Tourists can now experience Malabar with SMiLE
Bekal Fort
In order to tap the huge potential of Malabar as a major tourist destination, the Tourism Department has introduced high-tech digital facility that provides visitors all details about the experiential and service packages offered in the region in north Kerala.
The ‘SMiLE Virtual Tour Guide’ links tourists with their places of attraction and providers of experiential services. The package has got its ellipsis SMiLE from ‘Small and Medium Industries Leveraging Experiential Tourism.’
The programme is conceived and implemented by the Bekal Resorts Development Corporation (BRDC) that focuses on eco-friendly and experiential tourism, the SMiLE guide renders information on 40 Malabar attractions, ways to reach them, plan tours and fix reminder alarm notification, besides means to share portal material, find accommodation and book rooms.
Madiyankulam Durga Temple
The site has also helpline numbers for women and ambulance service, according to the BRDC that is primarily into developing North Malabar and focusing a beach tourist destination around northern-most Kasargod district’s seaside Bekal, known for its 1650-built fort spread over 40 acres that makes it the biggest in God’s Own Country.
Kerala Tourism Minister Kadakampally Surendran described the SMiLE VTG as Malabar’s pioneering comprehensive package for travellers. “It comes at a time when the state government is envisaging projects that give northern Kerala its deserving attention on the tourism map,” said the minister.
Valiyaparamba Backwaters
“It is expected that SMiLE will increase tourist arrivals and generate jobs in the sector. The government provided Rs 50 lakhs to the 1995-established BRDC to come up with such a tour guide under its new-age means of tourism promotion,” said Rani George, Kerala Tourism Secretary.
The SMiLE VTG, endowed with latest IT-enabled services, has a mobile app that offers location-based information alongside a three-minute video that plays on visiting any attraction in Malabar.
The SMiLE guide works at three levels:
Android mobile app: People can download SMILE Virtual Tour Guide. A visitor at a North Malabar destination can avail information on attractions within a 30-km radius. If outside the destination limits, one has to opt for lite mode and select airport or railway station to get the attraction and to know more about it.
QR Code: Each Malabar tourism destination features a signage that carries QR code. Scan it with mobile phone to access web pages that give information about the place and its service providers.
Website: The VTG facility can be enjoyed through the BRDC website – www.bekaltourism.com