SOTC launches tailor-made tour package for Gujaratis

In an attempt to cash in on the rising number of Gujaratis who tour foreign destinations, tour operator SOTC has launched 'Gurjar Vishwadarshan', an 18-day guided tour exclusively for Gujaratis.

About 40 per cent of the tour operator's business comes from Gujaratis, while 70 per cent is from western India.

The Gurjar Vishwadarshan tour will cover almost the entire Europe including 12 cities. The package will be available at an all-inclusive price of Rs 1,49,990 per person, said Frederick Divecha, senior vice-president, SOTC. He was in Ahmedabad to announce the launch of the tour.

"We expect at least 2,000 Gujaratis to take part in these tours between April and September, which is the holidaying season in Europe," he said.

The tour amount will be inclusive of visas, airfare, taxes, sightseeing, hotel accommodation and food, the official said.

SOTC has tied up with Kotak Mahindra Finance, which will provide travel loans to those who cannot pay the entire amount at once, Divecha said.

He added that those who opt for the package will have the option of leaving either from Mumbai or Ahmedabad.

Departures will begin from the first week of April and SOTC officials said they expected at least two tours to be held per week throughout the holiday season that continues up to September.

"Our target audience are traders and businessmen from Gujarat who prefer to spent a fortnight every year in touring places," Divecha said.

He stated that with three branch offices and five sales offices opened exclusively for the package tour, he expects the scheme to perform well.

Besides Gurjar Vishwadarshan, SOTC has Brahmanmandal for Maharashtrian tourists and Vishwa Darpan for tourists from north India. That apart, SOTC has SITA Holidays for Indians travelling within the country.

Divecha said the 12 major cities that will be covered as part of the 18-day Gurjar Vishwadarshan tour will be London, Brussels, Amsterdam, Heidelberg, Innsbruck, Venice, Florence, Rome, Pisa, Nice, Engelberg and Paris.

"Our research has shown that most Gujaratis prefer to go to either of these cities or countries," the official said.

He added that another benefit of the tour, which will perhaps be the driving factor for Gujaratis, is that they can communicate in their mother tongue and will be provided all the information during the tour too in Gujarati.

"One of the major drawback that the tourists face in Europe is language. We are offering all information in Gujarati, along with Gujarati food, for which cookery author Tarla Dalal has designed menus for all meals," the official said.