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Situated in a quiet neighbourhood in Mumbai,the quaint Mani Bhavan was once the residence of Mahatma Gandhi when he was in the city.

Situated in a quiet neighbourhood in Mumbai,the quaint Mani Bhavan was once the residence of Mahatma Gandhi when he was in the city. From here he had started his fast for peace when the non-cooperation movement turned violent in November 1921 and he was arrested on its terrace in January 1932. Years later,the two-storey building is ready to greet visitors led by his grandson Arun and great-grandson Tushar Gandhi. It is the site from where the duo will commence the six-day Gandhi tour that will introduce travellers to the Father of the Nations incredible journey. Through the tour we hope to educate people about Gandhian principles and their relevance. The monuments are symbolic of his life, says Tushar as he draws the itinerary for the tour that includes Mumbai and Kolhapur.

While Tushar is still preparing to retrace his great-grandfathers footsteps with foreign tourists,there are several tour operators leading groups to locations associated with Gandhi. He is one of the best known figures in history and generates interest worldwide. Frequent queries from our UK office prompted us to introduce a tour based on Gandhi, says Akash Bhardwaj,managing director,Nature Trail Tours. The 14-day tour,priced Rs 80,000 per person on twin sharing basis,includes a trip to Mani Bhavan in Mumbai,Gandhis birthplace in Porbandar,family home and school in Rajkot,Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad and Dandi. Booking a similar trip through On The Go Tours,another company,costs approximately a lakh.

Travel Bureau International offers a more extensive vacation that stretches to Delhi,Mumbai,Agra and cities across Gujarat. The 18-day/17-night trip,priced Rs 1.3 lakh per person,includes tickets for the sound and light show at Sabarmati Ashram and sightseeing at each place. Gandhi is the focus but we include other places of interest and reserve some time for shopping, says Asutosh Sharma,managing partner of Travel Bureau International. The schedule of the tour offered by him was chalked after discussions with historians and he hires local guides to accompany tourists in each city. They know the place best and share interesting anecdotes, adds Sharma.

The Capital too has its share of Gandhi tours. On its website,World Travel Guide has details of a five-hour Gandhi tour in Delhi. For Rs 1,300 tourists are taken to Gandhi Smriti,National Gandhi Museum and Raj Ghat. UK-based agency,Keith Prowse,also includes Teen Murti Bhawan in its eight-hour Mahatma Gandhi Museum Tour,priced at Rs 5,500 on its portal.

The tour,with direct descendants of Gandhi,organised in association with US-based travel firm Go Philanthropic,will feature a visit to institutions that reflect Gandhian principles. Costing Rs 83,500,it will include an interaction with the coordinators at Sunanda Gandhi Memorial School and Verala HIV-AIDS project team in Kolhapur and Womens India Trust that works with underprivileged women in Mumbai. We hope that tourists will donate funds to the institutions and contribute towards the cause, says Tushar.

The target audience for tours,says Bhardwaj,is anybody interested in Indias turbulent history and one of the worlds most towering freedom fighters. There have been 12 bookings since August 2007 when the tour was introduced, he says. Neeraj Nauhwaar,manager of Savion Travel Services,however,has not had any booking for his five-night/six-day Gandhi tour in Gujarat,priced Rs 40,000,yet. We dont expect bulk bookings. The package will appeal to a niche audience, he says.

For more details log onto:
http://www.gophilanthropic.com http://www.mystiqueindia.net
http://www.onthegotours.com
http://www.indiantourguide.com http://www.worldtravelguide.net
http://www.keithprowse.com http://www.bharatonline.com

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