With an aim to increase domestic footfalls from Tamil Nadu, Telangana & Andhra Pradesh, the Department of Tourism, Government of Karnataka along with Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation Ltd. (KSTDC) organized Roadshows at The Westin Chennai Velachery (8th August), The GreenPark-Begumpet (10th August) & Novotel Varuna Beach (11th August) respectively to promote tourist places, hotels, resorts, homestays and service providers from Karnataka amongst the people of Chennai, Hyderabad & Visakhapatnam.
The event at Chennai was inaugurated by PK Gupta, Vice President, South India MICE Association; Venkat Reddy, Vice President, SKAL; VKL Balan, President, TTTHA; Chandrashekaraih HG, Joint Commissioner, Department of Tourism, Govt. of Karnataka; Saravanan, SKAL; Krishnan, SKAL and Shivakumar, General Manager (Admin), Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation and Rohit Hangal, Director, Sphere Travelmedia & Exhibitions.
The event at Hyderabad was inaugurated by C Sujatha Cecelia, Secretary, TAAI – AP and Telangana; Indiramma BG, General Manager (Finance), Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation; Manoj Kumar, IFS, MD, Jungle Lodges and Resorts; NSN Mohan, President, SKAL Hyderabad; Valmiki Kishan, Chairman, Tourism Committee, Telangana Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Ranga Reddy, Chairman, IATO, AP and Telangana Chapter; Liaqat Ali, President, TOAT and Rohit Hangal.
The event at Visaakhapatnam was inaugurated by K. Vijay Mohan, President, Tours & Travels Association of Andhra along with Ravi Rai, General Manager, Novotel Varuna Beach; Shivakumar, General Manager (Admin), Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation; Indiramma BG, General Manager (Finance), Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation and Kumar, Secretary, Tours & Travels Association of Andhra and Rohit Hangal.
A performance of ‘Puja Kunita’, an ancient art form of Karnataka was organised at all the locations to showcase the vibrant cultural heritage that Karnataka is known for. The roadshow brought together different aspects of Karnataka tourism such as nature, wildlife, adventure, pilgrimage, heritage, and many more.
T. Venkatesh, Director, Department of Tourism said, “Karnataka is home to a large and exciting portfolio of globally acclaimed tourist attractions like UNESCO World Heritage sites, splendid wildlife and resplendent nature, virgin beaches etc. It is an around the year tourist destination. The roadshow series will provide impetus to domestic inbound travel and would enhance the marketing efforts of Karnataka Tourism to promote the state’s destinations to prospective tourists and the travel trade of Chennai, Hyderabad & Visakhapatnam.”
Karnataka Tourism’s main objective behind the event was to promote the state as a tourist attraction for leisure tourism, MICE – meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions, adventure and wildlife tourism and as a wedding destination. KSTDC is the nodal agency to conduct the roadshows in various cities of India. The state also offers an avid traveler a vast range of tourism landscapes such as archaeology, religion, ecotourism and handicrafts.
G. Jagadeesha, Managing Director, Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation said, “Karnataka with its diverse range of tourism products is fast emerging as one of the most interesting and productive states for both leisure and business travel. Domestic tourism being the backbone of the tourism economy has a lot of potential which needs to be tapped. Post-pandemic, these roadshow activities will be an excellent occasion for our stakeholders to renew contacts with the travel-trade as well as tourists’.
The roadshow had B2B interactions and presentations that showcased the destination and also opened up new avenues to showcase Karnataka in a new light to the travel and trade community. Some of the stakeholders, who exhibited at the roadshow included Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation, Jungle Lodges & Resorts, Intersight Tours & Travels Pvt Ltd, Travelpro Holiday, TGI Hotels & Resorts, The Quorum Hotel, Royal Rich County, Skyway International Travels, Hilton And Hilton Garden Inn, Embassy Manyata Business Park, Welcomheritage Shivavilas Palace – Hampi, Trivik Hotels And Resorts Pvt. Ltd., Gamyam Align Yourself Classical Ayurveda & Yoga Retreat, Mookanana Resort, Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Ltd, Swastya Ayurveda, Birchwood Retreat, Tamara Leisure Experiences Pvt Ltd & many more. This exclusive B2B Roadshow had over 20 stakeholders from Karnataka and many discerning trade partners at each city.
