Mumbai : Tourists wishing to visit historic monuments in the country will now be able to book tickets on their mobiles.In an industry first, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), premier organization under the Ministry of Culture for the archaeological researches and protection of the cultural heritage of the nation, has inked a Memorandum of Understating (MoU) with BookMyShow, India’s largest online entertainment ticketing platform and Yatra.com, one of India’s leading online travel agency.
This MoU will enable overseas and domestic tourists and visitors to conveniently book their tickets online for 141 historical monuments, museums and sites in India, such as Taj Mahal, Qutub Minar, Ajanta and Ellora caves, Red Fort, Sun Temple, which fall under the purview of ASI.
The move, aimed towards supporting Government of India’s ‘Digital India’ initiative, will facilitate digitization of ASI’s service offerings, thereby providing fast track access and a world-class e-ticket booking experience to visitors. The partnership with BookMyShow and Yatra (the only OTA to provide this facility) will also be significant in promoting tourism and cultural heritage in India. The online booking services comes at no additional cost for a customer.
Commenting on this partnership, Karan Arora, General Manager- Business Development, BookMyShow said, “Monuments and historical sites not only give a glimpse of our rich heritage, culture and art that spans over hundreds of years, they also form a solid foundation for the tourism sector in India; their marvels attracting millions of people from across the world and from within our own country. The Archaeological Survey of India has taken lead in expanding e-ticketing for this segment. We are excited to work with them to innovate within this space and introduce unmatched convenience, while contributing to the Government’s Digital India initiative. With BookMyShow’s vast reach, user friendly platforms, secure payment systems and innovations such as the m-ticket (mobile ticket, which allows users entry straight into the venue premises without waiting in long queues), we are confident that we will be able to increase adoption for e-ticketing through this initiative and bring more people online.”
Speaking on the partnership, Dhiresh Sharma, Chief Business Officer, Activities - Yatra, said, “India has an extraordinary and diverse pool of cultural & built heritage & footfalls to such destinations are astounding. Therefore, we want to provide a high quality visitor experience which will empower the visitors (both Indian & International tourists) to book their tickets to these monuments online. In addition to providing online booking services, Yatra will be extending its platform for promoting cultural heritage and featuring all the essential information that a visitor needs to plan their sight-seeing: connectivity & access; opening & closing timings & facilities available along with write-ups on the monuments. We believe that this initiative, in partnership with The Archaeological Survey of India, will drive the convenience of ‘digital’ to all those planning to visit these sites and reiterate Yatra’s position of being ‘India ka travel planner’.”
The tickets for the 141 monuments, museums and sites, managed by ASI, are now available online on BookMyShow and Yatra platforms (website, mobile app and mobile web).
