Bangalore, Nov 30: Kuoni Gastaldi Tours, one of the major tourist groups in Italy, was mulling to make its foray into Karnataka in a big way, a top tourism official said. The group has evinced keen interest in tying up with Jungle Lodges and Resorts Limited (JLR), the eco tourism arm of Karnataka Tourism in that (eco tourism) sector, Vinay Luthra managing director JLR told reporters.
JLR which recently participated in the World Travel Mart in London this month "received a very positive response from some UK-based companies", he said.
Marco Polo Travels, a well-known tourist company based in United Kingdom has shown keen interest in Metropole (Mysore) and Bandipu properties of JLR as it falls in the main tourism circuit of Mysore-Udhagamandalam, he said.
They (Marco Polo) have shown a lot of interest in "Shikar trails", an eight-day adventure package, which traverses the wildlife sanctuaries of Bandipur, B R Hills and Nagarhole, once the exclusive hunting grounds of the Maharaja of Mysore, include sightseeing at Mysore with stay at Metropole, Luthra said.
Another British group, Raptor Adventures wants to "immediately start eco and adventure tourism in south India, with special focus on Karnataka", he said. This group is already operating tours in north India, he added.
Bureau Report