BENGALURU: Buoyed by the response to its package tour to Tirupati, KSRTC is mulling to introduce package tours to various tourist destinations and pilgrimage centres in the state.KSRTC officials said they will soon tie up with Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC) to launch special package tours.
Officials said they have received several representations from commuters requesting to launch package tours in various tourist spots like Srirangapatna, Madikeri, Hampi, Jog Falls and Mysuru.
“We have received an overwhelming response for the recently launched package tour to Tirupati. We have also signed an agreement with Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation for the Tirupati tour package,” said a senior KSRTC official.
He said they are now working out for a similar tie-up with KSTDC. “We have adequate luxury buses to operate for package tours but KSTDC will have to provide food, accommodation, tourist guides and sight-seeing for the tourists,” he said.
KSRTC officials said they are yet to finalise the locations, fares and durations of the proposed package tour. “There are several tourist destinations in the state which have a potential to be included in package tours. We also want to cover tourist places in other states including Ooty, Kodaikanal and also locations in Kerala and Goa,” the official said.
Currently, KSTDC has 16 package tours including temples of Karnataka, Tirupati, daily trip to Mysuru, Kerala package tours and hill stations of Ooty and Kodaikanal.
A recent survey by MyTourReview — a review platform for tour operators — on the holiday habits of Indian consumers for 2016 shows that 10.38 per cent of internet users from Bengaluru made online queries on travel destinations and tour packages. It stands second after Mumbai, which leads the online travel searches with 11.6 percent.