International Ayurveda operators, agents, bloggers and media personnel from 30 countries around the world will reach Kannur international airport on October 24 for the maiden International Ayurveda Ambassadors’ Tour and B2B Meet.
The ‘Ambassadors of Kerala Ayruveda’ from the non-English speaking countries will start their journey on October 25, Dhanwanthari Day, from Bekal to explore the destination, visit key Ayurveda properties and service providers before reaching the beach resort of Kovalam in the capital on November 4.
During the 12-day road trip across the State, six B2B meetings will also be held at Bekal, Kozhikode, Cheruthurthy, Thrissur, Ernakulam, Kumarakom and Kovalam for the visitors for direct interaction with service providers.
Being organised by the Ayurveda Promotion Society (APS), which includes Ayurveda hospitals, clinics, resorts, educational institutions and manufacturing companies, the event is being held with the support of Kerala Tourism and India Tourism.
“This is the first venture in the country for promoting a specialised product and for attracting the holidayers for experiencing Ayurveda,” Minister for Tourism Kadakampally Surendran said, after releasing the logo for the event at a press conference here on Monday.
The initiative has been launched at a time when Ayurveda is facing stiff competition from nearby Sri Lanka and Maldives. Mr. Surendran said the tour and the B2B meet would enlighten the visitors to know more about traditional Ayurveda.
The Minister said North Malabar would get a boost, as the guests were landing at Kannur international airport and the guests would be staying in the properties of the SMiLE initiative of Bekal Resorts Development Corporation, the lead agency for tourism promotion.
Future meets
Based on the success and feedback, the Minister said a decision would be taken by Kerala Tourism to organise the event in the coming years on the lines of the Kerala Blog Express.
The 45 Ambassadors from 30 countries were selected from the 120 applications received from those interested in promoting ‘Kerala Ayurveda’ in their countries, president, APS, Sajeev Kurup said.
Russia, Ukarain, Denmark, Hungary, Poland, Spain, Israel, Thailand, South Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, France, Switzerland, Solovakia, USA, South Africa, Japan, Germany, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Lebanon, Netherlands, Romania, Sweden, Bulgaria, Italy, Australia, China, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates are the countries keen to promote Ayurveda through the ambassadors.
The Minister said the government would not allow any illegal practices in the name of the Ayurveda promotion in the State. Secretary, Tourism, Rani George said a new classification system had been rolled out for Ayuveda centres already.
