K.G. Kumar

LAST week, an old Kerala hand announced plans to invest some substantial amounts in what is arguably the State's only area of growth - tourism. Captain C.P. Krishnan Nair, Chairman of Hotel Leela Venture Ltd, said the group was planning a capital outlay of about Rs 900 crore for expansion, mainly in Chennai, Udaipur and Hyderabad.

In Kerala, too, the group's presence would become much more pronounced. It had recently taken over the controversial beach resort at Kovalam, which had been part of the chain of hotels run by the Indian Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) until it was disinvested three years ago by the government.

In a press release, the company said it had relaunched the beach resort as the Leela Kovalam Beach with 194 guest rooms and suites. Spread across 1.5 km of beachfront, the property is eminently suited for lovers of the sun and sand.

Over the last two years, an amount of over Rs 50 crore has been pumped in for renovations to the property. An additional investment of about Rs 20 crore has been earmarked for the sea-view wing, which would be completed by December, according to the release.

The Kovalam property has all that it takes to make a mark in the competitive niche of beach tourism - a signature ayurveda and wellness spa, seven therapeutic treatment rooms, a naturally ventilated foot massage pavilion, and yoga rooms with immediate access to the beach.

According to Mr Vivek Nair, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, The Leela Venture Ltd, beach tourism in Kerala had not achieved its full potential despite the pioneering effort made in 1969 with the opening of the Kovalam resort. He believes this was mainly because of the marketing thrust given to the backwaters. In the process, beach tourism, which, according to Mr Nair, commands an average stay of 10-14 days compared to the two-day average stay of backwater tourism, had lost out.

It will be interesting to observe how the Leela group will put this belief into practice. It cannot be denied that in recent years Kerala has been concentrating on marketing the backwaters as the unique selling proposition of its tourist appeal. And, equally, it cannot be denied that this approach has won the State not only laurels but also substantial increase in tourist arrivals. If Kerala is a hot destination today, it is surely due to the astute selling of its backwaters.

Yet, one must not forget that Kerala started its voyage to tourism glory from the shores, as it were. Kovalam for long remained the beacon that attracted scores of tourists from around the world to Kerala, especially in the 1970s, much to the dismay of competing destinations, including the more famous Goa.

Goa, incidentally, is also a destination that the Leela Group is familiar with, having run a reputed property there for several years. So the group's attempt to repeat its success in Kovalam is understandable.

It is also a minor victory of another sort, for the group has long toyed with the prospect of setting up a beach resort in Bekal, in the Malabar region of north Kerala, which is the original home of Captain Nair.

Despite several false starts, that project never took off and now seems unlikely to ever see the light of day. So, the Captain can be understandably proud of his new conquest and the renewed vigour with which his small empire is pursuing the great dream of reviving beach tourism in Kerala.

The writer can be contacted at kgkumar@gmail.com

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