KERALA TOURISM NEWSLETTER
Kerala wins the International Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) Gold and National CNBC Travel Awards
Kerala Tourism is the proud recipient of the 2009 PATA Gold Award in the Marketing – State/City Destination category. Kerala’s entry ‘Dream Season in God’s Own Country’ was judged ‘best in class’ from amongst 236 entries worldwide. Korea’s ‘2008 Korea, Sparkling Campaign’ bagged the award for the Marketing Country Destination category. Other PATA winners in the marketing category were Visa Worldwide Pte Ltd (overall Marketing Grand Award), British Tourist Authority (Marketing ─ Allied Partner) and Cathay Pacific Airways Ltd (Marketing─Carrier).
‘Dream Season in God’s Country’ was targeted at the growing Indian market. The campaign objective was to convert the traditional off season in Kerala into a season of opportunity for domestic travelers. It positioned the state as an affordable and inviting destination, making God's Own Country an all-season's destination.
The ‘Dream Season in God’s Own Country’ campaign was responsible for around 15.2% increase in tourist arrivals in the state during the off season last year. An elated Dr. Venu V., Secretary of Kerala Tourism said that the award and recognition is a testament to Kerala Tourism’s smart marketing strategies. “Kerala not only gained an added season in the travel calendar, but also recorded the biggest growth in domestic tourist arrivals in the last 15 years with the Dream Season campaign”, he added. Conceptualised and executed by Stark Communications, the campaign logistics included 133 value-for-money packages by 177 industry partners, a dedicated micro-site, and a toll free infoline ─ all of which were supported by marketing promotions in the print and electronic media themed ‘Kerala Within Your Reach’.
Following the awards ceremony last night, Director of Kerala Tourism, Mr. M. Sivasankar said that winning the CNBC awards for Best Travel Destination and Best State Tourism Board is testimony that Kerala Tourism is one of the most innovative and exciting brands in the tourism industry in India.
(CNBC AWAAZ Travel Awards recognizes the best in the industry and are based on an extensive survey conducted by Synovate, across 12 cities in India and are grouped into 3 categories namely, Corporate, Trade and General).
Along with Kerala Tourism, another proud Keralite, CGH Earth bagged the 2009 PATA Grand Award for Environment for its entry ‘Spice Village and the Community’. According to one of the judges, “Spice Village has managed to succeed in turning an effective management programme into its own company ethos. This comprehensive and ‘honest’ environmental initiative has resulted in an extraordinary living and breathing visitor experience”. CGH also picked up the Best Holistic Destination Award for its ayurveda resort Kalari Kovilakom, at the CNBC Travel Awards.
The PATA award ceremony will take place on September 25th during the PATA Travel Mart 2009 to be held in Hangzhou, China (PRC). The CNBC Travel Awards ceremony took place last night in Bangalore.
