Date:10/07/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/07/10/stories/2008071054720500.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

Tourism Malaysia targets techies

Special Correspondent

It plans to offer ‘short break’ packages to IT companies

— Photo: V. Sreenivasa Murthy

The lure: Manoharan, Director, Tourism Malaysia (left), and Louis Arul, Manager, Singapore Airlines-Karnataka, at the press conference in Bangalore on Wednesday.

Bangalore: Tourism Malaysia plans to lure Indian software companies to its “short break” packages featuring five destinations in Malaysia. Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board Director Manoharan told presspersons on Wednesday that it was in talks with IT companies to sell the packages.

Tourism Malaysia, in partnership with Singapore Airlines, is offering packages priced at Rs. 25,999 a passenger for three nights and four days.

It includes travel to and from any of the five destinations on offer in Malaysia, airport transfers, accommodation in star hotels, with breakfast and half a day of sightseeing.

The Tourism Board expects at least 4,000 tourists to buy these packages in July and August. During 2007, over four lakh tourists from India visited Malaysia. Malaysia received 21 million tourists in 2007.

Singapore Airlines Manager for Karnataka, Louis Arul, said the airline will add seven flights from India during the year. It currently carries about 1,000 passengers from India every month.