Kerala Tourism to Hold Expo of Tourist Caravans

KANNUR:
Kerala Tourism will display three tourist caravans for major national tour operators, who are visiting Malabar under the ‘Fam 2 Malabar 500’ initiative, to apprise them of the state government’s trailblazing Caravan Tourism policy on Tuesday.

The exhibition, to be held at Hotel Magnet, Puthiyatheru here, is open for the public, media and tourism industry from 8 am to 10 pm. It will provide an opportunity to tour operators to interact with stakeholders about the salient features of the project. Caravans of major manufacturers such as Force, Benz and Isuzu will be exhibited at the venue.

As part of the recently-launched ‘Fam 2 Malabar 500’ initiative by Kerala Tourism, around 500 tour operators from India and abroad are to be brought to Thrissur, Palakkad, Malappuram, Kozhikode, Kannur, Wayanad and Kasaragod districts this year to familiarise themselves with the region, which is poised to emerge as a vibrant tourism hub.

It also aims to tap the immense tourism potential of the Malabar region by roping in leading tour operators from India and abroad to attract domestic and foreign visitors to the seven northern districts.

The tour operators coming in different groups will be taken on familiarisation trips through the panoramic settings of north Kerala and have a hands-on feel of Malabar’s history, heritage and lifestyle, especially its rich and diverse culinary traditions.

The first batch of around 70 tour operators reached Kannur on Monday (January 17) and they were hosted by North Malabar Chamber of Commerce under a package called “Mystical Malabar”.

This group includes tour and travel organisers from Mumbai, Pune, Bengaluru and Kolhapur, and they will be taken to various places of interest in the Kasaragod, Kannur and Wayanad districts till January 20. They will also be treated to folk and martial art traditions of Malabar like Kolkali, Poorakkali and Kalarippayattu.