Alappuzha: The liquor ban proposed by the state government is set to hit the tourism industry badly, according to a survey.
The survey carried out by HolidayIQ.com, a Bengaluru-based travel community with over 20 lakh members revealed that 58 per cent of over 5,000 participants from across 30 cities in the country were not interested to plan a holiday to Kerala due to the liquor curbs.
This comes close on the heels of Tourism Minister A.P. Anilkumar expressing concern on the consequences of the new liquor policy for the tourism industry.
The survey titled ‘HolidayIQ.com Traveller Insights: Will the ban on alcohol affect your travel plans to Kerala?’ says at least 42 percent of the respondents still choose a holiday in Kerala despite the new liquor policy.
Travellers from Delhi reacted strongly to the ban with 72 percent saying they wouldn’t travel to Kerala on a holiday whereas 49 percent travellers from Pune and Chennai were relatively unaffected.
While 61 percent of male respondents said they would not go to Kerala now, only 37 percent female respondents said the same indicating the alcohol ban did not have significant impact on women travellers.
At least 40 percent in the age group of 18-24 say the ban will not affect their travel plans while 57 percent from age group 25-34 iterated they would change their travel plan.
While 59 per cent respondents between the ages of 34 and 45 said r that the liquor ban would influence holiday-making in Kerala, 60 percent above 45 reiterated the same opinion.
Mr Hari Nair, founder of the community, says the question whether the ban on alcohol ruined Kerala’s tourism prospects was asked to the people in the prominent cities.
According to the survey, the travel plans of 63 percent frequent travellers were affected but only 48 percent of other travellers said the same.
“The answer may leave tourism businesses with more than a hiccup,” he adds.
According to tourism department data, the income from domestic tourist arrivals to the state went up from Rs 10.07 crore in 2012 to Rs 10.08 crore in 2013.
