Thiruvananthapuram: Tourist arrivals in the state shot up by an impressive 6.82 per cent in the first quarter of 2019 as compared to the figures of corresponding period in the previous year, indicating positive signals for the sector post-floods.
In January-March, the total number of tourist arrivals (both domestic and foreign) was 46,12,937 as compared to 43,18,406 during the same period in 2018.
The number of domestic tourists arriving in the state was 41,90,468 as against 38,77,712 during the corresponding period in 2018, registering an increase of 8.07 per cent. However, the arrival of foreign tourists suffered a dip of 4.14 per cent.
The increase in domestic tourist footfalls, especially in Ernakulam, Alappuzha and Idukki-districts that suffered the brunt of floods in August-September last year - is a pointer that the state's tourism recovery story.
Ernakulam, with an increase of 108,169 domestic tourists, registered the highest growth among the 14 districts. The total number of domestic tourist arrivals in this district was pegged at 996,091 during January-March this year as against 887,922 in the corresponding period of 2018.
Idukki, Alappuzha, Kannur and Kozhikode also registered a decent growth during the period.
The number of domestic tourists was 343,938 (248,052 in 2018) in Idukki, 180,562 (132,442) in Alappuzha, 210,247 (184,389) in Kannur and 320,795 (276,188) in Kozhikode.
Kollam, Kottayam, Malappuram, Wayanad and Palakkad were among the other districts that registered a rise in domestic tourist arrivals.
Thrissur and Thiruvananthapuram showed negative trends in domestic arrivals, which was possibly due to the downtrend in the arrival of pilgrim-tourists to temples of Guruvayur and Sree Padmanabhaswamy.
"We were able to allay post-floods apprehensions by swiftly putting in place an effective action plan to win back the confidence of tourists," said Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran.
The growth in tourist arrivals was due to the Tourism Department's sustained promotion campaigns from November last year. The first among these was 'It's time for KERALA campaign' from November 2018 to January 2019. It was followed by 'Human by Nature'- part of the marketing initiative to refurbish the perception of the state's tourism sector. The video film, launched in February, has been designed to appeal to both high spenders and backpackers and firmly entrench Kerala's tourism in a competitive global marketplace.
As for the foreign tourist arrivals during January-March, the total number stood at 422,469 as against 440,694 in the corresponding period of the previous year, registering a decline of 4.14 per cent.
