Thiruvananthapuram: The 12th edition of Kerala Travel Mart (KTM-2024), scheduled in Kochi from September 26 to 29, is all set to surpass past records going by the stakeholders’ response, including the turnout of domestic and international buyers, Tourism Minister, Shri P A Mohamed Riyas said today.
Unveiling the salient features of the four-day biennial event at a press conference, he said KTM has made a mark over the last 24 years as a strong model of government-industry partnership, contributing significantly to Kerala tourism’s growth. The government sees KTM as a path leading to the vision of turning Kerala into a ‘tourist state’. He also launched the mobile app for KTM 2024.
Organized by Kerala Travel Mart Society, KTM’s upcoming edition has already received a huge response from stakeholders. The domestic buyer registrations alone have crossed 2,035 for the first time, doubling the hitherto-highest total of 1,305 in 2018. As for foreign buyers, the number is 808, from 76 countries.
KTM-2024 will be held at the Sagara-Samudrika Convention Centre on Willingdon Island. The event’s inaugural ceremony will be followed by three days of business sessions. The Expo will be open to the public on the last day (September 29).
Of the 808 foreign buyers from 76 countries, 67 are from the UK, 60 from the Gulf and 55 from the US. While the buyers from Russia total 34, those from the rest of Europe have a figure of 245. There will be 41 buyers from Africa, while the others are from East Asia. As for domestic buyers, Maharashtra (578) tops the list, followed by Delhi (340) and Gujarat (263).
There will be 344 stalls under eight categories at the event, which KTM Society is organizing with support from other agencies of the state as well as industry, besides assistance from the state Tourism Department.
The run-up to KTM-2024 will see a pre-mart tour from September 22 to 26 and also a five-day post-mart tour across Kerala from September 30 for select buyers.
Tourism Secretary, K Biju; Tourism Director, Sikha Surendran; KTM Society President, Jose Pradeep; KTM Society Secretary, Swaminathan S; KTM Society past presidents, E M Najeeb and Baby Mathew were present.
Kerala Biz News