Tourism is picking up with Onam round the corner and the District Tourist Promotion Council(DTPC) has some surprises for tourists. To offer them a memorable experience they have come up with two tour packages to relish the best of Kochi in a day. The tourists can either take the coach or the bicycle to explore the wonders of the land with a guide to help them. Claiming to be the first of its kind in the state, the DTPC officials said that the tours would also add a local flavour to the travel experience.
The tour, ‘Seat in Coach’ will take tourists to the prominent cultural points of Kochi, said T N Jayashankar, Secretary, DTPC, Ernakulam.
“The tour starts from the DTPC centre at 8.30 am and will wind up by 3 pm. The pick up points are Avenue Regent and Casino circle where they will be picked up at 8.45 am and 9.15 am respectively, and accompanied by an English-speaking guide. The tourists can visit as many destinations as possible such as Fort Kochi, St Francis Church, Vasco da Gama’s grave, the Maritime museum, Dutch Palace, Jewish Synagouge, Mattancherry Palace and Jew Town. However, the Jewish Synagogue and Dutch Palace will be closed on Friday and Saturday,” he said.
The DTPC charges Rs 550 per head and has coupons on offer. The tourists can either collect them from the hotels or from the DTPC office. The concept is likely to incur a loss initially. Though the government has promised to offer hop-on hop-off service, it is yet to materialise,” he said.
Another option is bicycling through which more than 23 spots can be covered. “The minimum number is five for the package. The tour which starts from Ernakulam Siva Temple will proceed via Boat Jetty, Goshree Bridge, Vypeen Jetty, Fort Cochin, Santa Cruiz Baselica, Dhoby Khana, Jewish Centre, Thoppumpady, Palluruthy, Kumbalangi, Chellanam, Kannamaly church and wind up at Ernakulam Siva Temple,” he said. It costs `2,500 per head.
Though both the packages were launched in the beginning of this month, the DTPC officials admitted that there were initial hiccups.