The Yaanam 2025 travel literary festival, organized by Kerala Tourism, concluded on Sunday following a slide guitar performance by Prakash Sontakke.
During the event, Dr. Venu, who has played a significant role in tourism branding and marketing at both state and national levels, observed that Kerala Tourism’s recent campaigns have successfully increased visitor numbers and investment. He also noted Kerala's emergence as a competitive location for 'Destination Weddings'.
In a session on wildlife conservation and sustainable travel, wildlife photographer Balan Madhavan raised concerns that the focus on ecotourism is leading to increased visitor traffic in protected forests, thereby affecting their natural environments and wildlife. He called for "substantial changes" to ecotourism standards.
Separately, Tibetan activist and writer Tenzin Tsundue emphasized the importance of conscious travel and sensitivity towards local communities and cultures. He expressed concern that the commercialization of tourism, which he described as being "sold as a package to consume," is disrupting the lives and traditional livelihoods of local communities in popular tourist areas due to high visitor volumes.
Source: https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/kerala/travel-festival-yaanam-concludes-on-a-high-note/article70182936.ece