Fair deal

Now, specially designed travel packages for those heading for trade fairs.

What's it?

A travel package that promises to take care of you and your delegation as you hobnob with businessmen from across the globe. Well, we are talking of specially developed packages offered by SOTC Trade Fair Tours and Cox & Kings for those of you travelling to trade fairs and product exhibitions.

Trade fairs on the list include big names like the grand-daddy of all fairs, the Hanover Fair, techie show CeBIT, textile machinery exhibition ITMA and Automechanika China.

SOTC offers packages to other lesser known fairs like Heimetextil, the home textile exhibition in Frankfurt, Arab Health, the largest healthcare event in the Gulf, CPhI Worldwide, the annual meeting place for pharmaceutical professionals and Achemasia, a chemical and biotechnology congress that'll be held in Beijing.

What's in it for me?

Well, for starters the packages include travel to the venue and back by air, accommodation in three- or four-star hotels, breakfast and dinner (Indian food at dinner if you book SOTC) and transfers (both to and from the airport as well as to the fair venue).

SOTC also offers to arrange factory visits as a part of the package, so say you are attending Arab Plast, a plastic and rubber industry trade show, SOTC will arrange for a visit to a plastic factory as a part of the package.

What are the damages?

Packages offered by Cox & Kings cost approximately Rs 49,999 plus taxes per person. SOTC packages start from Rs 59,990 per person, and you can choose to pay for the package in monthly instalments too (Rs 1,735 per month for 36 months).

Take it or leave it?

Leave it if you are the type who would like to find the perfect deal through research. And yes, that way you can keep your schedule flexible.