An online portal for tour guides is to be launched in the State to offer quality services to holidayers and to introduce them to the unique and popular attractions and other areas of cultural interest.
Being launched by Kerala Tourism, the portal will also enable the tourist to choose the guide of choice based on the profile, rating and professional experience. The tourist can select a guide while preparing the itinerary itself rather than searching for a guide after reaching the place of attraction.
The exorbitant fees charged by the touts who double as tour guides, a vexed issue faced by the stake-holders of tourism industry, can be solved once the portal is launched. The portal is to be integrated with the official website of Kerala Tourism.
The government has given administrative sanction for the project which will cost Rs.15 lakh, official sources told The Hindu . The IT solution provider of the department has been asked to come out with the portal in 10 months.
The tour guides will get an independent log in to register in the portal. The portal is mainly to address shortage of qualified guides in the State, especially in areas where Responsible Tourism (RT) practices are attracting genuine tourists. In RT destinations, it is believed that these trained guides will be able to effectively communicate with the guests.
The portal is being launched at a time when the Kerala Institute of Tourism and Travel Studies (KITTS) has come out with programmes to train educated youth as professional tourist guides. Already, there are 75 Regional Level Professional Tour Guides (RLGs) approved by the Union Ministry of Tourism in the State and 45 to 50 persons among the 75 are Kochi-based. The RLGs offer guide service for a day or one to two weeks at a stretch.
Joint Secretary, Tourist Guide Federation of South India, G. Ajith said the KITTS move to train more youth who completed Class X as guides is detrimental to the profession.
The portal is to be integrated with the official website of Kerala Tourism.
