Hon’ble Chief Ministers Speech on Tourism
Kerala Tourism- Success Story
26 years back, an unknown entity , Hardly any tourism infrastructure: less
than a handful of quality hotels, resorts, restaurants, tour companies
.Unknown as a tourist destination Kerala is now India's most significant
tourism success story. Positioned as "God's Own Country," Kerala Tourism's
worldwide success represents the triumph of vision, professionalism and
public-private partnership.
Tourism, identified as an opportunity area for Kerala ,Formulated a Tourism
Master Plan, Declared as an industry in 1986.
 Positioning & National presence(1989 + )
o Positioned as ‘God’s Own Country’, Hardly any tourism products to
offer; limited accommodation.
o Branded, packaged and advertised festivals like The Great Elephant
March, The Great Kerala Boat Races, The Grand Onam Celebrations,
Gramam - Ethnic Village Experience. Other Dance and cultural festivals.
o
Investment campaign launched
 Products makes the difference(1994+)
o Ayurveda and Backwaters with houseboats capture the imagination of
travellers .
o Alappuzha and Thekkady along with Kovalam becomes a Kerala circuit.
o Tourism starts picking up and entrepreneurs get interested.
o Marketing kicks off with high visibility campaigns highlighting the
unique products
 Stand Alone initiatives(1997+)
o Sustainable marketing strategy developed.
o Commenced marketing Kerala as a stand-alone destination.
o Independent direct marketing initiatives.
o Kerala enters international holiday programmes and catalogues.
o
Destination management companies emerge.
o “Kerala Pavilion” at key travel trade fairs. Organizes Kerala roadshows.
o Investments start flowing
 Boutique Destination for the ‘Rich and the Famous’ (2000+)
o National Geographic Traveler selects Kerala as ‘one of the 50
destinations of a life-time’Calibrated paradigm shift as an upscale
destination.
o New destinations like Kumarakom, Munnar and Wayanad emerges.
o Organises Kerala Travel Mart, strong public-private partnership.
o Multi-pronged marketing campaigns& Works with international travel
media and the national media.
o First Indian state to advertise in International TV channels like – CNN,
BBC, Discovery.
o For the first time in India Kerala Tourism launched Internet Advertising
in global portals
 Global Player, Tourism Superbrand (2003+)
o India’s only Tourism Superbrand, selected by the Superbrand .
o International media coverage on Kerala peaks.
o Wins international awards like PATA and finalist at WTTC’s Tourism for
Tomorrow Award.
o Scales up participation in international trade fairs with new fairs and
bigger and stand alone stands.
o Roadshows across key international markets establishing strong trade
networks .
High value events like India International Boatshow, Malabar Travel
Mart, Gold Shopping Festival.
o Focus on eco friendly tourism development. New Experience
campaign,featuring real life stories
 Towards Responsibility, New Marketing Paradigms (2007+)
o Launches Better Together – statewide Responsible Tourism initiative.
Kerala Declaration on Responsible Tourism at the 2 nd International
Conference on Responsible Tourism in Destinations held at Cochin.
o Pilot RT projects initiated at 4 destinations – Kovalam, Kumarakom,
Thekkady
and
Wayanad
 New Marketing Paradigms (2007+)
o Dream Season campaign in national markets to counter offseason.
o Partnership with leading brands to leverage synergies – Jet Airways and
Mahindra Holidays.
o New destination promotion campaign with ‘Wake Upto Malabar’.
o New product focus with Homestays.
o
Innovative outdoor campaigning with Rajdhani train branding and mall
facades
 New innovations & Responsible tourism ( 2010+)
o Better Together – Responsible Tourism Initiative, Kerala implemented
successfully.
o Classification system introduced for tourism service providers based on
RT practices.
New Tourism policy launched.
o UNWTO Ulysses Award for Innovation in Public Policy and Governance
& PATA Grand Award for Kumarkom RT project.
o New products like Village life Experinces, Muziris Heritage project,
Spice route projects takes wings.
o New innovative marketing campaigns like London tube promotion,
London cab branding, Kolkata tram branding, Mumbai Metro brandingfirst Indian state to do it.
o New markets explored – USA, Scandinavia, NewZealand, Japan, Saudi
Arabia& Middle East etc
o Home of Ayurveda & The Great Backwaters campaign
o Seaplane project finalized, Operations will start soon.
o HOP on Hop off boats, water taxi’s for tourists launched.