Though Kerala Tourism has taken up a slew of initiatives to woo tourists back to destinations in the State post pandemic, it has a long way to go if the tourist arrival statistics for 2021 is any indication.
According to the stats, 2021 registered a robust growth in the domestic segment as compared to 2020 with around 75.37 lakh tourists visiting destinations across the State. In 2020, the tally was 49.88 lakh. A growth of 51.09% was recorded in 2021 when compared with 2020 but it is 59% less in relation to 2019 (pre-COVID) figures.
When it comes to foreign tourists, the State recorded a footfall of just 60,487 in 2021, whereas it was 3.40 lakh in 2020 and 11.89 lakh in 2019. According to officials, though the domestic tourist segment has made some positive strides in 2021 even amid the height of the second wave, foreigners are still shying away from Kerala. The growth in the foreign tourist segment has been downward ever since COVID-19 was reported in the country. The only ray of hope was that when the State recorded 4,298 foreign tourists in January 2021, it nosedived to 169 in May during the peak of second wave of COVID and then started improving with a high of 12,245 in December.
But, the next setback could be the tension between Russia and Ukraine, which has now snowballed into a full-fledged war and it may have a direct impact on foreign tourist arrivals in 2022 as well, they say.
“The numbers are still a matter of concern. However, we were hopeful that once the entire air space is fully opened for foreigners without any restrictions, Kerala will regain its lost position among foreigners without much delay. But the ongoing war will definitely have its ripple effect on foreign tourist arrival in Kerala in 2022 as well,” Tourism Director V.R. Krishna Teja told Th e Hindu.
