Tamil Nadu woos Gujaratis with 11-day tour package

Ahmedabad, Jun 14 (UNI) In a bid to woo tourists from Gujarat, the Tamil Nadu Tourism Developlemt Corporation (TTDC) today announced a 11-day package tour of the state, which will also include Balaji darshan at Tirupathi.

Announcing this, TTDC Commissioner Tourism Sanwat Ram said this rail-cum-road tour from Ahmedabad will start next month and will cover Chennai, Tirupathi, Pondicherry, Chidambaram, Thanjavur, Rameshwaram, Kanniyakumari, Madurai, Kodaikanal and Tiruchy.

All travel (including rail reservations) and accommodation arrangements would be done by the TTDC, he told reporters here.

''The tour is planned in such a way that you get a slice of everything... hill stations, temples, culture, beaches etc. The package is of resonable rate and is inclusive of confirmed train tickets, Non A/c transport, Non A/c accommodation, pick up and drop at Central station Chennai, guide fees, parking fees, entry fees, two meals daily and Balaji darshan at Tirupathi,'' he elaborated.

Mr Ram said about 40 per cent of domestic tourist arrivals in Tamil Nadu are from Mumbai and Gujarat. ''Despite the tsunami in 2004, footfalls in the state did not decline. While there were 300.77 lakh tourists in 2004, the following year had 323.39 lakh footfalls,'' he stressed.

Foreigners too have been flocking the state in large numbers.

''Almost 14 lakh foreingers toured Tamil Nadu last year,'' he added.

Talking about important tourist destinations in the state, the Commissioner said Tamil Nadu has five out of the 26 World Heritage sites found in India. ''These are Mamallapuram, Thanjavur, Darasuram, Gangaikonda and the Neelgiri Mountain Railway, which are being specially promoted by the TTDC.'' UNI MMG MJ VKG RL VV1540