KOCHI: From pristine beaches to alluring backwaters, mesmerizing hill stations and wildlife sanctuaries to luxurious hotels and resorts, Kerala is a global tourist delight, be it the backpacker, the experiential tourist or the corporate houses planning conferences or meetings.

Tourist destinations are there everywhere in different parts of the world, but what makes Kerala unique is that is an extended town from north to south and east to west, with great connectivity, soothing climate and unmatched infrastructure. 

Four international airports, well-connected roads, excellent public transport and other facilities make the God’s Own Country, a tourist destination throughout the year for any class of tourists.

It is this uniqueness that made the tourism authorities in the state to strengthen the campaign globally in the post-Covid scenario to attract all kind of travelers. As part of the campaign, Kerala Tourism is organizing a road show in Muscat on May 17, Tuesday, which is expected to place the God’s own country on a new pedestal attracting the world.

What is even more important is that many tourism majors in India and overseas, including AlHind Holidays, are joining hands with the initiatives and they have introduced many packages to suit different classes of tourists.

Beaches beckoning

From Bekal towards north to Kovalam down south, beaches are aplenty in Kerala, and many of them are yet to get the global attention. A few years back, Global tourist expert Lonely Planet had listed north Kerala as the third spot in Asia as a must watch. One of the main reasons was the beach tourism. However, even now many destinations are not properly marketed and the beaches in north Kerala, including the drive-in beach of Muzhappilangad in Kannur are yet to be marketed properly.

Backwaters come to the forefront

Even now the stretch between Kochi and Alapuzha is the most sought-after destination for most of the global tourists. The place got this distinction mainly because of the backwaters and beaches. Further, there are some of the best hotels as well. But in the recent times, the cultural events like Kochi-Muziris Biennale has given a new dimension to the tourist map of Kochi and now art lovers are also thronging the place. The success of the art event organised every alternate year has started showing its positive impact on tourism as well. Talking about backwaters, places like Kasaragod and Kannur are also slowly picking up, and the new initiatives are likely to give a fillip to the virgin destinations with great potential. From boating and fishing to boat race, there are entertainments aplenty at the waterfront in Kerala.

From hill stations to health tourism 

For those who are looking for a chill weather and want a laidback ambience in the lap of nature, there are hill stations like Thekkadi, Munnar, Devikulam and Vagamon in Idukki. Also there are many lesser knows destinations capturing the fancy of the tourists.

As far as cultural heritage and history are concerned every other village and town in Kerala has to tell a story and once we develop a few circuits it is likely to attract more knowledge tourists here. Similarly, there are many ayurvedic centres offering world-class treatment, often using modern technology. In many such places, Arabs and Europeans also come for treatment and this potential is also one aspect that could be widely marketed.

alhind offers packages for everyone

It is this wide possibility of the emerging tourism sector that made alhind to join hands with Kerala Tourism. 

“We have a wide network in the travel segment, which we can effectively use in the tourism segment as well, and we have packages of all types that meet the requirement of every type of tourists,” said Reena Abdulrahman, the Chief Operating Officer -Gcc , Africa Bangladesh (COO) for alhind Tours and Travels. From tie up with hotel networks to airlines and local travel, alhind would offer tailor-made packages to everyone and this would further boost the tourist landscape of Kerala, she said.

However, even now there are many unexplored and less explored areas like MICE (Meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) tourism, which offer great possibilities for the players in the tourism sector. The new initiatives are likely to develop Kerala as the destination of tomorrow for every kind of tourists.

Since Kerala is promoting sustainable tourism and responsible tourism, the focus would be on such areas. Further new areas including adventure tourism, agriculture tourism and plantation tourism will also find prominence in promoting new destinations.  This is expected to bring new destinations in the tourism map of Kerala, thus benefitting the rural areas.