The heat is on as is the fever to rush to cool vacation spots abroad.
Offices are emptying out with bosses being flooded with leave applications, while phones are continuously ringing at tour agencies. There is no dearth of choices of vacation destinations — party spots in Southeast Asia to hill stations in and around the country — all making it to travellers’ lists.
Shailesh Kumar, the chief executive of the city-based Nalanda Travels, said: “Popular vacation spots abroad this summer include Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), Bangkok (Thailand) and Singapore. We have received a few queries for holidays in Zurich too. The pocket pinch for the packages for Asian countries is around Rs 23,000-Rs 30,000 per head.”
Flying out of Patna is, of course, not an option for a vacation in Thailand. “For a seven-day-seven-night trip to Southeast Asian countries, the package includes a pick-up for the tourists either from Calcutta or Delhi and the airfare,” Shailesh added.
Europe is a favourite for newlyweds. Friends Nishant Jain and Kunal Panth are planning to take their trip together.
Bailey Road resident Nishant, an IT professional, is mulling a joint vacation with Kunal who lives in Gurgaon. Nishant said: “Europe is actually the choice of our wives. It is quite difficult for us to manage leaves on the same dates, as Kunal is in Gurgaon. But still, as soon as he manages to get a holiday, we will rush to Europe. It will cost us something between Rs 62,000 and Rs 70,000 per head for eight days.”
If a trip on the Eurorail or a fun week in Bangkok seems hard on the pockets, plans for Darjeeling, Gangtok and the Northeast are also up and running.
Kadamkuan resident Pallavi is planning to chill in Darjeeling and Gangtok. “It is quite hot here. I have planned a trip to Darjeeling and Gangtok with my four friends to enjoy the cool weather. Our preparation is almost done, all of us are waiting for a convenient date in June to book our tickets.”
Amit Kumar, the proprietor of Patna Tour and Travels, said: “People are in the phase of making their final decisions about where they want to go. We have got many bookings for the Seven Sisters.”
