History buff leads city tour

Bangalore is portrayed as a city of techies and pubs, but if you scratch the surface you see a storied past dating back at least 1,000 years. A travel company is now conducting guided tours covering the historical landmarks of the city.

Started by Praveen Singh, Malika and Williams, Bangalore Tours and More takes people on walking and bus tours every Saturday and Sunday.

Praveen’s passion for history makes him the driving spirit. An authority on the city and an ultra marathon runner, he says his idea is to make people see the city through a different lens.

Malika, hailing from the travel and tourism industry, says, “I have lived in Bengaluru for 20 years and I had never seen this side of Bengaluru till recently.”

D Williams, from the corporate world, is a proud Bengalurean deeply interested in its culinary heritage.

“We want to unravel the hidden gems of Bengaluru. There is so much of culture in our city that we are unaware of,” he says.

“Apart from guided walking tours and bus tours, we also conduct pub crawls, gourmet trails and breakfast trails with a storyline,” says Williams.

It is not just for tourists. “Though I was born and brought up here, I had paid barely any attention to our culture,” said Celia, who went on the tour last week.

On the itinerary

The city tour in an air-conditioned bus begins at 8.30 am and ends at 4.30 pm (Saturday and Sunday). Places covered are Lalbagh, Bull Temple, Fort, KR Market, Government Museum, Trinity Church, Vidhana Soudha and Cubbon Park. It is priced at Rs 1,199 and includes a south Indian meal.

BMTC city tours

The BMTC also offers city tours. Bengaluru Darshan, as the city sightseeing tour is called, begins at 9am and ends at 6pm every day, covering Tippu Palace, Dodda Basavanna Temple, Gavigangadareshwara Temple, Lalbagh, Vishveshwarayya museum, Cubbon Park, Vidhanasoudha, Jawaharlal Nehru Planetorium, Indira Gandhi Musical Fountain, Iskon, etc. The fare is Rs Rs 400 per head and for children it is Rs 300 per head.