Sunday, August 10, 2008

Explore Bhubaneswar with Hop-On-Hop-Off Bus Service



 Bhubaneswar: Monday, 4th Aug. 2008 was a Red Letter Day for the Orissa Tourism. On this day the Orissa Tourism Development Corporation (OTDC), a state owned PSU introduced the most convenient way to explore and experience Bhubaneswar- the capital city. With a well-networked Hop-On-Hop-Off luxury bus service connecting the important tourist locations of the city on two major routes namely a City Tour and a Heritage Tour.

Chief Minister, Naveen Patnaik flagged off the new busses from Pantha Nivas, while Devi Prasad Mishra, Minister of Tourism said that the service is to up grade tourist infrastructure and provide best facility to international as well as  domestic tourists. The city has gone a step further with the Public Private Partnership as this tour has been operated and managed by Kalinga Trade and Travels for five years along with Air Tel as the brand partner. The corporation has initially operates five 45 seater Air Conditioned buses and eight 12 seater Tempo Travelers.

Now Orissa marks in the tourism history of India, becoming the first ever state to provide the Hop-On-Hop-Off bus service. The provision of an information booklet along with the ticket makes the tourist to feel comfortable and informed about details by making it a self guided tour. This indeed provides an ample opportunity to every one on a tour to highly explore and experience Bhubaneswar in an innovative way.

OTDC’s Hop-On-Hop-Off bus service offers a comfortable, air-conditioned ride around the city with a single ticket. The ticket is valid for both the City Tour and Heritage Tour for one day. One can get on and off the bus at any of the destination on the designated routes as per his/her convenience.
  
Each specific destination on the designed City Tour and Heritage Tour route is touched by one Hop-On-Hop-Off bus at a predetermined time interval. From these stops, one can easily access the best of tourist attractions Bhubaneswar has to offer including heritage sites, handicraft and souvenir emporiums, parks, museums, shopping complexes, eateries, cinema halls, hotels etc.

The bus service for both the tours starts from Panthanivas at 8.00 am and continues till 8.30 pm. One Hop-On-Hop-Off bus passes through each of the stops at interval of around 30 minutes. Tickets are Rs.250/- adult;       Rs.125/- child and Rs.700/- for a family pack including two adults and two children.


The List below provides detail of the tour.
 
 City Tour Bus Stoppages:-
No.
Bus Stops
In-close Proximity
Last Departure Time
CT1
Panthanivas
BJB College, Bhanja Kala Mandap,
Paryatan Bhawan
5.30pm
CT2
Rajmahal Square
Jayadev Bhawan, Ashok Nagar Market, Bapuji Nagar Market, Daily Market (Unit-I), Market Building (Unit-II), Raj Bhawan, SBI, Standard Chartered Bank, Hotel Sishmo, Bhubaneswar Club, Capital Hospital
5.35pm (Up),
8.20pm (Dn)
CT3
Master Canteen
IG Park, Rabindra Mandap, Secretariat, State Assembly, Hotel Swosti, Citibank, HDFC Bank
5.40pm (Up)
8.15pm (Dn)
CT4
Ram Mandir
Forum Mart, Shriya Square, Gurudwara, Subham Market, Hotel Marion, Hotel HHI, UTI Bank, ICICI Bank, Neelachal Hospital
5.45pm (Up)
8.10 (Dn)
CT5
Ekamra Haat
Exhibition Ground, Orissa State Library
5.30pm
CT6
Nicco Park
Kalinga Stadium, The World, Madhuasudan Nagar
5.55pm
CT7
Regional Science Centre
Regional College of Education
6.00pm
CT8
Acharya Vihar
pathani Samanta Planetarium, Regional Museum of Natural History, Sainik School, Ayush Hospital
6.05pm
CT9
Jayadev Vihar
Sudarshan Crafts Village, Trident Hilton
6.10pm
CT10
ISKCON Temple
Indradhunu Market Complex
6.15pm
CT11
CRP Square
Priyadarshini Market, Tribal Museum
6.20pm
CT12
Fire Station Square
Baramunda Bus Stand
6.25pm
CT13
Khandagiri
Udayagiri, Biju Patanaik Energy Park, Sum Hospital, SOA University
6.30pm
CT14
Ekamra Kanan
Siridi Sai Temple (1)
6.50pm
CT15
May Fair Lagoon
ESI Hospital
7.00pm
CT16
Fortune Tower
Odissi Research Centre, XIMB
7.05pm
CT17
Nalco Square
Kalinga Hospital, Hemlata Hospital, Hotel Suryansh
7.10pm
CT18
Infocity Square
Shikharchandi, L V Prasad Eye Institute, Chandaka Industrial Estate, KIIT University, Golf Club
7.25pm
CT18A
Nandankanan*
Botanical Garden
5.10pm
CT19
Janata Maidan
Gandhi Park, Sandy’s Square, Hotel Swosti Plaza, Hotel Ginger
7.40pm
CT20
Saheed Nagar
Utkal University, Satsang Temple, Sanischhar Temple, Pantaloons
8.00pm
Timings are subjected to force majeure conditions


Heritage Tour Bus Stoppages:-

No.
Bus Stops
In-close Proximity
Last Departure Time
HT1
Panthanivas

5.30pm
HT2
Rajarani Temple
Nageswar Temple
5.35pm
HT3
Bhaskareswar Temple

5.40pm
HT4
Brahmeswar Temple
Sisupalgarh
5.45pm
HT5
Megheswar Temple
Siridi Sai Temple (2)
5.50pm
HT6
Kedargouri Temple
Mukteswar Temple
6.00pm
HT6A
Dhauligiri**
River Daya
6.30pm
HT7
Lingaraj Temple
Persurameswar Temple, Vaital Temple, Jambeswar Temple, Ananta Basudev Temple, Bindu Sagar
6.35pm
HT8
Mausima Temple
Rameswar Temple, Bharateswar Temple, Satrughneswar Temple, Lakshmaneswar Temple
6.45pm
HT9
State Museum

6.50 (Up)
6.55 (Dn)
Timings are subjecte to force majeure conditions

About Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Orissa is popularly known as the Temple City of India. It boasts of temples like Lingaraj, Mukteswar, Rajarani etc. which date back to around 10th century AD. Jain caves like those at Udayagiri, known to be over 2000 years old add to its mysterious antiquities. The city forms the anchor of the famous Golden Triangle of Orissa, Puri and Konark being the other two destinations. Treasuring many architectural marvels and a rich cultural heritage, Bhubaneswar is now emerging as the IT destination of the country. It is also developing as the Knowledge Hub of Eastern India. Well-connected by air, rail and road, Bhubaneswar is one of the popular tourist destinations.

The city is the perfect blend of traditional charm and modern day pleasures. The Hop-On-Hop-Off bus service would provide the tourists with great convenience to explore and experience the best of both these ancient and modern worlds offered by Bhubaneswar.

Special Facilities:
  • Kiosk at every bus stoppages.
  • Information Booklet with ticket to every tourist on Tourism and
Heritage Points.
      and bus stoppages.


Department of Tourism, Govt. of Orissa, Paryatan Bhaban,
Lewis Road, Bhubaneswar – 14.

Orissa Tourism Development Corporation Ltd.
Ph: 0674-2431515

Tour Operated and Managed By:
Kalinga Trade And Travels
Ph: 0674-2532567
Control Room: Mob. 9937025155

Brand Partner:
Air Tel

Courtesy: OTDC

1 comment:

  1. Nice post. Bhubaneswar, the capital city of Orissa all about simple pleasures and timeless beauties as the city is home to various wonderful temples, thronged by visitors all across the year. Also, get to know about numerous hotels in Bhubaneswar near railway station.

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