“A large number of people from Bengal work in IT and other offices in and around Bengaluru. They not only brought revenue to the state by staying in Karnataka, but also traveled a lot on weekends as well as took long vacations to places in and around Karnataka, leaving their footprints among the top tourist destinations. but in the meantime covidAs Bengalis started working from home, Karnataka tourism declined. However, things are starting to improve now and we are looking forward to a return of technology and tourism in Karnataka,” said Venkatesh T, director, tourism department, Karnataka.
According to a Karnataka tourism official, till 2019, Bengal stood at the fourth position. Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu And Andhra Pradesh when it comes to the number of tourists in Karnataka, contributes 15% of the total tourists to the state.
“The numbers declined sharply during the Covid years. But it is starting to get better and we expect at least 20-25 lakh tourists from Bengal this year. The best part about Bengali tourists is that they plan their holidays well in advance and there are groups who come from Bengal, stay in Bangalore with their families for a few days before starting their tour of the state. Said S Mahalingaiah-Manu, Director Skyway International Travels in Bangalore.
Launching several new packages and lucrative new destinations for Bengali tourists, Karnataka Tourism officials said that they have developed a large number of budget as well as premium stays in Karnataka.
“Earlier, we used to focus on limited network connectivity to maintain the virginity of our resorts and hotels located in remote locations. But post-Covid, we have developed internet connectivity and WiFi presence in all our resorts, making them suitable to stay to serve the people in the normal age of Covid,” said Manoj Kumar, IFS and Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation. The Managing Director managed the Jungle Lodge. and resorts.