Tag: Kerala

In an aggressive bid to make deeper inroads in Europe, Kerala Tourism conducted a string of high-energy road shows by participating in World Travel Market (WTM) London 2019 in November and showcasing its formidable eyeball-grabbing products in the emerging markets of Scandinavian countries Denmark and Finland. Kerala Tourism Director P Bala Kiran led a high-profile official delegation, comprising prominent trade partners like hoteliers, resort owners, tour operators and service providers from the state, to WTM London and roadshows in Copenhagen (Denmark) and Helsinki (Finland). At WTM London, Kerala Tourism set up a spectacular pavilion over 120 sq.mt area with the ... Read more

Kerala has received the 2019 award for ‘Best Honeymoon Destination’ under domestic category by Travel and Leisure India and South Asia Magazine, boosting the efforts of the state to add new products to its tourism portfolio to attract a wide spectrum of tourists. Travel+Leisure India’s Best Awards 2019 were presented at an impressive function at ITC Maurya, New Delhi on Friday evening. Bollywood actress Dia Mirza was the host. Manoj TC, Deputy Director, Kerala Tourism, New Delhi received the award. The awards were given to international and domestic tourism departments, hoteliers, destinations, facilitators, service providers, and trendsetters at the function, ... Read more

Having established an unassailable lead, Tropical Titans registered a resounding triple hat-trick in the Champions Boat League (CBL) today when they finished first at the 11th round in Kallada ahead of the finals of the pioneering water event next weekend.  The star team met the expectation of crowd by outshining all their eight competitors yet again by clocking 3:43.91 minutes in the evening’s final race, ahead of spirited Raging Rowers (3:49.95) and Mighty Oars (3:52.00) who came second and third, respectively. Amid loud cheer down the one-km track, the day’s victors also earned the ‘Nerolac Excel Fastest Team of the Day’ ... Read more

The fifth edition of the Kerala Literature Festival (KLF 2020) is set to be held from the 16th to 19th of January 2020 at Calicut. With over Four Lakh attendees, KLF 2020 is the second-largest cultural gathering and the fastest-growing literature festival on the continent. Set along the shores of the Arabian Sea by the beaches of Calicut, the festival will bring readers and writers together for inspiration, entertainment, and discussion. The eminent speakers include Literary Luminaries, Booker Prize Winners, Oscar Winners, Jnanpith Laureates, Astronauts, Environmentalists, Head of States, Film & Theatre Personalities, Performers & Artists, Designers, Media Personalities, Sports ... Read more

India’s first-ever mosque and the oldest in the sub-continent will be recreated in tune with its original character and aesthetics, as the Muziris Heritage Project (MHP) is set to restore the Cheraman Juma Masjid built in 629 AD at Kodungallur of this district. Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan will inaugurate the project, an initiative of Department of Tourism through its heritage conservation efforts, on Sunday at the site of the religious structure, 40 km south of this city. State Finance Minister Dr T M Thomas Isaac will preside over the 4 pm function. Amongst the dignitaries at the event will ... Read more

Outperforming rivals by several yards amid loud cheers from spectators, Tropical Titans emerged victors yet again today at Race 10, stirring up prospects of scoring a third hat-trick in the Champions Boat League (CBL). The evening’s winners, with a timing of 4:39.76 along the 900-metre track at the Kayamkulam backwaters, surged further up the points position at 143, taking an unassailable lead after the 10th round of the pioneering water event modelled on IPL cricket. The final race saw a photo-finish for the first and second runners-up, with Coast Dominators coming second by clocking 5:17.17 and Raging Rowers (5:17.60) ending ... Read more

The arrival of first cruise liner AIDAvita marked the beginning of the cruise season in Kerala on November 5. The ship with 1,181 tourists and 406 crew members on board was docked at BTP berth, Kochi Port, around 8 am. The luxury liner began its journey from Dubai to Singapore on October 30. Before reaching Kochi, it was docked at Muscat, Goa and Mangaluru. It left for Male in the evening before sailing to Colombo, Langkawi and Kuala Lumpur to reach Singapore on November 16. The District Tourism Promotion Council had arranged cultural events and facilities to welcome the tourists ... Read more

Rowing westward against a bright evening sun, all the teams displayed special vigour at the ninth round of the Champions Boat League (CBL) today, even as Tropical Titans continued to assert their supremacy by finishing first yet another time ahead of the finals later this month. The winning team timed 3:37.59 at Pulinkunnu leg of the 12-leg championship modelled on IPL cricket. Finishing second were Raging Rowers (3:45.75), while Mighty Oars (3:46.79) came third amid a cheering crowd of 1.3 lakh on both sides of the Pampa river. The ‘Nerolac Excel Fastest Team of the Day’ went to Tropical Titans ... Read more

Spreading the competitive spirit of the high-octane snake-boat races to another belt in Kuttanad region, the scenic Pulinkunnu will host this weekend the ninth round of the Champions Boat League (CBL) modelled on IPL cricket. Tropical Titans have surged ahead of their nearest competitors by a fair margin in the points tally with the 12-round pioneering event two-thirds way through and packed with prize monies totalling Rs 5.9 crore, making CBL the country’s fourth highest-paid sports tournament. The leading team, owned by the Pallathuruthy Sports Club of this coastal district, has 113 points, ahead of Raging Rowers (55) and Mighty ... Read more

Tourist destinations in Kerala are all set to go “differently-abled friendly” by 2021, said state tourism minister Kadamapally Surendran, while replying to a question by MLA Veena George. The government has identified around 120 tourist spots across the state in the first phase. Of these, 98 destinations have already been made completely specially-abled friendly “The work on the remaining centres are in progress, all the specially-abled friendly tourist spots will have special parking areas and toilet facilities,” said the minister. Besides this, special tourism packages for the specially-abled were also being implemented under the Responsible Tourism initiative, the minister added. ... Read more

The District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC), Thiruvananthapuram, is all set to roll out a special tour package connecting prime spots in Kerala capital including the famed Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple and Kovalam Beach resort. Styled as ‘Ananthapuri Package,’ the circuit will cover heritage structure ‘Kuthira Malika’, Museum and Zoo, Planetarium, Veli Tourist Village and Shankhumugham beach, all in and around the city. A conducted tour called ‘Triveni Sangamam’ to Kanyakumari, which covers outlying Ponmudi -Meenmutty forest trail and Neyyar Elephant Safari, have also been planned as an extended package. Under the Ananthapuri Package, tourists will be taken around the city in ... Read more

Ending its three-round itinerary in central Kerala, Champions Boat League (CBL) is set to return to the state’s heartland of water-races this Saturday when Kainakary in this coastal district will host the eighth leg of the three-month event concluding next month. Celebrated for its scenic beauty, the Vembanad lake would be the venue for the nine snake-boats to vie yet another time for honours at the 12-leg championships being organised by Kerala Tourism. The non-saline water body has five rivers draining into the tip of Kainakary, which has a tradition of boat races. Located in Kuttanad taluk which is India’s ... Read more

The first venue where Champions Boat League (CBL) was hosted consecutively reinforced the winning skills of Tropical Titans, who finished first yet again at Kottappuram backwaters today and remained atop the table with an emphatic total of 98 points after the seventh round. The finals at the 900-metre track near the historical Kodungallur turned out to be a thriller this evening when it ended in a photo-finish for the second and third winners, behind Tropical Titans (3:30.42). It required camera’s assistance for the judges to declare Backwater Knights the runner-up (3:40.01) and Mighty Oars third (3:41.13). A surprising element in ... Read more

His Majesty King Willem-Alexander and Her Majesty Queen Máxima have been invited for a state visit to India by President Ram Nath Kovind. The visit took place from 14 October until 18 October. On the fifth and final day of the state visit, the King and Queen cruised the backwaters in Alleppey, on board the Spice Routes Luxury Houseboats. The low-lying area of Alappuzha and Kuttanad were hit by floods in 2018, and during the cruise, the royal couple learned about measures that have been taken to prevent future flooding and discussed on how Dutch knowledge can help. The King ... Read more

Kottappuram, near Kodungallur, will be the new venue for the seventh race of the Champions Boat League (CBL) this weekend, as organisers changed the original plan to hold the October 19 leg at Ponnani in Malappuram district. Citing logistical reasons that have made it extremely difficult for the CBL snake-boats to be brought to upstate Ponnani, the officials informed that the league’s races this Saturday will be held at the Muziris Kottappuram Waterfront that was the venue for the previous leg on October 12. The district of Thrissur thus gets to host two rounds of the pioneering CBL that was ... Read more