VISAKHAPATNAM: Three long-pending tourism projects in the port city — tunnel aquarium, giant wheel, and sky tower — are likely to be put on fast track during the upcoming Global Investors’ Summit (GIS) to be hosted by Vizag on March 3 and 4.
Though the government proposed many tourism projects for Vizag and other areas of the state a couple of years ago, none of them could take off due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Now, the government has decided to speed up the pending tourism projects during the GIS, with some foreign investors showing interest to invest in the projects.
Some NRIs have also tied up with foreign companies to develop the giant wheel, sky tower, and tunnel aquarium projects. Senior officials of the tourism department said some NRIs plan to invest 250-300 crore in the tunnel aquarium project in partnership with the Polin group of Turkey.
Similarly, they will spend 100 crore for the sky tower in partnership with a Switzerland-based company, and 250 crore for the giant wheel project with Pax Russia company. All these projects are likely to come up near Bheemili (Mangamaripeta beach front) in Vizag city.
The project promoters are likely to sign MoUs with the AP tourism department during the GIS. Stakeholders in the sector said Vizag has a lot of potential in tourism as it is the only big coastal city in the state. If the three projects are grounded, the city can attract tourists from all parts of the country, and abroad. Andhra Pradesh attracted 9.3 crore domestic tourists in 2022, with Vizag city receiving over 1.97 crore visitors, including over 45,000 foreign tourists.
The giant wheel project would be similar to the London Eye. Over 400 people can take a ride at a time and over 170 people can avail dining facilities during the ride. The visitors can have a panoramic view of Vizag city from the giant wheel which would be around 125 metres in height. The facility is most likely to come up near Kapulauppada locality on the beach road.
The tunnel aquarium would be a turtle-shaped building and people can walk 200 metres inside. It would also have a first-of-its-kind underwater restaurant. The sky tower project, once completed, will be the tallest tower in the country and can be visible from most parts of the city.
Meanwhile, people visiting Vizag are finding it tough to find rooms in star hotels in the city as most rooms are booked for the GIS. There is also acute shortage of hired cars and limousines till March 5 . “We don’t have any rooms available til March 5” is the common response from hotel staff when tourists inquire about availability of rooms. The bookings have been made by government officials for the delegates, including several foreign dignitaries, who would be attending the two-day summit.
A senior government official said over 9,000 people have so far registered their names for the GIS. Officials expect the registrations to cross the 10,000-mark in a couple of days.
There are over 12 star hotels and 30 non-star hotels in Vizag city, which usually witness around 70 per cent occupancy between November and February. Many hotels are planning to tempt guests with traditional dishes to promote the brand of AP.
