Representatives from 5 states take part in tourism fair in city
Kolkata: To boost travel during Durga Puja holidays, around hundred service providers and five state governments participate in a tourism fair at Khudiram Anushilan Kendra on Sunday.
The fair, conducted by the Association of Tourism Service Providers of Bengal, is an effort to create more business for the service providers especially after a lull income period during the two years of pandemic. It was attended by service providers for state, national and international.
According to a service provider, people are coming out of their fear and starting to travel internationally, particularly to Egypt.
The South-East Asian countries are also popular, especially Malaysia and Thailand. However, he feels that more people are opting for Egypt as there is more activity like pyramids, coastal activities, museums, amongst other things to enjoy.
The fair mainly focuses on the Puja holidays. "This is why we started the fair four months ago, so that travelers can sort their tickets out," Kamal Kishore Gupta, general secretary of the association said.
People in Bengal are quite fond of travelling, Gupta added while stating that in the last two years due to the pandemic, people have not been able to travel out.
Considering the summer season being a good business session for travelers, the expectation from Puja season is higher.
"People want to travel to North Bengal, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, all hilly areas for this Puja," Gupta said.
The Eastern Railway has already sold out all the tickets for North Bengal for October 1 and 2. The lists have now seeped into 300-400 waiting lists for trains like Padatik Express and Rajdhani Express.