The cloud of gloom that had descended on Kerala’s globally famed tourism and hospitality industry in the wake of the August floods appears to have lifted if the message filtering from the concluded Kerala Travel Mart -2018 is any indication. With the state ticking all the boxes to win back the confidence of tourists, God’s Own Country has bounced back with an incredible resilience, removing any lingering concern about its preparedness to receive visitors in the October-March tourist season.

 

It is true the initial forewarnings were extremely unnerving for the state’s tourism industry. The floods had rampaged through 12 of 14 districts in Kerala. The tourism infrastructure, especially some roads got affected while a string of bookings were cancelled in August 2018. In effect, Kerala Tourism was staring at a loss of Rs 1,000 crore, a sector that contributed Rs 33,000 crore in 2017, accounting for 10 percent of the state’s GDP and a little over some 23 percent of its total employment. In fact, there were doubts whether the KTM (Sept. 27-30) would be held at all. But the biennial showpiece event, India’s biggest conclave of tourism sector stakeholders from across the world, was not only held but it also turned out to be an unlimitedly successful event.

 

Facts speak for themselves: 35,000 business meets involving 1,635 buyers shortlisted from 7,000 applicants (545 of them from 66 foreign countries – the highest in the KTM history so far), 325 sellers in 400-odd stalls and the highest number of foreign buyers from UK and the US. That definitely showed the trust of global tourism industry here in Kerala.

 

“It is historic, coming as it is a month after the worst natural calamity our people had faced. I even wonder how our tourism would have got back to track but for this KTM edition coming at the right time,” Kerala Tourism Secretary Mrs. Rani George said about the event. Her sentiments were echoed by Kerala Tourism Director Sri. P Bala Kiran. “The KTM lent a smile of hope to the faces in the industry in contrast to a general gloom that prevailed among its captains till a week ago. This edition proved that KTM is just not a celebratory event, but a business meet. It’s a positive lesson not just for us in Kerala, but the whole of India and even the world,” he pointed out.

A major advantage of the KTM was that it successfully has built confidence among tourists and other stakeholders of the industry in particular and made a perceptual change among the people in general about the post-floods Kerala. It also sent out a screaming message to the world that the state had brazened out the adversity with a remarkable degree of genuity and resilience and also speedily too. More than that, it gave a platform to the government and other stakeholders to discuss the future roadmap of the tourism industry, which is the third highest revenue-earner after remittances from the Malayali Diaspora and also animal husbandry.

Kerala Tourism has surely found its feet once again this time. But it needs to learn lessons from the catastrophe, lend an aggressive edge to its tourism revival plan and develop new products and services for realizing the government’s target of increasing tourism’s share to 20% of its GDP by the year 2020.

Munnar is one big space where the tourism industry is one main factor and is back on the right track if you are looking for Luxury resorts in Munnar.