Antara River Cruises, pioneers of river cruising in India, not too long ago hosted 50 Brokers from the UK on the river ship Antara Ganges Voyager II for 3 nights and 4 days from June 8-11, 2024.
The meticulously deliberate three day cruise, to showcase the joys of cruising on the Ganges and excursions into the cities alongside the banks, was an enormous success with the friends.
Raj Singh Promotor and Managing Director Antara Cruises welcomed the friends on board with a standard welcome of garlands and tikas and stated, “ We’re delighted that they might expertise crusing on the Indian waterways, notably on the sacred river Ganga, flowing greater than 1,500 miles from the Himalayas to the Bay of Bengal. It was on the banks of the Ganga in Sarnath that the Buddha preached his first sermon in 528 BCE, and it was alongside these waters that the British constructed the primary capital of the British Raj, Kolkata”.
The cruise itinerary included the next highlights:
Day 1 Crusing on the river and seeing the sights of Kolkata from the river with colonial buildings just like the Excessive Courtroom, Belur Math, Howrah practice station and the completely different bathing/ferry ghats (river banks) of Kolkata .
Day 2 Tour of Kalna , the place the friends took a trip on electrical rickshaws to the enchanting Rajbari Temple Complicated, which has the very best focus of temples within the area and the Nabakailas Temple, inbuilt 1809 by the Bardhaman Maharaja, which accommodates 108 eight slope-roofed shrines devoted to Lord Shiva. Additionally they stopped by an area market promoting seasonal greens and fruits.
Later they sailed downstream in the direction of Chandernagore to discover, a French colony established in 1673 as a buying and selling submit on the riverbanks. Right here they walked alongside the promenade, and visited a couple of colonial buildings together with the previous French governor’s residence, now transformed to a museum and the Sacred Coronary heart Church, designed by French Architect Jacques Duchatz inaugurated in 1884.
Day 3 The friends sailed again to Kolkata and launched into a metropolis tour of Kolkata beginning with the distinctive and bustling Flower Market situated under and adjoining to the cantilevered Howrah Bridge that spans the Ganga. Thereafter they visited Kumartuli, a standard potters’ quarter in northern Kolkata, famend for its sculpting prowess, which not solely manufactures clay idols for numerous festivals but additionally frequently exports them.
The tour ended with a Panoramic Tour of Kolkata, that includes the properly preserved British colonial buildings in Kolkata: Author’s Constructing, Basic Put up Workplace, Excessive Courtroom, Raj Bhawan (Governor’s Home), City Corridor, Council Home, Treasury Constructing, Reserve Financial institution of India and Dalhousie Sq.. A should go to is the St. John’s Church, the oldest Anglican Church in Kolkata, inbuilt 1756 and naturally, the grand Victoria Memorial for a photograph op!
The Antara Story: Antara believes one of the best ways to see South Asia is from the river. What started in 2003 as a dream for journey business pioneer and naturalist Raj Singh has at the moment was Antara’s thoughtfully designed, well-appointed fleet of 9 ships that sail South Asia’s most iconic rivers. Antara affords its friends stunning perches on shifting water from which to get pleasure from vibrant and meditative landscapes, individuals, crafts and wildlife. Our philosophy is to carry the area’s indigenous environments and cultures to the world, sustainably, and with its famend hospitality, in ships which are designed with thought, luxurious and care. Antara cruises embody the Ganga, the Padma and the Brahmaputra River techniques to make the world’s longest river cruise. In 2024, Antara commenced crusing the 4 rivers that inundate Bhitarkanika Nationwide Park, India’s second largest mangrove forest.