Olivea Travels, India’s first and only ultra-luxury bus service, is offering 24-hour a half-price sale on its Bangalore-Chennai bus route in association with US deals website Groupon.
The Rs 1,400 ticket will fetch you an experience including a multi-cuisine and beverages service, an on-board “luxury” toilet, a 10-inch TV with live DTH service, and WiFi access all along the route.
The company, owned by the South-India based Nilgiris restaurant group, operates luxury bus services from New Delhi to nearby cities and Bangalore to cities around it and targets its services at people who would otherwise fly to their destinations.
Nearly all the routes are overnighters — and the 160-degree reclining seats are touted as better than those offered by any airline, even in the business class. The overnight schedules are supposed to ensure that you don’t miss your sleep, unlike when you choose to go by air.
The Nilgiris group was started by Muthuswamy Mudaliar, who started out a small butter trading business near Coonoor about 100 years ago. The group’s flagship Nilgiris store is located on Bangalore’s upmarket Brigade Road.
The Olivea offer, which is open only for a day for bookings till May end, has already sold more than 500 tickets on Groupon.
The Groupon website, which has seen its stock decline after a spectacular listing last year, is trying to expand into new markets such as India even as its traditional US market seems to have disappointed investors.