Published 20 Jul, 2016 04:35pm

Super Savari Express wants to help you catch every Pokemon in Karachi

Mobile game Pokemon Go is all the rage these days. It's beaten the viral likes of Flappy Bird, Candy Crush or even Dubsmash.

I've had an interesting experience playing Pokemon Go. I've seen Karachiites run all over the city in the pursuit of the monsters that inhabit the alternate reality of the game. It's easy to spot a player. They're the ones walking around robotically, their eyes glued to their phones. If they suddenly dash off in a certain direction, they've found a Pokemon, people. Don't judge, rejoice.

Such is the popularity of this new game that brands have started cashing on to the trend. Restaurants are 'luring' customers, (get it? get it?) saying they had a popular Pokemon present in their premises. Ginsoy has a Pokestop at its fountain, so it's attracting a lot of customers.

But it's not only the food business that's benefiting. Super Savari Express, Pakistan's first guided city tour, has launched a themed tour named Super PokeExpress, and Pokemon Go players are ecstatic!

The Super PokeExpress tour will take passengers to pokestops (where you buys weapons called Pokeballs), gyms (where the Pokemon you catch train to become better warriors for you) and locations where the Pokemon are known to spawn. In short, they're promising a fruitful day to all Pokemon players. Passengers will explore the city while upping their game stats - it's a win-win situation!

"We started [Super Savari Express] with the aim of reviving domestic tourism by giving people a platform to come together for their city, to come onto the streets and know the city for what it is, and really feel its beating heart," says Head of Operations, Jehanzeb Salim.

When Pokemon Go was launched, Jehanzeb knew he had to organise a themed tour stat: "I've always collected Pokemon cards, and played the game for the first time when it came out on the original GameBoy, so it's double the excitement for me to be able to make a major part of our collective childhood a part of the Super Savari Express, which holds an equally special place for me.

He said the themed tour is a great networking opportunity for like-minded people: "Pokemon is something that's been a part of our childhood growing up, the fact that it's come back in this interactive way gives us that opportunity to get like-minded people to come together, network and explore the city, and learn new and exciting things about it, all while catching their favorite Pokemon!"

Jehanzeb is excited for this project as he signs off with "We can't wait to have you on board as we continue on the mission to reclaim Pakistan, one city, and one Pokemon at a time!"


The writer can be reached on Twitter

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