Early in December 2017, a group of travellers took a bus to Kamshet from Mumbai. They went paragliding and trekking, picnicked by a lake, and camped out under the stars. The group of 14 had six unsighted tourists and their eight sighted ‘travel pals’, who brought a richly sensorial holiday alive for their new buddies.
“We believe that travelling is more than sightseeing,” says Ritu Sinha, co-founder of Bat Travels (www.battravelsonline.com ) , the first company in India to plan mixed group tours designed for the visually impaired. “No trip of ours is complete without both sighted and unsighted people travelling together.”
Divya Saxena and Sinha (the latter is also an author), both in their 30s, gave up award-winning careers in top ad agencies to focus on Bat Travels. “Both of us travel a lot and we travel together, too,” says Saxena. “Over one such trip, we spotted two blind gentlemen at a tourist spot. We immediately asked ourselves why we don’t see more unsighted people while travelling. That’s what sparked the idea for Bat Travels.”
The name came about because bats use their senses to travel far and wide. “That’s also the ethos of our company — it is for those who use senses other than sight,” says Sinha. Itineraries are designed to be interesting for everyone. Family is welcome, but new friendships are especially encouraged, “without parents hovering”.
As 2017 drew to a close, they met at a taproom in suburban Mumbai, taking notes from a beer expert, while sampling eight brews over an evening of finger food and animated conversation. They are talking to a professional surfer in Goa for a three-hour surfing course. Amritsar, Varanasi and Corbett National Park are coming up soon.
Sinha and Saxena personally visit and recce the destination, or work with providers of local knowledge, choosing properties that are accessible and easily navigable. If it’s a monument, they create 3D models that unsighted travellers can touch to appreciate the architecture.
Over the Republic Day weekend, they are planning a first-of-its-kind experience of a stay in tents that float (on the river) and hang (from trees) for a peaceful evening of trance-Sufi music in Karjat. “Do travel with us sometime and make new friends,” Sinha says. “It will be fun.”
