Russians throng Varkala beach

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: In spite of the collapse of Rouble, the Russian currency, tourists from that country are among the top visitors flocking Varkala ahead of November increasing the occupancy rate at hotels and home stays. While local operators and businessmen are upbeat about the visitors, some stakeholders have appealed to the Varkala municipality to ensure that illegal home stays are not allowed to be run by Russians.

“As a part of the revised tax pattern, we are taking a building count in all wards of Varkala. So we will get the actual number of home stays in the coming weeks and keep track of the type of guests. Our estimates are that there are 180 home stays here. We hope our Russian guests won’t illegally hire and run home stays. Most of them bill, the expenses of their guests in Russia leading to loss of revenue here. We will recommend to government to identify and avoid giving visa to such offenders,” said municipal vice- chairperson Mr Anijo S.

Meanwhile, the tourists visiting the Varkala area including many domestic tourist couples are on the hunt for a romantic destination. The foreign guests are mostly back packers, say hoteliers. “Budget room rents start from Rs 700 to Rs 1,500 and cafes also get a good footfall. Last tourist season was not an exciting one. Our guests are the ones who seek Ayurvedic rejuvenation, but we hope we will also receive guests from all India bound chartered flights,” said Mr Suresh Kumar, spreading some lobsters on display at his cafe.