KSTDC'S Air Package Drawing Tourists

MYSORE: The air connectivity to Mysore is working wonders for the tourism sector, which is pinning its hopes on the new facility to get tourists here.

Karnataka State Tourism Development Corporation (KSTDC)'s daily air package tour to the royal city from Bangalore has received an overwhelming response. Bookings for all four days of the package tour are full even as the first flight from Bangalore landed at the Mysore airport on Tuesday.

The first batch of tourists arrived at the airport at Mandakalli. The passengers who were flown in at 12.45 pm, were given a traditional welcome by the tourism authorities. They were greeted with nadaswaram and all the air passengers were offered sandalwood garlands.

KSTDC's assistant general manager Sridhar told TOI that response for the package tour has been good and the booking is over. In the first batch, 60 passengers arrived. All the passengers are domestic travellers. Many of them are here with family members.

Sridhar said the tourists were taken to Lalitha Mahal hotel for lunch soon after they landed here. Later, they all were taken to the Mysore Palace, Srirangapatna and then to Krishnarajasagar Dam as part of the sight-seeing programme. On Wednesday, the guests will be taken to Chamundi Hills and Somanathapura temple before they board a chartered flight to Bangalore at 1.30 pm.

Even the return traffic from Mysore to Bangalore was good with all the seats occupied.

The formal inauguration of Mandakalli airport which was to be done by civil aviation minister Praful Patel on Tuesday has been postponed indefinitely as the latter is preoccupied with Maharashtra assembly elections.