NE BUSINESS BUREAU
AHMEDABAD, MARCH 10
Stating that the year 2022 is going to be the year of Kerala Tourism and our immediate focus is on domestic tourism, in which Gujarat is a key market, as the state has traditionally been a major contributor to Kerala Tourism, State Tourism Director V R Krishna Teja said here on Thursday.
Thirty-five domestic tourists and two foreign tourists land in God’s Own Country every minute. And majority of the domestic tourists are from Gujarat. They used to visit during March to June. Now, they can visit Kerala round the year and enjoy its pristine beauty, added Teja.
“The year ahead is packed with a hectic schedule of absorbing events and festivities including the Kerala Travel Mart in May, Champions’ Boat League (CBL) in August-November and Kochi Muziris Biennale in December-March besides several cultural and literary fests and adventure tourism activities,” Teja said.
With the pandemic-caused domestic and international travel restrictions being lifted, Kerala is in a resurgent mode now and the recently launched products, including caravans, longer stays and customized vacations, will woo travellers from both inside the country and outside, the State Tourism Director said.
Tourism activities are back in full swing in the time-tested locales of the state like beaches, hill stations, backwaters and houseboats as well to host guests all through the year, and Kerala promises a variety of choices, Teja, told a press conference here on the sidelines of a partnership meet.
“Our immediate focus is on domestic tourism, in which Gujarat is a key market, as the state has traditionally been a major contributor to Kerala Tourism,” Teja said.
In a major shift from the destination-specific approach, the whole of Kerala is reinventing itself as an ideal place for extended holidays with multiple experiences such as homestays, Drive Holidays, ‘Change of Air’ based wellness vacations and adventure tourism activities, he said.
The travel and tourism industry has evinced keen interest in the new products of Kerala Tourism and a busy year is ahead for the state with a steep increase in footfalls.
Kerala has a variety of experiences for visitors like houseboats, caravan stays, jungle lodges, plantation visits, homestays and city life, ayurveda-based wellness solutions, countryside walks and adventure activities including trekking to verdant hills.
‘Keravan Kerala’, the state’s caravan tourism initiative, has elicited tremendous response from the industry within a short span of time, emerging as a major product after Kerala tourism recorded an exponential rise powered by the houseboat cruise some three decades back.
Elucidating on Keravan Kearala, Teja said, “We have 10 Keravans which can accommodate a small family of four people. It has bedroom, kitchen and toilet facilities. The travellers have to cook food from the semi-cooked food given to them. These Keravans can be parked at 120 special Keravan Parks set up under PPP scheme in many unexplored parts of the state. The state government offers subsidies to Keravan Park runners. There are three types of Keravans – luxury, ordinary and self-driven.”
A major initiative has also been launched to open up the whole of the state for tourists in a sustainable manner without disturbing the ecology and cultural milieu of the destinations. This project of exploring the unexplored destinations has been integrated with Kerala’s world acclaimed community-centric and heritage-preserving Responsible Tourism movement.
To promote the state as a safe and glamorous honeymoon destination, Kerala Tourism has launched micro video songs to lure honeymooners from India and abroad.
A series of travel trade networking activities, including participation in Trade Fairs, and organisation of B2B Partnership Meets and roadshows have been planned to introduce the new products to a wider audience. The first partnership meet held in the national capital earlier this week had a highly encouraging response from the industry.
Major international tourism events where Kerala plans to showcase its strength in the next three months include the 28th International Mediterranean Tourism Market (IMTM) at Tel Aviv (Israel) and at BIT Milan (Italy). Also, B2B Meets will be held in Madrid and Milan.
The state will also also mark its strong presence in domestic meets like OTM Mumbai, TTF Chennai and South Asian Travel and Tourism Exchange (SATTE), New Delhi, and organise partnership meets in Hyderabad and Bengaluru, as well.
