Uttar Pradesh: 4-day hot air balloon and boat racing fest to begin in THIS city from January 17, check details

Uttar Pradesh:  A four-day hot air balloon and boat racing festival is all set to begin on Tuesday (January 17). The fest will end on January 20. The festival -- Kashi Balloon & Boat Festival -- is being organised in Uttar Pradesh's Varanasi.  

Mapping of a 3-km stretch of river Ganga, between Dashashwamedh and Namo ghats, had been done for the boat race. The logo of the festival has been released which is in the shape of a shield and reads ‘Kashi balloon & boat festival’.

The balloons will take off and land at Central Hindu Boys School, Ramnagar and the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) grounds. Reports suggest the fare for an air ride is yet to be fixed. However, the price was set at Rs 500 per person last year.

The Kashi Balloon  Boat Festival will give a new dimension to the tourism of the state. The festival will run from 17th to 20th January, 2023 with representatives of SCO countries participating in the same BalloonAndBoatFestival Varanasi RethinkTourism UPTourism pic.twitter.com/4xIcV6YWU6

— UP Tourism (@uptourismgov) January 16, 2023

For branding the events, the UP tourism department will also be introducing blimps, inflatable balloons, and floating cylinders, Deputy Director Tourism Preeti Srivastava has said.

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Names of the proposed teams that will participate in the race are Gangaputra, Navik Sena, Kashi Lahiri, Jal Yodhas, Kashi Keepers, Ganga Lahiri, Nauka Riders, Jal Sena, Ganga Vahini, Bhagirathi Sevaks, Gaumukh Giants and Ghat Keepers, she said.

As a part of the hot air ballooning fest, morning flights, tethered flights, and night glows will be organised for the visitors to enjoy. Locations for the launch and possible landing sites of hot air balloons have also been finalised.

Apart from this, paramotor activities will also be organised during the fest. The tourism department also informed that they have roped in agencies from five countries, including the United States (US), Japan and Canada for the hot air balloon fest.

This is the second time when the tourism department is organising a hot air balloon festival in Varanasi. In the 2021 event, eight pilots from abroad and six from India took part.

(With inputs from ANI)