The expert team comprising of 11 foreigners, who have landed in the Kollam Port in a luxury ship named MY Bravado, on January 11, is all praising the God’s own country and its immense tourism possibilities. “You have everything in your state – lakes, beaches, forests, mountains – to be the best tourism destination in the world,” said cruise expert team.
MY Bravado team is expected to be in Kerala for 10 days, and is scheduled to be sailing back on January 21 after conducting a feasibility study and the possibilities of cruise tourism in Kerala, especially in Kollam.
“We are traveling all over the world and we are here from Maldives. Our goal is to learn the world’s cruise tourism potential by traveling on the luxury ship called MY Bravado. In fact, we came to know about Kerala via Google. The name Kerala struck us while we were searching for places with potential of cruise tourism. When we searched about Kerala, it was mentioned as the paradise of tourists. Everyone in our group is here in Kerala for the first time,” said Byken, one of team members, from Australia.
The visiting team also appreciated the way in which Kerala handled the flood situation and how the state has recovered from the chaos in record time. They have plans to visit the flood affected areas as well. “We have heard about the floods, but have noticed that everything is back to normal now. It is amazing that the people could recover from such a big disaster in record time,” he added.
While talking about the importance of cruise tourism in the modern world, Anastasya from Russia said the joy and excitement they receive from travelling by sea is a unique thing. “The popularity and acceptance of Cruise tourism has been increasing among tourists day-by-day, especially for those with a bit of adventure in their blood. It is a unique experience to travel through the sea. Our trip has been well planned and organized with the aim to understand the tourism potential of each destination we embark. Travelling through the sea for long trips is not an easy task, as we would be miles away from the shores and water all around us; however the interest for people to experience sailing is definitely increasing these days,” said Anastasya.
“While travelling to Kerala, we have chosen Kollam as our destination; it was selected by the whole team after learning about it from Google. We find Kollam is an interesting place with beaches, backwaters, forests and mountains,” said Vilo, who is from England. The team said they would visit the Jatayu Earth’s Center, Ashtamudi, Munro Thuruth and Thenmala Eco Tourism Center during their stay here.
They have also appreciated the indigenous food of Kerala. “With the variety of tastes, it could lure any food enthusiast who visit Kerala,” added the team.
Cruise tourism is considered to be one of the most promising tourism sectors in the coming years. If the committee gives a favorable report after the visit, it will be a boost to the tourism sector of Kollam. Currently Kochi is the favourite place for cruise tourism in Kerala.
