Kerala's Wayanad district brims with tourists

Kalpetta (Kerala), Dec 29 - With the New Year round the corner, Wayanad district, an emerging tourist destination in Kerala, is brimming with tourists.

Located in North Kerala, 60 km east of Kozhikode, at an altitude ranging from 700 to 2,100 metres on the Western Ghats, Wayanad attracts a large number of domestic and foreign tourists.

'This year all the resorts and hotels in the district are fully reserved. Tourists are now looking for getting accommodation in home stays,' Praveen P.P., the information officer at the District Tourism Promotion Council (DTPC), told IANS.

'In Wayanad, tourist arrival peaks during November to February. This year till December, the district recorded 20 percent increase in the arrivals,' Praveen said.

Last financial year (2006-07), Wayanad received a total of 470,000 tourists, a large majority of which are domestic tourists.

'But the actual number far exceeds this as we don't have the statistics of those visiting the famous Thirunelli temple, which is considerable, and tourists coming to the Muthanga Wildlife Sanctuary,' he said.

After the IT boom, Wayanad started attracting IT professionals from Bangalore. The district borders Karnataka and is only six hours by road to the metro.

'The district is now a favourite weekend tourist destination. Large numbers of IT professionals are flocking to the district,' said K. Raveendran, owner of Pranavam Homestay at Pozhuthana near here.

Raveendran's facility is meant only for foreign tourists, who are interested in local culture and local cuisines.

'Reservation by tourists is made much in advance. Now, my Home stay is booked till February 20,' says Raveendran.

According to DTPC, the district is witnessing a sharp increase in the rate of foreign tourist arrivals.

However, the resort owners disagree.

(c) Indo-Asian News Service

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