Royal Travels News

The new facility will allow citizens from 11 countries -- Japan, Singapore, Finland, Luxembourg, New Zealand, Philippines, Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Myanmar and Indonesia -- to obtain tourist visas after landing in the state. Tourism Secretary Suman Billa said the Tourism Department has already started the campaign on the availability of VoA in Kerala. “We will make it more attractive for the tourists arriving here. 

Japan is a big market for Kerala when compared to other countries. Already plans are afoot to participate in tourism fairs in Japan,” Billa said. Keeping in view that Ayurveda is a big attraction for the Japanese, those in the Ayurveda industry will be taken to Japan to showcase what Kerala can offer to them. This is for the first time that the Tourism Department is planning a massive campaign in Japan. “Now language is a barrier for tour operators to handle tourists from Japan.

The department is planning to tackle the language problem and also to provide food according to their taste,” he added. Chairman of the Travel Agents Federation of India, Kerala chapter, Paulose K Mathew said unless Kerala Tourism starts some propaganda, there will not be much impact in the tourism sector. “If road shows are conducted properly in these countries, around 10 to 15 per cent increase in tourist arrivals could be expected with the visa-on-arrival facility. It is seen that more tourists are arriving to Kerala from New Zealand and Japan. These countries are financially stable,” Mathew said. “Maldives and Sri Lanka became hot tourist destinations with the introduction of VoA. Now with the introduction of the new system at Kerala airports, Kerala tourism too will be benefited,” he added. Preparations to implement the scheme at the two airports have been completed. Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL) managing director V J Kurian said equipment and manpower were already in place at the airport to implement the scheme. The Immigration Department has completed training for its personnel launch the facility. Additional space, counters and facilities for refreshment have been arranged at both airports. The Union Tourism Ministry is also planning to extend visa-on-arrival to Germany, France, Korea, Russia and China as tourist arrivals from these countries are increasing. The single entry visa will have only 30-day validity.

Royal Travels News