Govt Working to Make Kerala an Adventure Tourism Hub: Minister

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM:
The government is charting out a roadmap to make Kerala a hub for adventure tourism, Minister P A Mohamed Riyas said today.

“Adventure sports, such as trekking, cycling and surfing are gaining popularity among people of all age-groups. The Tourism Department has identified this trend and is strengthening its efforts with the help of KATPS (Kerala Adventure Tourism Promotion Society) to promote adventure tourism,” the Tourism Minister revealed after inaugurating a four-day International Surfing festival at Edava beach in Varkala.

The Tourism department is mapping places that are suitable for adventure activities such as hiking, cycling and surfing, the Minister said. “Kerala is the only state to provide registration system and guidelines for people engaged in adventure sport activities,” he added.

The April 10-13 event is being organised by KATPS, under the State Tourism Department, in association with the Thiruvananthapuram District Tourism Promotion Council.

Riyas pointed out the Tourism Department organises regular events such as the Mountain Terrain Biking Championship (MTB Kerala) at Mananthavady (Wayanad), the International White Water Kayaking Festival at Thusharagiri (Kozhikode) and the International Paragliding Festival in Vagamon (Idukki). All these are part of our efforts to promote adventure tourism, he emphasised.

“Such events are reaping us benefits in the tourism sector. You can see that the tourist flow in Varkala doubled in 2024 compared to the year before the onset of Covid-19,” he added.

V Joy, MLA presided over the function. “The surfing festival will further establish Varkala as a major adventure tourist destination,” he said.

Others present included District Panchayat President D Suresh Kumar, Additional Director-General (Department of Tourism) Vishnuraj P, KATPS Chief Executive Officer Binu Kuriakose and elected representatives of civic bodies.

Coastal Varkala, 40 km north of the state capital, is a major tourist destination for adventure activities such as jet skiing and paragliding besides boating.

The festival will feature competitions in categories such as SUP technical race, paddleboard technical race and SUP surfing. Around 60 surfers, local and international, are participating in the event that enjoys technical support from the Surfing Federation of India and International Surfing Association.

The competitions are under the following categories: National Women’s Open, National Men’s Open, National Groms (16 & under – Girls), National Groms (16 & under – Boys), International Men’s Open and International Women’s Open. The winners of the competitions under each category will be awarded a cash prize of Rs 2 lakh.

Besides the competitions, the festival also offers free surfing sessions worth Rs 1 lakh for 50 lucky winners through a special contest. They will be selected from five categories: general public, educational institutions, techies, working professionals, vloggers/content creators/photographers and influencers.

Registrations can be made at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfijXjNEXJmKhRvJYEoHhLqkFngFmTBD9ZwZ9LeOSMDxXKTCw/viewform.