Mysuru: Kerala Tourism, with its year-long marketing activity campaign which commences with the summer campaign that lures summer travellers from the month of April to September, reached out to the tourism industry players in Mysuru by presenting various traditional cultural events.
“Kerala, voted the Best Family Destination by Lonely Planet, the Best Leisure Destination by Conde Nast Traveller and winner of 6 national tourism awards in 2016, offers the much needed succour and adrenaline rush to its adventure seeking traveller. Kayaking, trekking, paragliding and river rafting form a part of the Adventure package. “Although Kerala is seen as a laid back destination, the state’s varied topography ensures ample opportunities for adventure lovers. The recently held Malabar River Festival, Wayanad Splash Monsoon Carnival prove to be the best examples,” said Kadakkampalli Surendran, Minister for Tourism, Govt. of Kerala.
“For art aficionados, the state endorses the dreamy lanes of Fort Kochi and a pilgrimage to Kochi Muziris Biennale which has changed the landscape of contemporary Indian art today and has helped make Kochi the art capital of India, and for history buffs looking to transport themselves to another era there is the Muziris Heritage Project. The remains of a once thriving harbour offering pepper, gold, silk and ivory to Arabs, Romans, Egyptians as early as the first century BC is today preserved across 25 museums as the largest heritage conservation project in India. Another offering in the historical space is the Spice Route Culinary Festival that rekindled the 2000-year-old ancient sea links and shared culinary legacies with 30 countries”, added Surendran.
The state has already registered a remarkable increase in domestic and international tourists during 2016. While international tourist arrivals to Kerala during the year 2016 was 10,38,419-an increase of 6.25 percent over the previous year’s , the domestic tourist arrival was 1,31,72,535 marked a 5.67 percent increase. The total revenue has also seen a whopping increase of 11 -12 percent over the last year’s figure.
“There’s a little something for everyone in Kerala and with our active digital marketing efforts aim to increase the domestic footfalls further. We have explored various platforms including Whatsapp to present a virtual tour guide called Maya who answers all queries about tourism in Kerala, and an app, GoKerala that help you plan a dream holiday. With this roadshow, we aim to augment Kerala’s pull as a destination that serves every kind of traveller”, said Dr. Venu V, Principal Secretary (Tourism).
