THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Kerala Travel Mart society president Abraham George has found himself at the wrong place at the wrong time. He is now in Germany for a Kerala Tourism road show but rather than concentrating on prospective German tourists he is constantly on the phone with panicky foreign travel groups who he says have been “knocked dumb” by demonetization.
“Travellers visit our state not to hole themselves up inside cosy hotel rooms. They want to experience the destination, shop and eat from local outlets and generally potter around,” Mr George said over phone from Germany. “Except for their stay, all the rest of their activities have been badly affected. They can’t shop, they can’t travel and they can’t eat outside,” he said.
Souvenir and curio shops in popular destinations like Kovalam and Fort Kochi, 80 percent of which deal only in cash transactions, do not accept cards. “Similar is the case with small beachside restaurants in Kovalam. These are mostly seasonal businesses run by locals who are not initiated into online transfers,” said Jacob Plathottam, of Island Tours. Mr Plathottam said that the Centre’s announcement that travelers could get currency exchanged at airports is “merely technical”.
“There are so few counters and it would be too much to ask foreigners who travel hours to stand in long queues before getting out of the airport,” he said. There is only little that tour operators like Mr George and Plathottam can do. “In certain cases, like minor purchases in hotels where our guests stay, we pay from our own accounts,” Mr George, who runs Intersight Tours and Travels, said. Mr Plathottam has sent his men to accompany his foreign clients as they explore the destination. “I have asked them to convince local traders to sell them what they ask on the promise that we will pay them later,” Mr Plathottam said.
Local communities seem to be understanding. “We almost thought that a village life experience (VLE) package would have to be cancelled yesterday in Alappuzha. But local families involved in the package agreed to host the tourists even though they knew they would not be paid in the near future,” said Rupesh, the state responsible Tourism coordinator. However, single-operated houseboats and ‘chinkaras’, not aligned to resorts, are facing the heat. “Foreigners invariably come with Rs 1000 and Rs 500 notes and we have no choice but to refuse them,” said Pappachan, who operates a ‘chinkara’ in Kumarakom. In Alappuzha, at least 40 percent of the 1500-odd houseboats are independent single-owner ones not linked to big hotels and resorts.
