In normal times, Ayesha Manzil in the small north Kerala coastal town of Thalassery would have been preparing to welcome its guests from across the world, flocking to enjoy the sights and sounds (and, yes, tastes) of monsoon-drenched Kerala. The luxury colonial-era structure overlooking the Arabian Sea바카라which hosts 700 guests annually, having drawn tourists from the UK, US, Australia et al for years바카라wears a deserted look now. The last two months have brought a kind of wreath down on the industry. Tourism is one sector that the pandemic has hit the most, says T.P. Moosa, who runs Ayesha Manzil.
In God's Own Country, It's Reboot Time For Tourism Sector In Kerala
Bouncing back from odds is nothing new for Kerala. Even in these times of the Covid pandemic, the state is keeping its chin up
Business came to an abrupt halt in mid-March. 바카라We were asked to send away our guests and our operators called to say all bookings were cancelled,바카라 says Moosa, a homestay pioneer. So what바카라s the new normal? Moosa says he has decided to shift the focus to domestic tourists바카라he hopes to accomplish that by slashing his rates바카라from Rs 22,500 (per room for two)바카라by half. By 바카라domestic바카라, he even means those from within Kerala. His celebrity guest-list, boasting of author William Dalrymple and chef Sanjeev Kapoor (a marker of the fame of the homestay바카라s own cuisine), adds an allure. It바카라s the only way to survive, with international travel not likely to pick up in the near future. 바카라We have to keep the wheel moving,바카라 says Moosa.
That sentiment spreads over the land. Philipkutty바카라s Farm, a homestay on a small island in Vechoor, 20 km from Kottayam in central Kerala, faces the same challenges. 바카라Our clients are mostly from the UK, Australia, US. We had guests till March 15. After that, all bookings got cancelled. It바카라s a tough situation,바카라 says Anu Mathew, the owner.
Kerala바카라s tourist-trap Kovalam paints another grim picture. With its luxury beachfront hotels casting an empty shadow, the resort town groans under the double whammy of zero tourists and lockdown restrictions on fishing. For Nabeel, a fisherman, the first half of the year has been the worst in his memory. Nabeel offers hotel guests and tourists visiting Hawa beach water tours on his speedboat바카라an hour for Rs 1,000. 바카라There were strict restrictions and anyway we couldn바카라t sell our catch as we used to. So any fishing activity was for food only. A Rs 2,000 aid was announced but not all of us have received it,바카라 he says.
The impact has been huge, acknowledges Rupesh Kumar, state coordinator, Responsible Tourism Mission, Kerala. The crisis saw the cancellation of over 4,000 village life experience (VLE) tours after the crisis. 바카라This alone has cost the state and communities about Rs 50 lakh, while the total loss to the roughly 18,000 registered RT units has been around Rs 10 crore. That was the direct livelihood of local tour guides, artisans, artists, among others,바카라 he says.
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So what exactly is the roadmap out of this? Clever marketing of Kerala바카라s inherent strengths. 바카라Heaven Does Not Shut Down바카라, goes one of the catchy hooks going around as the state navigates the thin streams available now, trying to embolden tourists to shed their excessive caution because, hey, this is Kerala after all! The lakhs of foreign footfalls will take time to trace their steps. But foreign tourists who got stuck in the state during the pandemic, who underwent treatment or spent time in quarantine, have famously gone back with publicly spoken words of approbation.
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Kerala, therefore, is actually seeking out an opportunity바카라a silver lining, if not a pot of gold바카라in those very details. Its finessed handling of Covid-19 attracted global attention. 바카라Health바카라, therefore, is central to the new tourism hook, say management consultants Dr Maithily P.R. and Suresh Menon, who co-authored one of the first concept notes on reviving tourism with that catchy line about heaven not shutting down: 바카라Kerala has its proven wellness offerings. We recommend that Kerala leverage this and remarket itself as a wellness destination바카라leisure and wellness combined. We are advocating preventive healing, where tourists go back with enhanced immunity바카라a wholesome package for mind, body and soul. We know people worldwide are looking for exactly this, and they are willing to travel for extended durations바카라, says Maithily.
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They also suggest using houseboats as quarantine centres. 바카라In the outside chance of people being infected even after the peak, they can opt to be quarantined in a nature resort or on houseboats. The treatment and their upkeep will be the same. The houseboats will need to be upgraded on the waste management front,바카라 says Menon.
Photograph by V.V. Biju
바카라Kerala can leverage the goodwill and mileage from its Covid-19 response,바카라 affirms Rupesh Kumar. 바카라Tourists will now prefer more secluded destinations and unique, personalised experiences. Kerala바카라s fight against Covid-19 is itself a great selling point.바카라 Baby Mathew, president, Kerala Travel Mart Society, echoes that. 바카라We are planning a virtual travel mart. Private tour operators and others have started a campaign focusing on wellness. Ayurveda is going to be a big draw once the industry opens up,바카라 says Mathew, who is also chairman of Somatheeram Ayurveda group.
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There바카라s cautious optimism. Even a revival of domestic tourism may take till September, say industry bodies. Within that, the gradation is local, then, regional, then all India. 바카라The first step is regional tourism. The tourism industry is thinking that way. There are many beautiful places in Kerala that many haven바카라t explored yet,바카라 says Mathew. The state government too is keen on shoring up local tourism. 바카라People in Kerala are by and largely ignorant about their own state and its many unique attractions. To make up for reduced international and domestic tourism, we are rolling out a series of schemes,바카라 says Rupesh Kumar.
The grim health situation in states like Maharashtra , Gujarat and Karnataka does not augur well for Kerala바카라s tourism prospects, says Paulose K. Mathew, chairman, Travel Agents Federation of India (TAFI), who runs Kochi-based Coraz travels. 바카라At present, we are planning to promote local tourism. Hotels are ready with promotional packages with discounts; social media campaigns are also being done. We have to instil confidence in tourists from other states and countries that Kerala is safe. Local tourism will help in that direction,바카라 he says.
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Kerala has been through this before: having to reboot strategies after a collapse. Severely hit by the Nipah virus in 2017 and a devastating flood in 2018, Kerala바카라s tourism sector made an impressive comeback in 2019. According to statistics released in March, the state received 1.96 crore domestic and foreign travellers in 2019, and earned Rs 45 crore overall from the sector. 바카라The state will promote itself as a survivor, enhancing its reputation on that front after Nipah and two successive floods,바카라 says Rupesh.
In an interview to Outlook in January, tourism minister Kadakampally Surendran had said robust promotion had helped Kerala bounce back. 바카라We designed a 12-point strategy for immediate recovery. In the first three quarters of 2019 (January-September), we registered an overall growth of 15.73 per cent (domestic, 16.48 per cent; international, 4.84 per cent),바카라 he had said. The numbers there hold a clue to the present strategy too. But global arrivals too will pick up ultimately. Hope is not lost for Moosa and Anu Mathew, who have already received overseas inquiries/ bookings from October onwards. 바카라It바카라s a positive sign. Hope everything comes back to normal soon,바카라 says Mathew.
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