The Kerala tourism department in association with global retailer Lulu group will be organizing a four-day-long travel and tourism event in Abu Dhabi from February 22, to promote the 'God's Own Country' in the Middle East tourism market.
IndiaTourism Dubai office, Tourism India and Brand Kerala Magazines are also part of the event, titled as 'Explore Kerala @ Abu Dhabi."
Official logo of 'Explore Kerala' was unveiled by Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan in the presence Ashraf Ali MA, Lulu Group Executive Director, Nandakumar, Chief Communication Officer, Biju Kottarathil, Media Secretary and other officials recently, a release said here today.
The event will be held from February 22 25 at Mushrif Mall in Abu Dhabi.
Several leading Hotels & Resorts including The Raviz Hotels & Resorts, Uday Samudra Kovalam, Vythiri Village Wayanad, Somatheeram Ayurveda Resort and two leading tour operators, Gateway Malabar Holidays and The Blue Yonder from the state will showcase their products along with Kerala destination presentation, it said.
A colourful cultural performance showcasing the state's art forms including Kathakali, Mohiniyattom, Theyyam and Thayambaka will also be the part of the four-day event, it said.
"Keralites have always considered UAE as their second home and Kerala tourism identified the potential of the ever growing UAE tourism market.
Considering tourist arrivals to Kerala from the Middle East, UAE is the second biggest market after Saudi Arabia and followed by the Oman and Kuwait," state Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran said.
"In 2015, there were 71,500 tourists from Saudi Arabia (65048 in 2014 and 48,346 in 2013), 20,000 plus ( 18,264 in 2014 and 17,475 in 2013) from the UAE and 17,924 from Oman, who visited the state.
From the Middle East alone, we have more than one lakh visitors," he added.
The event would be officially inaugurated by Sultan Hamad Al Mutawa Al Dhaheri, Executive Director of Abu Dhabi Tourism.
Indian Ambassador to UAE, Navdeep Suri, Etihad Airways Senior Vice President, Harib Al Muhairi, India Tourism Director IRV Rao and many dignitaries would also be present during the function, the release added.
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Showing posts with label Kerala Tourism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Kerala Tourism. Show all posts
Sunday, 19 February 2017
Tuesday, 30 August 2016
Revisit Decision To Close Liquor Bars,Kerala Tourism Minister
The previous UDF government had decided to close down 700-odd liquor bars attached to hotels below five star categories in 2014.
Kerala has seen a severe dip in tourist arrivals and fall in revenues following the closure of bars. "The present excise policy has dealt a severe blow to the tourism industry in Kerala," Mr Moideen told reporters in Thiruvananthapuram.
"There has been a severe fall in the growth of tourist arrivals in the state. With hotels not serving liquor, conferences have come down and the state is losing out," he said, adding, liquor should be made available in bars in tourist hotspots.
Tourism Department's report has been submitted to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, he said.
In Kerala, while the domestic arrival of tourists touched 124,65,571 in 2015, a growth of 6.59 per cent, figure for foreign tourist arrival was 9,77,479 (5.86 per cent growth), he said.
In 2014, domestic tourist arrivals stood at 116,95,411 (7.71 per cent) against 9,23,366 (7.60 per cent) of international visitors, while in 2013 it was 108,57,811 (7.75 per cent) and foreign tourists 8,58,143 (8.12 per cent).
During 2014, the state earned Rs. 6,398.93 crore in foreign exchange earnings showing a 15 per cent increase, while it was Rs. 6,949.88 crore last year with a dip of 8.6 per cent.
The total revenue generated from tourism (direct and indirect) in 2014 was Rs. 24,885.44 crore (12.11 per cent) while in 2015 it was Rs. 26,689.63 crore (7.25 per cent).
Tuesday, 1 March 2016
INDIA: Kerala Tourism Eyes 12% Growth In Tourist Arrivals
Kerala government is aiming for a 10-12% growth in domestic and foreign tourist arrivals and exploring new source markets like East Asia and Russia for tourism opportunities.
"Last year has been a difficult year for the tourism industry and we achieved a flat or marginal growth compared to 2014. This year and in 2017, we are expecting double-digit growth (about 10-12%) in tourist arrivals," Kerala Tourism Deputy Director Nandakumar K P told PTI here.
In 2015, as many as 7,75,390 foreign tourists visited Kerala from January-October, a growth of 6.60%. Last year, 76,71,277 domestic tourists visited the southern state from January-August, a growth of 7.40%, according to government data.
The state, which is facing competition from Sri Lanka and South Asian countries, is planning to attract tourists by branding 'Kerala: the home of Ayurveda'.
"We are exploring new markets like Russia, East Asia, China and Japan, besides focusing on strengthening the traditional markets like the European Union and the US. For wooing tourists, we have branded the state as 'Kerala: the home of Ayurveda'.
"We decided for branding because we are facing a lot of competition from Sri Lanka and South Asian markets. Moreover, we are combining wellness with sightseeing," he said.
Meanwhile, Kerala is signing an agreement with Saint Petersburg in Russia for joint promotion this week.
"To increase our visibility and help increase foot print, we decided to do joint promotions with other states in the country as well as foreign destinations. We are planning to sign an MoU with Saint Petersburg this week. We are looking at similar opportunities and may sign many such MoUs in future," he said.
"Last year has been a difficult year for the tourism industry and we achieved a flat or marginal growth compared to 2014. This year and in 2017, we are expecting double-digit growth (about 10-12%) in tourist arrivals," Kerala Tourism Deputy Director Nandakumar K P told PTI here.
In 2015, as many as 7,75,390 foreign tourists visited Kerala from January-October, a growth of 6.60%. Last year, 76,71,277 domestic tourists visited the southern state from January-August, a growth of 7.40%, according to government data.
The state, which is facing competition from Sri Lanka and South Asian countries, is planning to attract tourists by branding 'Kerala: the home of Ayurveda'.
"We are exploring new markets like Russia, East Asia, China and Japan, besides focusing on strengthening the traditional markets like the European Union and the US. For wooing tourists, we have branded the state as 'Kerala: the home of Ayurveda'.
"We decided for branding because we are facing a lot of competition from Sri Lanka and South Asian markets. Moreover, we are combining wellness with sightseeing," he said.
Meanwhile, Kerala is signing an agreement with Saint Petersburg in Russia for joint promotion this week.
"To increase our visibility and help increase foot print, we decided to do joint promotions with other states in the country as well as foreign destinations. We are planning to sign an MoU with Saint Petersburg this week. We are looking at similar opportunities and may sign many such MoUs in future," he said.
Tuesday, 23 February 2016
INDIA: European Tourists Rise In Kerala
Tourist arrivals from Europe have registered a remarkable 4.8 per cent increase in 'God's Own Country' Kerala during the year till October despite the Eurozone recovery losing steam.
A total of 4,20,247 European travellers arrived in the state between January and October this year as against 4,01,063 during the whole of last year amid many West European countries struggling to protect their economies in the aftermath of the Greek debt crisis and the downturn in China, an official release said today.
"Europe remains the number one traditional market for Kerala while we have been able to create strong markets in several countries abroad along with finding new ones," state Tourism Minister AP Anilkumar said in the release.
"This is evident from the fact that more number of tourists from European countries have visited our state so far this year compared to last year in spite of their economies encountering hurdles in a full recovery," he said.
More tourists continued to arrive in Kerala last year even from countries like Italy, Finland, the Netherlands, Portugal and Germany, whose less than expected economic growth is worrying financial analysts.
"The tourism industry in our state, which has been built over the last many decades by the strong commitment of the governments, the participation of the common people and the lasting will of the private sector, will always strive harder to achieve higher growth," the Minister said.
The marketing campaign by Kerala Tourism over the years to create a spread of strong markets while continuing to explore new markets has significantly contributed to the situation where there was no over dependence on any particular country.
As per the statistics pertaining to this year, arrivals from Europe showed an overall increase across the continent with United Kingdom, the state's number one market, accounting for 1,25,795 tourists this year as against 1,19,605 in the whole of last year, it said.
The number of tourists who visited the state from France and Germany stood at 75,216 and 61,962 respectively till October compared to 73,368 and 59,225 last year.
From Italy, one of the countries affected by sluggish economic recovery, 20,489 tourists have visited the state up to October against 19,740 last year. Even from countries like Spain, severely affected by the financial meltdown, the number of visitors to the state so far this year has been more than last year's, at 9,912 compared to 9,411 in 2014, the release said.
Traditional attractions like ayurveda and the backwaters have remained popular among foreign tourists, especially those from Europe, while new tourism products like Village Life Experience have been attracting more and more visitors to the state.
The marketing campaigns by Kerala Tourism in countries like Belgium besides the UK and Germany, are expected to be significant in boosting foreign tourist arrivals from Europe in the coming years, the release added.
A total of 4,20,247 European travellers arrived in the state between January and October this year as against 4,01,063 during the whole of last year amid many West European countries struggling to protect their economies in the aftermath of the Greek debt crisis and the downturn in China, an official release said today.
"Europe remains the number one traditional market for Kerala while we have been able to create strong markets in several countries abroad along with finding new ones," state Tourism Minister AP Anilkumar said in the release.
"This is evident from the fact that more number of tourists from European countries have visited our state so far this year compared to last year in spite of their economies encountering hurdles in a full recovery," he said.
More tourists continued to arrive in Kerala last year even from countries like Italy, Finland, the Netherlands, Portugal and Germany, whose less than expected economic growth is worrying financial analysts.
"The tourism industry in our state, which has been built over the last many decades by the strong commitment of the governments, the participation of the common people and the lasting will of the private sector, will always strive harder to achieve higher growth," the Minister said.
The marketing campaign by Kerala Tourism over the years to create a spread of strong markets while continuing to explore new markets has significantly contributed to the situation where there was no over dependence on any particular country.
As per the statistics pertaining to this year, arrivals from Europe showed an overall increase across the continent with United Kingdom, the state's number one market, accounting for 1,25,795 tourists this year as against 1,19,605 in the whole of last year, it said.
The number of tourists who visited the state from France and Germany stood at 75,216 and 61,962 respectively till October compared to 73,368 and 59,225 last year.
From Italy, one of the countries affected by sluggish economic recovery, 20,489 tourists have visited the state up to October against 19,740 last year. Even from countries like Spain, severely affected by the financial meltdown, the number of visitors to the state so far this year has been more than last year's, at 9,912 compared to 9,411 in 2014, the release said.
Traditional attractions like ayurveda and the backwaters have remained popular among foreign tourists, especially those from Europe, while new tourism products like Village Life Experience have been attracting more and more visitors to the state.
The marketing campaigns by Kerala Tourism in countries like Belgium besides the UK and Germany, are expected to be significant in boosting foreign tourist arrivals from Europe in the coming years, the release added.
Tuesday, 16 February 2016
INDIA: Kerala Tour Operators Form New Association
A group of tour operators in Kerala have joined together to form a new trade consortium called the Association of Tourism Trade Organisations India.
It aims to rebrand Kerala State as a new destination and is backed by the Kerala tourism ministry.
A series of tour packages for foreign tourists have been launched and the ultimate goal is to offer up to 500 different packages.
"It is for the first time in India that tour operators are gathering under one umbrella for joint promotion of a package," said Kerala tourism minister A P Anilkumar.
"The public-private partnership in our state's tourism sector has been demonstrating to the world the huge benefits in working together. The new alliance of tour operators in Kerala is yet another example of the commitment to promote tourism."
The main highlight is the 'Navaratana Experiessential Holidays' package, a nine-day trip including village visits with local community interactions and sustainable tourism activities.
Activities such as bullock cart rides and interactive food tours are planned during the nine days.
"Coming out of the comforts of the hotel room and car and taking a plunge into Kerala life is the motto of the new packages," added Kerala tourism secretary Jyothilal.
Other themed tours and activities will be promoted including a series of packages aimed at the domestic market.
Thursday, 5 November 2015
Kerala Tourism receives PATA award for Thekkady
Kerala Tourism has been awarded for its efforts in making Thekkady, in Periyar National Park in the state, a top emerging destination in the world.
Kerala Tourism Secretary G Kamala Vardhana Rao received the Pacific Asia Travel Association CEO Challenge 2015 award at a function held at the World Travel Mart (WTM), London on November 2, an official release said.
The award is in recognition of the pioneering responsible tourism undertaken in Thekkady by Kerala Tourism, it added.
Thekkady won the Top Emerging Destination award in the category for two-tier and three-tier cities while Albay in the Philippines received the award for regions/states/provinces.
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