Houseboats prepare to host weddings

ALAPPUZHA: Alappuzha is set to cash in on wedding tourism  in the wake of the tourism department’s decision to make Kerala  a much sought-after wedding destination.

It may be recalled that DC had reported about the possibilities of wedding tourism in October last year and the idea was introduced by Kerala Tourism in the Kerala Travel Mart  held in  Kochi.

Mr Switten George, vice-president, All-Kerala House Owners Association,  says  weddings can be arranged on  board  cruising houseboats. “A total of  25 such weddings have taken  place  in the last five years. Rituals preferred by the customers will be arranged,” he says.

A national survey conducted in March last year  by IPSOS, a global market research company, indicated that youngsters preferred destination weddings at locales like  beaches, royal palaces and venues, including Alappuzha, Goa, Udaipur,  Jodhpur, Taj Rambagh Palace and Jai Mahal Palaces at  Madhuban, Assam, and Sainik farms, New Delhi. Alappuzha is the preferred destination  in Kerala thanks to its canals and house boats.

Mr Binu Joseph, a houseboat owner who has conducted several  houseboat weddings, says the government has to offer special packages and facilities to win the confidence of wedding parties. 

The rate of wedding parties  varies  as per the need of the customers. “We can  arrange a normal wedding party with 40 people within a range of Rs 40,000 to Rs 1 lakh,” he says.

District Tourism Promotion Council secretary  C. Pradeep says the council is trying to attract couples to get married in houseboats in innovative ways.  “It is easy to market the Venice of the East  among foreign and domestic tourists. We will chalk out a plan to invite couples to tie the nuptial knots here,”  he says.