Kerala chosen by travellers as the most welcoming region in the country
Three destinations in Kerala – Mararikulam, Thekkady and Varkala – feature among the top five most welcoming cities
The tourism scene has been hit hard by the raging pandemic, but there have been efforts to help the segment tide over hassles and blossom again. It is in this context the results of a survey conducted recently gains significance.
As per the survey undertaken by travel platform booking.com, Kerala has topped the list of the ‘Most Welcoming Regions’ in India. The results revealed at the tenth annual Traveller Review Awards of the travel platform, have been based on more than 232 million verified reviews from real travellers.
Kerala was followed by Goa, Puducherry, Rajasthan, and Himachal Pradesh as the ranking took into account the hospitality, friendliness and welcoming staff of these regions as well as health and hygiene in view of the evolving status of the COVID-19 pandemic, said a Kerala Tourism source.
Coastal getaways loved by domestic travellers
Three destinations in Kerala, namely Mararikulam, Thekkady and Varkala, also feature among the top five ‘Most Welcoming Cities’ in India with the first two positions going to Palolem and Agonda – both in Goa. All these cities reveal the liking of domestic travellers for coastal getaways.
According to Kerala Tourism Director V R Krishna Teja, the awards come as timely and significant as these are based on verified reviews from millions of real travellers. “We have launched several big-ticket projects, including ‘Keravan Kerala’ that seeks to tap the potential of little-known destinations. These awards will spur us to act with renewed vigour,” he said.
Kerala lines up a slew of tourism projects
Among the recently launched projects by Kerala Tourism are the creation of a ‘bio bubble’ mechanism, ‘Keravan Kerala’, the biodiversity circuit, the Malabar literary circuit, Agri-tourism Network, and in-car dining projects. Plans are also underway to develop Beypore as a model Responsible Tourism hub which would bring to world attention the heritage of the ancient port town.
The latest awards also highlighted hotels as the most welcoming accommodation type by Indians followed by homestay, resort, guesthouse and apartments.
The 2022 Most Welcoming Regions on Earth include Gorenjska (Slovenia) followed by Taitung County (Taiwan) and Tasmania (Australia). India (9062) ranked ahead of Colombia (8082), New Zealand (7355), Taiwan (7350), and Chile (7267).
