Bhubaneswar, April 29: Odisha Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC) has come up with special summer tour packages exclusively for students. The different packages offer trips to various hotspots of the state.
Named OTDC Students Special Summer Excursion, the tour package began from April 15 and will continue till June 30 so the students can go on the excursion during their summer holidays. Students may choose from four sightseeing packages.
One may go for a Bhubaneswar local tour that includes a visit to the city’s most cherished ancient monuments — Lingaraj temple, Rajarani temple, Khandagiri and Udayagiri caves and also monuments around Dhauli. The Dhauli peace pagoda and monastery are also a part of the tour. Other major attractions of the city sightseeing include Nandankanan zoo and the State Museum.
A Konark-Puri tour is also on the offing. This includes a visit to the Konark Sun Temple and the Chandrabhaga beach. Art lovers will get to collect appliqué crafts of Pipili. The students will also visit the Jagannath temple and spend time on the Puri beach.
There are two different trips to Chilika to choose from. In the Satapada tour, one gets to enjoy a cruise on the Chilika lake and discover the beautiful Rajhans island there. The young tourists will also get to see the stunning sea-mouth into which Chilika lake merges. Irrawady dolphins will be the main attraction of the trip. The second Chilika tour is a Barkul-Narayani temple trip that also includes a cruise on the lake. The highlight of this trip will be the Kalijai and Narayani temples.
“We have kept the rates very economical to encourage young tourists to explore Odisha. This is holiday time for students who, we believe, would love to go on these trips,” said Harishankar Upadhyay, director state tourism department.
The Bhubaneswar city tour costs Rs 350 per person, while for the Konark-Puri trip it is Rs 390. The Satapada trip costs Rs 490 per person and the Barkul-Narayani temple tour is for Rs 460.
Lunch and air-conditioned transport will be provided for the tours. The tourists have to pay entry fees to various sites separately. The packages will be available only if more than 30 people sign up for a particular tour, said an OTDC official.
