Stockholm’s on the itinerary of the eight-night Scandinavian tour

How would you like to zip across the South of France in a Ferrari? Or would you rather cruise through Norway’s fjords or take a short trek through the Amazon jungle? Or how about visiting the lost city of the Incas, Machu Picchu, nestling in the clouds in the Andes?

These are some of the hot new destinations that the sophisticated Indian traveller is jetting to this summer. Yes, the Indian traveller — especially the free individual traveller (FIT) who likes to set his own travel agenda avoiding packaged offerings — is moving off the beaten track and striking out in entirely new directions. Been-there-done-that rich Indians now want to explore new destinations and imbibe fresh experiences. And they’re willing to pay top dollar too.

Says Vishal Suri, COO, Leisure Outbound, Thomas Cook India: “The Indian traveller has become extremely sophisticated. People know where they want to go. And they’re doing their own research before coming to us.”Adds Ashutosh Mehere, Head, FIT, Cox & Kings India: “Earlier, travel was confined to select destinations in Europe and Asia. This has now exploded to newer destinations and we have to cater to people with special interests.”

An experience to remember

Get a taste of czar-sized grandeur in St. Petersburg

The accent is, clearly, on the experience. So Indians are following whisky and wine trails or even taking self-drive vacations. Thomas Cook has tied up with the Wine Society of India to offer wine tours in Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany, Greece and South Africa. In Italy, its five-day wine tour (costing about Rs 1.5 lakh), takes visitors to Sicilian wineries in towns like Palermo.

Or take Cox & Kings’ seven-day self-drive vacation in Ireland across Dublin, Galway, Killarney and Limerick. It costs around Rs 75,000 with airfare. The idea is for travellers to drive around, even get lost, so that they explore the country on their own.

“People are going niche not only in terms of the destination but also in how they’ll get around there and what they’ll do there,” says Ashish Chadha, managing director, Leisure Ways, a Delhi-based boutique travel agency.

Even in old-favourite destinations, Indians are seeking new experiences. Kuoni Holidays, for instance, recently introduced private luxury holidays where families can travel in a chauffeur-driven Mercedes van in Europe. They even get their own local guides.

Prague Castle is one of the city’s hottest tourist spots

“Travel’s all about an experiential mode today,” says Haresh Koyande, business head, Kuoni Holidays, the luxury customised holiday arm of Kuoni Travel Group. He adds, “Today, several generations of a family or friends and family are holidaying together. They want their privacy.”

Heena Munshaw, managing director, Beacon Travels, a South Africa specialist, says: “Food and wine seem to have become a focus. Travellers now want a vineyard experience or they’re giving us restaurant lists.”

So you have places that reek of exclusivity like the posh 48-room Lanzerac Hotel & Spa located on a 155-acre vineyard in South Africa’s Stellenbosch region, which is a big draw for her clients — and it’s nothing less than the presidential suite for many of them. Rack rates range from South African Rand 1,500 a night (around Rs 7,850) for a single room to R5,000-plus (Rs 26,000) for the presidential suite.

“Instead of doing five countries, travellers are realising it’s better to spend quality time in one country and enjoy a more luxurious vacation,” says Munshaw.

The scenic FLAM railway line is Norway’s pride

Travel companies too are trying to expose Indians to new destinations. “I’d like to promote chateau stays in France this summer,” says Subhash Motwani, director, Compact Travels. That’s apart from his specialist niche, Central and Eastern Europe. One of his new offerings this summer in a concert special in Prague. The Czech capital is a pit stop for lots of pop concerts. So, he has just launched a Rs 58,000 three-night trip to Prague, which includes concert performances by the likes of Kylie Minogue and Celine Dion in addition to the usual sightseeing. “People are looking at the globe differently today. They know they can reach any corner of the world,” he says.

Let’s take a look at some of the new destinations that high-flying Indians are exploring this summer.

South america

Indian tourists are heading to Poland and other parts of Eastern Europe

This is a long haul but if you have the time — and the money, of course — it promises to be an unforgettable experience. After all, there’s enough variety from samba in ritzy Rio de Janeiro to tango in Buenos Aires not to forget walks through the Amazon jungle or trips to Machu Picchu.

You can visit just Brazil or combine it with Argentina and Peru. Chadha’s Leisure Ways has a 16-day Brazil-Argentina-Peru trip that costs about Rs 4 lakh a head.

At Rio, you can stay at a hotel on the famous Copacabana Beach, take a tour of Sugar Loaf Mountain and Corcovado Mountain with its 38-metre statue of Christ the Redeemer. Then, there’s a stay in a jungle lodge in the Amazon apart from seeing the famed Iguassu Falls from the Brazilian and Argentinean sides. Other stops include Buenos Aires, Lima and Cuzco, from where one travels to Machu Picchu.

“Places like Machu Pichhu have become popular after the new Seven Wonders were announced,” says Thomas Cook India’s Suri.

Get the flavour of France by doing a vineyard tour

Thomas Cook has a 10-night package to Brazil alone, which includes three nights each in Rio and the Amazon apart from stays at Iguassu, Manaus and Salvador. This costs over Rs 1.5 lakh with four-star accommodation.

Similarly, Kuoni Holidays has a 10-night Brazil-Argentina-Peru trip. Some highlights are a day trip to a ranch for a Fiesta Gaucha with the cowboys in Buenos Aires and a tango performance in a city restaurant.

Cox & Kings’ Luxury Escapades eight-night package to Brazil and Argentina costs about Rs 1.85 lakh with airfare.

south of france and the French rivieria

Inside the Arctic Circle where the sun never sets

There’s more to France than Paris, or so Indians are discovering. What’s more, they’re combining the romance of France with the thrill of speeding, according to Seemaa Makhija, director, Voyages Travel. For instance, she’s putting together a package for a young couple who want to hire a Ferrari for a day for a ‘prestige wine tour’ around Cote d’Azur in the French Riviera.

How cool is that? Well, it costs a super-cool Euro 3,500 or Rs 2.2 lakh to hire a Ferrari for a day — that includes an instructor in an accompanying Ferrari to put you through your paces.

This is all part of a trend, feels Makhija. “People are staying at top-end hotels or hiring villas and renting fancy wheels to drive around St Tropez, Nice and the French Riviera,” she says.

This is a truly luxurious vacation for rich folks what with Cote d’Azur’s resorts and beaches, visits to spas and trips to Monaco and the Italian Riviera. And yes, they’re willing to spend up to Rs 3 lakh a head for a seven-night trip, excluding airfare.

scandinavia

Monaco — a hot spot on the French Riviera

How about watching the Midnight Sun in Swedish Lapland? Or taking a ride on the scenic FLAM railway line in Norway? Alternatively, cruise around Scandinavia. The Scandinavian countries of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark are drawing the Indian traveller with their natural beauty.

Again, you can do a single country or combine all four. Kuoni Holidays’ eight-night luxury tour (in a Mercedes van) of Norway, Sweden, Finland and Denmark costs $5,000 (around Rs 2 lakh) per person excluding airfare (for a minimum group of six).

Thomas Cook India has five different packages ranging from a seven-night four-country trip to a Norwegian cruise or a Swedish Lapland tour. These range from around Rs 1.2 lakh (four-country tour) to Rs 1.4 lakh (cruise) per person excluding airfare.

Take the eight-night Norwegian cruise. After a day in Oslo, you fly to Kirkenes on the Norwegian-Russian border, from where you board the cruise liner. Basically, you cruise through the Norwegian fjords and visit places like Hammerfest, the northernmost town in the world, fishing towns like Oksfjord and trading posts like Stokmarknes as you cross the Arctic Circle.

The Swedish Lapland tour starts from Helsinki to Stockholm to Kiruna, an old mining town in Lapland. From here, you can do trips to Jukkasjarvi, where you can see next winter’s IceHotel under production. You also visit Jokkmokk on the Arctic Circle, which is home to several nature reserves, and Gammelstad, a famed northern Scandinavian church town.

Central and eastern europe

Christ the Redeemer watches over Rio De Janeiro

With the Czech Republic and Poland coming under the Schengen visa since December, travel to Eastern Europe has become more attractive, says Compact Travels’ Motwani. What’s more, since many East European countries don’t use the Euro, you get more bang for your holiday buck too.

Thomas Cook India’s eight-night Historic East Europe tour of Berlin, Dresden, Prague, Budapest and Vienna costs around Rs 1.2 lakh per person with airfare.

Motwani has customised a 16-day tour of East Germany, Austria, Czech Republic, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia but travellers can make their own itinerary and do just two or more countries, he says. A trip can cost from Rs 1.2 lakh for seven days to Rs 2.5 lakh for the 16-day six- country tour, including airfare.

There’s a lot to see here. You can start in Dresden, East Germany, and then take a narrow-gauge steam train from Radebeul to Moritzburg and then to Meissen, where you can even lunch on Meissen porcelain which the city is famous for.

Prague, of course, is top draw in East Europe with its stunning architecture. Try some unique experiences too like the famed Black Light theatre show, urges Motwani, a Czech Republic specialist. “The city is also an ideal base for day trips to places like Cesky Krumlov, a fairytale town with wonderful architecture, or the spa town of Karlovy Vary,” he says.

Meanwhile, in Poland, apart from Warsaw, where you can attend a Chopin concert, you can visit the medieval town of Krakow, or — on a slightly different note — go to Auschwitz. Alternatively, if that doesn’t appeal, how about enjoying the resort town of Zakopane in the Carpathian mountain range.

Russia

Relive history at Moscow’s National Museum; (above) Sri Lanka is a favoured pick for short-haul holidays

Be it to see the grandeur of the Czars or the imposing edifices of Communist power or the new evidence of capitalism, Russia is slowly emerging on the map of the Indian traveller. Take Mumbai-based Megan and Maurice Correa, who visited Moscow and St Petersburg last year.

The Correas, who have grown-up children, are keen travellers. Says Megan, “We love to travel and Russia was always somewhere I wanted to go.” So they researched on the net and drew up an itinerary though Motwani’s Compact Travels helped them put together the trip.

Palaces, churches and cathedrals are dotted all round St Petersburg, says Megan. Among the must-see stops are the famed Winter Palace with its Hermitage art museum, Catherine’s Palace and the Peter and Paul Cathedral, where almost all the Russian emperors are buried. And yes, St Petersburg is bustling at 1 am too.

Says Megan: “It was an amazing trip. There’s such a lot here for a certain kind of traveller who’s interested in history. I’d love to go back.”

Russia is an expensive country to visit though and a seven-day trip can cost Rs 1.25 lakh.

Turkey

Turkey is emerging as another favourite destination. And Indians aren’t restricting themselves to Istanbul either. Rather, they’re venturing to places like the Cappadocia province, which was created by volcanic eruptions and which has entire underground cities and cave hotels like Gamirasu.

Or from Izmir on the Aegean coast, they’re travelling further to see Greek and Roman ruins in Ephesus and Pammukale. Or they’re going to the port city of Kusadasi.

A seven-day trip to Turkey including airfare can cost about Rs 85,000.

Last-minute holidays

It’s back to the caves at Gamirasu Hotel in Turkey’s Cappadocia province

To be sure, planning a vacation calls for time to research, organise visas et al. But, if you’re a busy executive who can only decide on a holiday at the last minute, fear not. Kuoni Holiday has introduced its Just Fly Out (JFO) vacations to destinations that offer visas on arrival to Indians. “You can now fly out at just 24-hours’ notice,” says Koyande.

Of course, these are short-haul trips to familiar spots but if that isn’t a problem you can take your pick from Thailand, Malaysia, Bhutan, Nepal or Sri Lanka. If you can give three-day notice, you can even go to Singapore or the Maldives.

A three-night JFO trip typically costs Rs 30,000 upwards including airfare. So you can chill out at a Langkawi resort or go shopping in Kuala Lumpur.

Clearly, the Indian vacationer is no longer afraid to cross the seas. Rather, he believes the world is his oyster — and he’s making sure he gets to see as much of it as he can.