India is hot for Aussies
With some Aussies never having heard of the Southern Indian state of Kerala, others are discovering this magical location, with the number of Australians visiting Kerala growing by 25% last year and there are plans to double the number over the next three years.
Dr Venu Ias, the State’s Tourism Secretary [pictured right with former Government of India Head Shanker Dhar] was in Sydney recently and spoke to The Mole about Kerala, a destination he sees as increasingly of interest to Australians.
He said, “More than 12,500 Australians visited Kerala in 2006 and Australia is a very important market for us, our sixth largest currently and one we see growing significantly in the future.”
“Kerala used to be somewhere visited by Australians on their second or third trip to India, but now we are attracting more and more first timers, with our length of stay now averaging 12 days.”
“More and more people have recognised the attractions of Kerala, including those travelling to India for Ayurveda treatments and of course to discover our history.”
Dr Venu Ias said, “Kerala is becoming very well known for being a wellness destination and we have world class spas and therapy centres offering Ayurveda and this has to be a good start point for a relaxing and rejuvenation holiday.”
Dr Venu Ias told The Mole that Kerala is located 2,500kms south of Delhi in the south-western tip of India, with a long sandy coastline, exotic wildlife sanctuaries and rejuvenating landscapes, presenting a very different India to the one that people imagine.”
For more information, please visit http://www.keralatourism.org/
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