Chennai: Though the coastal Nagapattinam district in the state abounds in numerous heritage sites and monuments the Dansborg fort in Tranquebar - a striking remnant of the Danish legacy, continues to attract visitors from Denmark.
On the flip side, enthused over the prospects of sustaining its tourism economy, the Scandinavian country is keen on promoting tourism between India and Denmark.
Tranquebar or Tharangambadi - about 275 km from Chennai, was a Danish colony from 1620 to 1845 and it is also famous for the 14th century Masilamaninathar temple built during the reign of Maravarman Kulasekara Pandyan I. Apart from the state authorities, INTACH, Pondicherry, and the Danish Tranquebar Association are involved in preserving the Danish heritage.
Sources in the tourism department claim the visitors from Denmark is handful and on the rise, Copenhagen received about 72,000 Indian visitors last year, which is an increase of 30% over 2014 fiscal. This year from January to July, the figures are already showing a growth of 11% over the same period the previous year.
“This time we are aggressively promoting the Danish Viking heritage attractions such as Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, Trelleborg Viking Fortress and the Viking Village in Albertslund, outlined Flemming Bruhn, Director, Visit Denmark,” a representative from the Scandinavian Tourist Board said.
According to Mohit Batra, India Representative, Scandinavian Tourist Board, said, “the travel trend from India reflects the uniform growth in incentive travel and fixed group departures from India with an average length of stay of 10 days. This year has witnessed small leisure group travel in good numbers.”
