Kerala’s tourism industry, which has for long relied on Europe, is hoping to open up to newer markets, now that it has been plunged into financial gloom.

The ongoing four-day Kerala Travel Mart (KTM) has provided it the perfect platform to tap new markets like East Europe, South Africa, Scandinavia and the Gulf and sustain a 20 per cent growth.

“The industry can grow only if it scouts for new markets and the European situation has proved to be a catalyst,” said Mr Riyaz UC, managing director of SpiceLand Holidays.

A new visible trend is the interest generated in the Gulf. With the Arab spring seeing a lesser tourist flow to regular destinations like Syria, Libya and Egypt, cash-rich tourists from these parts are now showing an interest in Kerala, according to him. "Their tour operators have held a number of sessions with players here,” he added.

“There is an extraordinary buzz this time. It has been a sellers’ meet and practically all the 350 sellers have come up with concerete proposals,” said CGH Group managing director, Jose Dominic, about the travel mart.

Tourism director, Rani George, reveals the department held road shows in several countries a few months and feels the initiative is now beginning to pay off.

But former KTM president, E M Najeeb, emphasises that the visibility created by the Kerala Travel Mart in the new markets needs to be followed up for best results.

Cleaning mission from next week

The cleaning up of major tourist destinations will begin next week, said tourism director Rani George here on Saturday.

The sanitation drive would begin at Kovalam and was expected to be completed in one year, she told the seminar “The Evolving Kerala Tourist Destination: A Buyer’s Reflection,” organised in connection with Kerala Travel Mart.

Ms Rani was responding to criticism at the seminar that the tourist destinations in the state were left stinking with garbage and this had already got the state a bad name.

Man who built over 2,000 houseboats

Sudhakaran Jeevan has built over 2,000 houseboats in 22 years. Winner of the Marine Innovation Award of JEC in 2012, his latest boat, Elitaire, that cost around Rs 1 crore to build , was launched at the ongoing Kerala Travel Mart in the city recently.

Only the second boat to have complied with the tough norms of the ports department, it has been built for Rainbow Cruises with technical support from IITs, Mumbai, Kharagpur and Chennai.

The boat has a five-compartment hull, motorised fire control device, a facility for sewage treatment and plumbing, and is based on a complete structural plan as required by the port department guidelines.

Mr Sudhakaran, who pioneered fibre glass houseboats, says he decided to innovate as it was becoming difficult to get quality wood for the boats.

“The shortage of wood was a huge challenge considering the demand for houseboats. Although it is more expensive than steel which is the other alternative, fibre glass is economical in the long run as it needs no repainting,” he explains.

Mr Sudhakaran’s Samudra Shipyard (P) Ltd also sent a houseboat to Abu Dhabi after a member of the UAE royal family took a fancy to it during a visit to Alappuzha in 2009. “The freight cost itself came to Rs 27 lakh,” he recalls.

“Traditional artisans would have abandoned their craft a long time ago had there been no houseboats,” adds the master boat-builder.