BANGALORE: Formula One’s most successful driver, Michael Schumacher, has put the travel industry on the fast track after announcing his plans to bid adieu to the sport at the end of the season. Travel bookings have picked up for the Shanghai F1, slated for October 1, since Schumi’s rather dramatic announcement 10 days back on winning the Monza Grand Prix.

Travel firms are now offering Schumacher Special packages to Shanghai — the basic package, inclusive of a ticket, costs around Rs 50,000-70,000 — as the remaining races in this year’s F1 calendar at Suzuka in Japan and Sao Paulo in Brazil could prove more expensive for India’s diehard Schumi fans who want one last glimpse of the great German driver in his bright red, dream machine.

“We have around 30 bookings for the Shanghai F1 from the Bangalore, Chennai and Hyderabad markets. It is primarily driven by F1 fans wanting to see Schumacher at the end of his career,” said Shravan Gupta, director, Travel Tours.

The 37-year-old German is touted as F1’s most charismatic driver since Ayrton Senna, who crashed to death at Imola in 1994. The farewell excitement for the seven-time world champion, and the world’s first billionaire sportsperson, is building up after his late rally to narrow the gap with Renault’s Fernando Alonso this season.

SOTC has got 45-50 bookings from Delhi and Mumbai. “Last year, we didn’t get a single booking for the F1 race in Shanghai. Schumacher has been the driving force for kids. Parents are offering the chance to see Michael Schumacher as an incentive to children,” said P Srinivas, VP, SOTC (Special Interest Tours).

Observers said the interest generated by Schumi’s retirement was indicative of the growing familiarity with F1 and other niche sports in India. “Shanghai will be the nearest opportunity for many Indians to watch Schumacher in action now, and that is creating a buzz,” said Mr Gupta of Travel Tours.

SOTC is aiming to hit schools with promotional campaigns for F1 holiday packages well ahead of the ’07 racing season, in a marketing move targeted at kids, as they seemed to influence Shanghai bookings to an extent. Travel Port is offering a four-day package to Shanghai for around Rs 52,000, which includes a Formula One ticket.

“So far, a team of 25 people from a Mumbai-based company has confirmed the booking. We have approached 15 companies from sectors like pharma, banking and telecom. Three companies have shown interest so far,” said Heena JA, COO of TravelPort.