Andhra Pradesh - Visakhapatnam   

Boat rides, a big hit this season

Photo: K.R. Deepak

Vroom! Tourists enjoying a boat ride on the newly-launched speed boat of APTDC while a traditional fishing boat takes a crowd of tourists into the sea at Rushikonda in Visakhapatnam on Sunday. —

VISAKHAPATNAM: Slicing through the mighty waves of the hypnotic waters of Bay of Bengal is a sense of grand adventure that no tourist can afford to miss out. Joyrides in boats have become quite a hit among tourists and visitors this season. With the season witnessing a rise in the inflow of tourists, the popularity of the boat rides at Rushikonda and Fishing Harbour has also seen a gone up.

To meet the demands of the tourists, Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) recently added another speedboat at Rushikonda at the cost of Rs.2.75 lakhs having a 40 HP Suzuki engine.

“While the general tourist inflow rose by 16 per cent during April and December last year, hundreds of tourists enjoyed the boat rides during the months of November and December and the pleasant climate has only added more fun to the whole experience,” APTDC Divisional Manager T. Jeevan Prasad told The Hindu. Because of the speed factor, it’s a big dose of fun and thrill for picnickers and the holiday crowd. It can be a hair-raising experience to slice through high velocity waves racing fast at you.

The daily trip starts from 10 a.m. and continues till 5 p.m. Flanked by a scenic cityscape with green-capped hills, the view from the boat is an unforgettable sight. The caressing sea breeze, the calm seamless stretches of the Bay of Bengal or the drunkenly bobbing fishing boats are some of the Kodak moments that the tourists take away with them. But, be prepared for a roller-coaster ride if the sea turns choppy. APTDC also organizes boat rides at the Fishing Harbour on the 45-seater ‘Visakha Boat’.

Taking advantage of the growing popularity of boat rides, many fishermen also take tourists in groups into the sea in traditional fishing boat. However, most of the boats are overcrowded and exceed the maximum sitting capacity. Also, choppy sea conditions during high tides have proved to be disastrous many times. A few months back, one of the speedboats of APTDC had overturned during high tide conditions. Since then the APTDC has stopped operating boat rides during rough sea conditions.

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