The Lengthiest River Cruise In The World Will Follow The Ganges In India

A luxury cruise ship will set sail from the holy city of Varanasi in India, beginning a journey that the Indian PM claims would herald in a new era of tourism

Organizers claim that the route the MV Ganga Vilas would take across the streams of India and Bangladesh, a total of 1,988 miles, will make it the longest river sail on the globe.

To celebrate the departure of the cruise, India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has promoted it as a key part of his government's big programme of infrastructure projects, will make a virtual appearance. The prime minister made mention of the cruise in a speech he gave on December 30 as an example of a growing industry that may attract more tourists to India. According to Modi, this will be the first voyage of its sort in the history of mankind and a symbol of the booming cruise tourist business in India.

Aboard the ship, passengers will see national parks, one-of-a-kind historical monuments, and major towns as they make their journey down the Ganges, India's holy river, all the way into Bangladesh.

According to Antara, the cruise line that owns and runs the MV Ganga Vilas, the ship can accommodate 36 people in 18 guest-rooms and has a staff of roughly 48. The interior design of the ship was inspired by the works of the 20th-century German painter Josef Albers.

The voyage had been scheduled for 2020 until the coronavirus outbreak pushed it back. Europeans, including those from Switzerland, France, and others, make up the bulk of the first passengers, thus it seems the marketing campaign was successful. Antara's head of sales and marketing Kashif Siddiqui declared that the cruise route would be operated twice yearly, in favourable weather and high waters. Two of the 2024 voyages are completely sold out. The price of tickets ranges from $51,114 to $54,765.

The MV Ganga Vilas will be at sea for 51 days, during which time it will make stops at Dhaka, Bangladesh; the Sundarbans mangrove forest, which is located on the border between Bangladesh and India; and Kaziranga National Park, in India, which is the habitat of endangered one-horned rhinos.

Europe's Danube, Rhine, and Seine rivers, as well as North America's, have long been popular destinations for river cruises. In contrast, this service is relatively new in India. In addition to bringing much-needed tourist cash to villages that lack easy access by large airports or highways, river cruising also allows visitors to reach less-frequented but no less beautiful sites.

However, there are obstacles that are slowing the sector down. The rivers of India, especially the Ganges, are still suffering from significant pollution. Especially in densely populated cities like Varanasi, where many people have modest incomes, this has a significant influence on the lives of millions of Indians every day. To combat the principal causes of degradation in the country's longest river, the government established the National Mission for Clean Ganga programme in 2014, also known as the Namami Gange initiative.

Eight river cruise ships are currently available between Varanasi and Kolkata. Ten passenger ship ports are now being constructed along National Waterway-2, as part of a strategy to expand the potential for river cruising in India.

However, the company's objectives aren't limited to waterways. The disputed territory of Kashmir, which is claimed by both India and Pakistan, will be the setting for their next project, which will also be a first — a lake sailing adventure.

 

Source: cnn.com