the national park. “We will make provisions to let tourists use multiple buses during the excursion in the park on a single ticket.

With this, pollution in the park will reduce and people will become more sensitive towards nature conservation and green practices,” said Chief conservator of Forest Vikas Gupta, adding that no private vehicles will be allowed inside the park, once these battery-operated vehicles are in operation.

At present, MTDC and national park officials are working at constructing up a parking area near the entrance as well as bus shelters along the park, in addition to upgrading basic amenities such as toilets, seating, and drinking water facilities at the park. CCTV cameras have been installed at various entrances to the park to improve security.

MTDC plans homestays in remote tourist spots

The Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) has plans to introduce 'homestays' in the remotest of tourist spots in the state.

Over 50 spots with tourist attractions in forest or tribal locations will be covered in the first phase. The premise being that such spots have umpteen tourist attractions, but no hotels or guest-houses, which keeps them off the tourism radar.

An MTDC official said the concept of home-stays is different from its 'bed and breakfast scheme', that is now available in tourists locations across the state.

"The bed and breakfast scheme is designed to increase the availability of accommodation to both domestic and foreign tourists. It provides them accommodation in bungalows, houses, flats of residents at such spots. But it is restricted to those accommodations that have a minimum of two rooms and four beds or maximum of five rooms and 10 beds. However, there are many remote villages in the state that are remarkable tourist spots and have no guest house or hotels, just humble two-room houses of residents. The homestay concept brings such houses into focus," the official said.

Light and Sound shows at three major hotspots in Odisha to draw tourists

Tourists hotspots like Khandagiri-Udaygiri, Dhauli and Konark are set to add another feather in their caps as the long-awaited light-and-sound shows will begin there soon.

"In the first phase, light-and-sound shows will start at Khandagiri-Udaygiri, Dhauli and Konark. We are hopeful of completing the projects by the year-end," said culture and tourism secretary Arvind Padhee.

Government sources said the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has given its consent for the projects and the India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) has been assigned the task of preparing a 30 minute-script for the show. Installation works will begin soon.

The shows will be in English, Hindi, Odia and Bengali. An estimated Rs 20 crore will be spent on the project, of which Rs 15 crore will be funded by ITDC and the rest by the tourism department.

Similarly at Dhauli and Sun Temple, Konark, stories on Kalinga war and legend of Dharmapada will be narrated. The theatres will seat 24 each and be set up at interception centres at Khandagiri and Puri along with eight other places in the state.

"Around Rs 1.33 crore will be spent to set up the virtual reality theatres and on their maintenance and supervision. These theatres will have customized 3D shows of 10-minute duration," an official source said. The Odisha Tourism Development Corporation will be the nodal agency to implement the projects.

Odisha Tourism gets Patwa International Award at ITB, Berlin 2014

In ITB Berlin, Odisha Tourism has put up a beautiful stall, which was inaugurated by the Additional Secretary to the Govt. of India, Ministry of Tourism Mr. Girish Shankar and Mrs Roma Singh, Regional Director India Tourism, Frankfurt on 5th March morning. Mr. M.R. Patnaik, Director, Tourism along with Mr. S.K. Pati and Shri S.S. Rath, Tourist Officer, Odisha Tourism were present at the time of inauguration of Odisha Tourism pavilion. Tour operators from Odisha like M/s Alternative Tours Pvt. Ltd, M/s Toshali International and M/s Eastern Voyages also attended the event.

Odisha Tourism has bagged an award for the Best Relaxation Culture & Beaches Destination from the Pacific Area Travel Writers Association (PATWA). The award was received by Shri M.R Patnaik, Director Tourism Odisha in a glittering ceremony. This is a prestigious international award received by Odisha Tourism in ITB Berlin.

The award was received in presence of the Secretary General, UNWTO, CEO PATA, Minister Tourism Egypt, Minister Tourism and Culture Seychelles, President, International Hotel and Restaurant Association and Secretary General, PATWA. Odisha Tourism is expected to receive more response in the events from the other countries in the coming days.

Karnataka Govt urged to promote coastal tourism

A meeting on tourism development in Dakshina Kannada district has stressed on the need for marketing coastal Karnataka as a tourism destination. JR Lobo, MLA of Mangalore (South), said coastal Karnataka should be marketed as a tourism destination the way Bangalore was developed as an IT destination. The Karnataka Government has to give more thrust on developing coastal tourism, and a dedicated cell should be formed for this purpose. Lobo said that the Coastal Development Authority, set up by the State Government, should take active role in the development of tourism in the region.

Yatish Baikampady, CEO of Panambur Beach Tourism Development Project, focussed on the need to set short-term, medium-term and long-term goals for the comprehensive development of tourism in coastal Karnataka. Giving the examples of various activities of tourism attraction and festivals in the region, he said there is a need to come out with a calendar of events to popularise them to the world.

U. Jithendranath, Assistant Director of Karnataka Tourism Department, said that 36 works related to tourism development have been sanctioned to the district. Of them, 10 works have already been completed. Another 14 works are in various stages of implementation, and 12 projects are yet to be taken up, he said.

Mahaparinirvan Express (Odisha Special) - Departing on 23rd December, 2013

India, where Buddhism was founded, has many important Buddhist pilgrimage sites. The easiest way to visit them is by taking Indian Railway's special Mahaparinirvan Express Buddhist Tourist Train. The only issue is that while it goes to the most important Buddhist sites in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar, those in Odisha have been missing from the itinerary.

There has been growing demand from pilgrims to visit more places associated with the Buddha. Buddhist sites in Odisha is at Ratnagiri, Dhaulagiri, Udayagiri, Khandagiri and Langudi, date back to early 6th century BC. They are dotted with stupas, chaityas and Ashokan edicts. Vajrayana Buddhism is also studied there.

In response to this, Indian Railways has added the Mahaparinirvan Express Odisha Special to its popular tourist train service. It is a seven night/eight day tour that includes Lalitgiri, Ratnagiri, Udaigiri in Odisha.

Kerala Named Among World's Best Family Destinations in 2014

Lonely Planet has named Kerala as one among the world’s 10 best destinations for taking the family along for a holiday in 2014.  The Lonely Planet award for the Best Family Destination was bestowed on ‘God’s Own Country’ at the World Travel Mart (WTM) in London, the world’s leading travel trade event attended by industry representatives from around the world.

Kerala joined the likes of New York City, Denmark, Prague, Iceland, Italy and Hawaii in being described by the travel expert as a child-friendly destination ideal for the family.  “The intensity of travel in India could put you off taking a trip here en famille, but Kerala is a family-friendly version: more laid-back than other regions, greener, slower paced… There are also lots of national parks for elephant spotting, palm-fringed beaches and boat trips along the lush canals of the backwaters,” it said.

Kerala Tourism Director Mr. S Harikishore IAS , who led the state delegation to the WTM, received the award from Lonely Planet. The WTM, which began on November 4, concluded on Thursday.

Former South African cricketer Mr. Jonty Rhodes was among those who visited the Kerala pavilion at the WTM, themed on the Ayurveda. Rhodes, who retired from international cricket in 2003 after a spectacular career during which he became best fielder in world cricket, is a brand ambassador for South African Tourism.

“With the British economy registering the fastest growth in the last three years in the previous quarter, the mood at the World Travel Mart hosted by London was upbeat,” said Mr. Harikishore.

The United Kingdom is the most important market for Kerala, recording nearly 1.5 lakh tourist arrivals in the state last year.

“The WTM presented us with a significant opportunity to target higher growth figures for Kerala Tourism, as far as foreign tourist arrivals are concerned, in the coming years as there are signs of recovery also in the rest of Europe after a severe debt crisis,” Shri Harikishore added. “We are also very honoured to have received such a prestigious award from Lonely Planet and being named among the best destinations for family travel.”

The Kerala delegation included 12 co-exhibitors representing the hospitality industry from the state. The co-exhibitors were Abad Hotels & Resorts, Carnoustie Beach Resort and Ayurveda Spa, Intersight Tours & Travels, Jayasree Travels and Tours, Joy’s Resorts & Hotels, KTDC Hotels & Resorts, Kumarakom Lake Resort, Lake Palace Resort, Spiceland Holidays, Uday Samudra Leisure Beach Hotel & Spa, Vythiri Resort and Vaidyaratnam Oushadhasala.

Several key members of the world’s travel trade industry visited the Kerala pavilion, which showcased the state as the ‘Home of Ayurveda’. The pavilion received thousands of visitors during the four-day event.

An annual event, the WTM, London, along with the ITB, Berlin held in March, is considered the top travel and tourism event in the world. According to WTM organizers, the event last year is expected to generate nearly 3.2 billion dollars worth of travel and tourism business. As many as 5,000 exhibitors attended this year’s WTM, representing 184 countries and regions.