The tourism sector in Munnar is enthused at the good inflow of tourists despite the disruption in public transport system owing to the general strike in the past two days.
The sector was badly hit by the August floods and there was a lull in business with resorts and hotels experiencing a drastic drop in bookings.
The uptick in tourism activities was evident from the Christmas/ New Year season and the tempo continued with the mercury dropping below zero degree Celsius since the start of the month. Foreign tourists have started arriving in Munnar and the momentum is expected to pick up in the coming days.
Revival path
Aju Abraham Mathew, general manager of Tall Trees Resort, said visitors were coming in large numbers to Munnar since the start of the month.
He said the general strike did not have much impact on the tourist inflow as evident from the traffic block on the Munnar stretch of the Kochi- Dhanushkodi National Highway on Wednesday.
He said the majority of tourists came to experience the cold climate and see the frost-covered Munnar landscape. The continuing cold wave was a shot in the arm for the tourism sector.
Foreign tourists usually arrived in Munnar from November to February, he said adding that there were no cancellation of bookings from foreigners at present. There was a drop of 60% in tourist arrivals from northern India after the floods. Now it was picking up and there was normality in tourism activities, he added.
A taxi operator attached to a hotel group said the going was good for the past one week. He took tourists to different locations in Munnar, in addition to picking them from the airport and railway stations.
An office-bearer of the Munnar Hotel and Resort Association said the industry was showing signs of recovery and the government should run a campaign that the situation was back to normal after the floods.
He said this was necessary as some countries had issued an advisory cautioning its citizens from visiting the State. The continuing hartals and strikes could have a negative impact on the industry.
Staff of a travel agency said focus should be on repairing roads as most of the enquiries were regarding road conditions and infrastructure in the hill station aftermath of the floods.
