Kerala registers 19% growth in domestic tourist arrivals in Jan-Sep 

Kerala has attracted 1.60 crore tourists from within the country during the first nine months of 2023, as compared to 1.34 crore during the corresponding period last year, registering an impressive growth of 19.34 per cent, Tourism Minister P.A.Mohammed Riyas has said.

This shows an increase of 25.88 lakh tourists in the nine months of 2023 than that in 2022, marking a 21.12 per cent growth when compared with the pre-pandemic figures, the Minister said.

Ernakulam recorded the maximum number of domestic footfalls attracting over Thirty-three lakhtourists, followed by Idukki (Twenty six lakh plus ), Thiruvananthapuram (Twenty-five lakh pus ), Thrissur (Eighteen lakh plus ), and Wayanad (Twelve lakh plus ).

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“This steady surge in the tourist footfalls indicates that 2023 is going to be a record-breaking year in the history of Kerala Tourism as far as domestic visitors are concerned,” the Minister said.

The appreciable upswing also reflected the success of the upfront initiatives that Kerala Tourism has been taking, making tourism not only a commercial enterprise but also a sustainable and experiential pursuit, he pointed out.

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Foreign tourists

Kerala also recorded an uptick in foreign tourist arrivals with their numbers pegged at around 4.5 lakh in the first nine months of 2023 as compared to around two lakh during the corresponding period a year earlier, registering a 116.25 per cent growth.

Ernakulam registered the highest number of foreign tourists with a figure of over 2 lakh (2,04,549), followed by Thiruvananthapuram (98,179), Idukki (68,798), Alappuzha (19,685), and Kottayam (15,112).

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According to the Minister, the State is all set to host the first focused Tourism Investors Meet (TIM) on November 16, showcasing before potential investors and stakeholders an array of investment options in destinations, products and initiatives that firmly mark the state as an all-season experiential tourism hub.

Tourism industry is a highly promising sector for Kerala, whose full investment potential is yet to be tapped, and TIM will make major strides in that direction, Riyas said.