AFTER THE FLOODS, KERALA REOPENS TO TOURISTS
The floods behind it, the state is opening its doors to tourists with hope and resilience, writes Nikita Puri
Ont he first Sunday of this month, Te msüy anger Long ku mer arrived in Kerala and walked around FortKoc hi, which was once home to the Portuguese, then the Dutch, and then the English .“I walked around in the sun so much that I almost got a sun stroke ,” says the London-based multimedia artist, laughing. In town to see the sites that could potentially host his work, Long ku mer is among the first batch of artists who have travel led to Kerala in preparation for the fourth edition of the Koch iMuz iris Bi en na le that kicks off on December 12.
Last week, when 46 tourists from Australia reached Koch io na chartered flight, they were welcomed with cymbals and drums, jasmine garlands, a Katha kali dancer in full gear, and dozens of photo journalists all vying for the perfect shot for the next day’ s frontpage.
Just before that ,10 students from Turkey were accorded a similar welcome as they got onto a house boat in the back waters of Ala ppuz ha. And earlier this week, an all-women group from Norway went gee se-watching in canoe sin the Po ot hot ta backwaters near Er na ku lam.
Understandably, Kerala, ravaged by the recent floods, is celebrating all of these arrivals as it gets back on its feet. And though the tourism and hospitality industry, which employs over a million people and accounts for 10 percent of the state’ s gross domestic product, has been severely hit, it is pulling itself up.
Lastyear, thestate’sfamed houseboats, which cruise on 900 km of scenic back waters, itsAyurveda spas, sunnybeaches, leisureresortsby lagoonsandlakes, andpicturesque hill stations had brought in over 15.7 million tourists. And the total revenue from tourism alone was ~333.84 billion —up from ~296.59 billion in 2016. But this year, even as the Ne el akurinji flower that blooms once in 12 years is beginning to carpet Mun nari na purplish-blue hue and the tourism department has announced that Kerala is officially back in action, tourists are yet to come back in full force.
“This time of the year, I should have been in Mu nnaro rT hekka dy but saar aka am bandhhai (business is currently closed ),” saysShijiKS, aKoc hi based driver who works with different tour operators. “Instead of out station tours, I am sitting in Koch ia ll day long hoping to get at least a few rides within the city itself .” According to SS aji kumar, chairman, Kerala chapter of the Con federation of Indian Industry, the state’ s overall loss is estimated to beat least~400billion.
The numerous river sand water ways running across Kerala essentially divided the state into areas that were untouched by the floodwaters and those that were completely sub merged, says Jo erg Drechsel, delegate chairman of the Asian chapter of
Relais& Chateaux, a global fellowship of luxury hotels and restaurants. D re ch se li sal so the founder and director of The Malabar House at Fort Koch ia nd Malabar Escapes, a chain of fine boutique hotels in Kerala. Asin2016, The Malabar House will host artist Day anita Sing h’ s work during this Bi en na le, too.
“The tourism infrastructure is mostly back on its feet; that’ s not a problem at all ,” saysDrechsel. What’s left is rehabilitation of local communities and people, like the young manager at The Malabar House who lost her home and belongings to nine feet of water. “Had it been only one area, the damage could have been contained, but there are 94 dam sand 14 districts in the state ,” saysSajiJoseph, CEO, The Malabar House and Malabar Escapes.
The only reason Kerala has been able to recover so fast is because of the coordinated efforts of everyone. The annual Kerala Tourism Mart, which brings together stakeholders from the state’ s tourism industry, is coordinating between local tourism bodies and the chief minister’ s office. This has helped the recovery tobe a very“focused effort ”, says Joseph.
Travel across the state and it’ s only in the interiors that you find evidence of the floods. From a tourism point of view, the recovery has been expeditious.
En route from the airport to Fort Koc hi, the prime site for the Bi en na le, it is hard to imagine that parts of the city were 10 feet underwater barely a few weeks ago. While the airport itself was flooded, incur ring losses worth ~2.5billion, the LuLu Mall, reportedly India’ s largest mall, too was shut as the basements were flooded. The same story played out at the Koc hi Marriott Hotel right next door as well as in Courtyard by Marriott near the airport. With no signs of damage, it is now business as usual.
At the other end of the town, at Fort Kochi,r en ovations are on at David Hall, an old Dutch bungalow managed by hospitality group CG H Earth. This is one of the venues for the Bi en na le. Not far from here is a church where Portuguese explorer V as coda Ga ma was buried before his body was removed to Lisbon. And, there are the famous ly massive Chinese fishing nets, which with stood the strong winds that came with the monsoon. Walk along the lane sin the area and you can spot reminder soft he previous edition soft he Bi en na le—graffiti on the walls.
The floods did not touch this part of the state, says GVijay, CEO of CGH Earth, who meets meat Brunt on Boatyard, once a ship yard under the British. The CG H group is known for its 18 eco friendly properties that include heritage bungalows and mans ions, tr ad it i on alKettuv alla ms( house boats from the Kuttanadregion) and beach side pool villas.
A large ship blasts its horn and sails on towards the Cochin Port, which one can see from Brunton Boatyard. As the salinity of the sea begins to smell familiar, Vijay sips his coffee before telling me about Coconut Lagoon, one of the group’s most sought-after properties next to the Vembanad Lake in Kumarakom.
“We had to wade through chest-deep water in the resort to assess the extent of the damage ,” says Vi jay. “It took four-five days to completely remove the water. We had to change switches, fix the
electric panels, san it is ethe whole area, re paint all the walls and polish the floors. It took us 10-12 days to get things back in shape .”
Mattresses had tobe replaced and a freshhandmade carpets had to be ordered from Cher th ala, a town of weavers. But in properties such as these, it is hard to estimate losses. For years together, guests would feed the 70-80 tortoises that lived in a pond on the property .“We found only a few tortoises and the big fish are all gone ,” says Vi jay. And so is the kitchen garden where guests would harvest string beans and cucumbers.
The resort is also home to some rare, indigenous Vechur cows. Luckily, says Vijay, they all found their way to the high-arched bridges inside the property that remained above the water. This weekend, all its 49 rooms are occupied. The rebound is heartening, says Vijay.
Things were relatively better at Purity at lake Vembanad, a property by Malabar Escapes, which was justin line with the water when the lake’ s level rose .“It took us about a week to clear the garden areas and a few guests started arriving in about a week after that,” says Drechsel.
“This is the second time we are being hit this year ,” says Drechsel, referring to the Nip ah virus scare in K oz hiko de in May .“We had several cancellations then as well and even people who were to travel in January 2019 had doubts about coming to Kerala,” addsJoseph.
Every year, as the afternoon sun sparkle son the back waters of Ala ppuzha,b oats about 100 feet long and each carrying 100 oarsmen gear up for the annual racing events. Apt ly named snake boats, these vigorous ly slither on the water like large wooden serpent sassoon as the whistle blows. Thousands of tourists cheer them on from the banks, marking the perfect start to the On am festivities.
Capita li sing on the trend of league-based sports (like the Indian Premier League ), last month would have marked Ker ala’ s maiden outing of the Champions Boat League, with Sa chin Tendulk ar flagging off the races that were slot ted togo on till November. But the floods brought the“Olympics of
the back waters” to a halt even before they began.
Reports suggest that the back waters industry has been suffering a loss of ~12 million everyday since the floods .“It’ s actually closer to ~20 million a day ,” says Jose ku tty Joseph, president of the Ala ppuzh a-based All Kerala House boats Owners Association .“People haven’ t been paid for almost two-and-a-half months because there hasn’ t been any business. It’s an un imagin able loss.”
So far, he says, only 10 to 15 percent of the usual Indian and just about 5 percent of foreign tourists have arrived. Though the Bi en na le is likely to bring in tourists, one can not wait till December, feel many .“If we lose out for two months now, we will get into a loss in our annual balance sheets ,” saysDrechsel.
Thankfully, tourists are beginning to show support. For instance, after a period of uncertainty, guests have finally started arriving at Sane e sh Thomas’ budget home stay in Mu nn ar .“Mu nnarw as previously cutoff because of land slides. But now our rooms are full as people have come to see the Ne el akurinji bloom ,” says Thomas.
“We’ ll soon have someone from Germany who wants to spend two weeks cruising through the canal sand back waters to experience the local culture ,” says Vi jay. The usual stay ina house boat is only for a couple of nights.
The 10 th edition of the Kerala Travel Mart kicks off on September 27. Industry veterans hope the event, which attracts stakeholders from India and abroad, will give K er ala’ s tourism the impetus it needs. And come October 5, there’ s a good chance that the boat races that were halted last month will resume. While the Champions Boat League might have been put off for now, the famous Nehru Trophy Boat Race is likely to be back.
“We have to send out the message loud ly and clearly that Kerala is ready for visitors. We have everything up and running, and it’ s safe to come here ,” says Joseph of the All Kerala House boats Owners Association.
As Dr echs el rightly points out, what the state needs is long-term support from tourists and well wishers as it re builds itself. The best way to stand with Kerala would be to find your way to it.
‘WE HAD TO WADE THROUGH CHESTDEEP WATER IN THE RESORT TO ASSESS THE DAMAGE’ G VIJAY CEO, CGH Earth ‘IF WE LOSE OUT FOR TWO MONTHS NOW, WE WILL GET INTO A LOSS IN OUR ANNUAL BALANCE SHEETS’ JOERG DRECHSEL Founder & director, Malabar Escapes and The Malabar House