Tag Archives: Kumarakom

IRCTC has launched packages for professionals to continue with their work from the comfort of hotel rooms. A statement by the Corporation said, “Professionals can pick their favourite destination in Kerala among the list of hotels offered under ‘work from hotel’ concept.” Destinations presently offering the service are Munnar, Thekkady, Kumarakom, Marari (Alappuzha), Kovalam, Wayanad and Kochi.

StayWell Holdings has announced the expansion of its Leisure Inn portfolio in South India with the opening of Leisure Inn VKL Kochi scheduled to launch in the last quarter of 2018. The 53-room hotel will mark the group’s second property in Southern India, following the recent opening of Park Regis Aveda in Kumarakom and the first Leisure Inn to open post the acquisition of StayWellHoldings by Prince Hotels. Simon Wan, President & Director, StayWell Holdings, said “We are looking forward to widening our reach in the Southern market. The hotel will offer a unique experience to tourists and business travellers in the region. We are pleased to extend our partnership with the hotel owner, Dr Varghese Kurian, with the opening of Park Regis Lotus Hotel Bahrain early this year and now Leisure Inn VKL Kochi in India. We are committed to offering our guests a range of options when it comes to business and leisure stays at our hotels, and we will continue to look for opportunities to expand our brands, both in India and internationally,” he further added. Rohit Vig, Managing Director, StayWell Hospitality Group India said, “From unbreakable connectivity, through to the design of hotels, today’s guests look for an unmatched hospitality experience when booking their stay, with aspects like comfort and convenience a minimum expectation nowadays. At Leisure Inn VKL Kochi, we understand our guest’s needs and aim to deliver on this. It’s a great addition to the StayWell portfolio.”  

Giving a new lease of life to the responsible tourism initiatives in the state of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, Chief Minister, Government of Kerala, has launched a mission dedicated to responsible and sustainable tourism. The Responsible Tourism Mission is a first in the world and would lead Kerala Tourism through people-friendly, local community-friendly and environment-friendly initiatives ensuring rural development, employment opportunities and women empowerment. Presiding over the launch function was Kadakampally Surendran, Minister of Tourism, Kerala, while K Suresh Kurup, MLA and Jose K Mani were the Chief Guests. Dr Venu V, Principal Secretary, Kerala Tourism delivered the welcome speech and P Bala Kiran, Director of Tourism presented the Responsible Tourism Mission project. K Rupesh Kumar, Coordinator, State Responsible Tourism Mission announced the new Responsible tourism destinations. Dr. Venu V said that it’s a proud moment for all of them. “Responsible Tourism that started off in Kumarakom is now a world-renowned concept and a point of discussion across the globe. It’s definitely a proud moment for us to be a pioneer in setting up this concept so effectively. Within a span of 9 years, 16 crores are the profit Kumarakom could gain through tourism. Around 1.16 crore revenue is generated by the localities. The reason behind this growth is the involvement as a group by the communities around.” The aim of RT is to create 1.5 lakh jobs in the future, added Dr Venu V. Surendran, said, “To be the pioneer state in practising the concept of Responsible Tourism in the entire country is a proud moment. The government policy is to make tourism more popular. Apart from improving the functioning of the elite class, the government also aims to use …

The Indian Railway PSU, Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has decided to start two new circuits of their flagship luxury train Maharajas’ Express, this year. These two new trips have been named as ‘Southern Sojourn’ and ‘Southern Jewels’ which will cover prominent destinations in West and South India. The Southern Sojourn will cover Goa, Hampi, Mysore, Ernakulam, Kumarakom and Trivandrum. The Southern Jewels will cover Chettinad, Mahabalipuram, Mysore, Hampi and Goa. Though the regular trip of these two new journeys will take place in September 2017 for this year, however two new tour circuits with a view to cater especially to domestic travellers are being planned during monsoon period of June-July 2017. The Southern Sojourn-Monsoon Special shall start from Mumbai on June 24, 2017, & stop at Goa, Hampi, Mysore, Cochin, Alleppey before terminating at Trivandrum. The Southern Jewels-Monsoon Special shall depart from Trivandrum on July 1, 2017, and terminate at Mumbai covering Chettinad, Mahabalipuram, Mysore, Hampi and Goa. Each journey shall be of 8 Days/7 Nights duration. The regular trip of Southern Sojourn will start from Mumbai on Sep 9, 2017, and Southern Jewels will start from Trivandrum on Sep 16, 2017. In addition to visits to monuments and sight-seeing at each destination under these trips, the guests shall have an opportunity to enjoy traditional cultural performances at Cochin, visit a Coir Factory and enjoy a cruise with lunch at Alleppey, savour traditional Chettinad Cuisine demo and much more on these fabulous journeys. Tariff in Indian Rupees has been introduced for the Monsoon Special itineraries. Lucrative offers to attract domestic travellers have also been planned. On the booking of first adult on twin sharing at full cost, …