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Kerala Tourism is holding its maiden road show in Jeddah, the thriving urban centre of oil-rich Saudi Arabia from Sunday. The three-day event will travel to capital Riyadh and Dammam on Monday and the day after.
The Tourism Minister, Mr A.P. Anil Kumar, will lead the road shows, a Kerala Tourism spokesman announced here. These are being held at a time when the middle-east is emerging as a major market for the world's exotic destinations.
“Saudi Arabia is the biggest market for outbound tourists in the region,” the spokesman quoted the Minister as saying. “We want to invite travellers from Saudi Arabia to Kerala's world renowned tourism destinations,” he added.
HIGH-SPENDING
Saudi Arabian tourists are the highest spending travellers abroad from the Middle-East. Nearly half of the country's population falls in the higher income bracket.
Saudi Arabians look for holidays in the harsh summer (June to September) in their country when temperatures hover above 50 degree Celsius.
Kerala's monsoon tourism and Ayurveda are already drawing a number of travellers from Saudi Arabia, the spokesman said.
Health and wellness holidays are a major segment of outbound travel from Saudi Arabia, a factor Kerala Tourism is keen to leverage in its favour.
OUTBOUND TOURISTS
The country's proximity to Kerala and good air connectivity are the other factors in favour of God's Own Country.
The Middle-East has recorded more than nine million outbound tourists in 2011 and the figure is likely to touch 35 million by 2020.
Saudi Arabia accounts for 40 per cent of these, he added. Others now joining the list include United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Oman, Kuwait and Bahrain.
Around 50 local tour operators are expected to participate in the road shows in each of the three Saudi Arabian cities.
> vinson.kurian@thehindu.co.in
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