Themed ‘Indian Adventure Travel: Exploring New Frontiers’, the 15th annual convention of the Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) honoured Empyrean Skyview Projects for its outstanding contribution towards establishing India as the epicentre of global adventure tourism.
FIL Industries Private Limited’s Empyrean Skyview Projects has built the Skyview Gondola in Sanget – Patnitop, Jammu & Kashmir and is currently in the process of constructing the Dehradun-Mussoorie ropeway to be ready by 2026.
Empyrean Skyview Projects, the Sustainable Mobility & Tourism Infrastructure division of FIL Industries Pvt. Ltd., has been honoured with the ‘Pathfinder Award for Adventure Infrastructure Innovation’ at ATOAI’s 15th Annual Convention.
Empyrean Skyview Projects’ pioneer project, Skyview by Empyrean is located in Sanget – Patnitop, Jammu & Kashmir and is spread across 22-acres and seamlessly blends premium hospitality, adventure, nature and luxury.
The property features India’s highest gondola — the Skyview Gondola also known as the green gondola that cuts down travel time by an hour between Sanget valley and Patnitop to only 10 mins one way! A magic carpet ride measuring 162 metres to the top, an all-season tubing sledge featuring 238 metres of slopes and Asia’s longest zig-zag zip-line measuring 580 metres, mountain biking, hiking trails, birding, camping, archery, and ATVs are other adventure highlights offered at the property. The planning, development and construction of this property was done in collaboration with the POMA Group, MND Group, ERIC and Sage Geotech.
While presenting the award, ATOAI said, “Your outstanding contributions and achievements have not gone unnoticed and this recognition is a testament to the dedication, innovation and excellence that Empyrean Skyview Projects has consistently demonstrated. The award is an acknowledgement of Empyrean’s commitment to excellence in this sector.”
“We are delighted and honoured to receive this prestigious award from ATOAI. Right from the start, we have stayed true to our commitment to building a sustainable ecosystem around our projects that factor in the local communities, the environment and the economy. Through innovation and by putting in place the highest standards with our local and global partners, we hope to lead by example in setting up adventure infrastructure across our projects that will make India the hub of global adventure tourism,” said Syed Junaid Altaf, Group Executive Director, FIL Industries Private Limited.
Mr. Upen Anand, General Manager of Skyview by Empyrean represented Empyrean Skyview Projects and received the award on 17th December 2023.
Other upcoming projects include the Dehradun-Mussoorie ropeway built on the Mono-cable Detachable Gondola Technology as per CEN standards issued by the European Committee of Standardization. This ropeway will be India’s longest passenger aerial mono-cable ropeway when it is ready by September 2026, connecting the twin cities in just 20 minutes.
Skyview By Empyrean is also a Responsible Tourism Society of India (RTSOI) certified company. It is compliant with the parameters of Sustainable & Responsible Tourism as practiced by RTSOI and set as a standard by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India. These include promoting sustainability management, socio-economic, cultural, and environmental sustainability.
The Adventure Tour Operators Association of India (ATOAI) is the national representative body of Indian Adventure Tour Operators. It was founded in 1994 by a group of Travel Trade Adventurers, who envisioned ATOAI to be a strong support group that led to both group and individual profits by establishing adventure as one of the main tourism attractions to India.
The recently concluded convention titled ‘Indian Adventure Travel: Exploring New Frontiers’, was held at Praveg Tent City, Narmada, near the Statue of Unity in collaboration with Gujarat Tourism. The overarching mission of the convention that was attended by government dignitaries, influential travel conglomerates and visionary leaders of the travel and tourism industry from across India, was to establish India as the epicentre of global adventure tourism. Each year, the convention also aims to bridge the gap between operators at the grassroots level and adventure tourism firms, fortifying their collective strength.
