TTDC readies for tourist season, to renovate hotels, boathouses

V Ayyappan | TNN

Dec 16, 2009:

Chennai: Three months before the start of the summer tourist season, the Tamil Nadu Tourism Development Corporation (TTDC) is gearing to handle the tourist flow by augmenting infrastructure.
The corporation, which has 54 hotels and 11 boathouses, is planning to renovate its hotels at Kodaikanal and Ooty and buy boats for boathouses in Ooty, Kodaikanal, Pykara, and Mudaliarkuppam before April.
A senior official said: “The works will cost Rs 3 crore. We have carried out infrastructure augmentation works in tourist spots worth over Rs 7.5 crore this year. More works need to be done because we receive the maximum number of tourists from April to June.” The TTDC will buy 82 boats for boathouses in Kodaikanal, Ooty and Pykara. Mudaliarkuppam will also get a new 32-seater boat. “We have placed orders and the boats are expected to be delivered by February,” said an official.
He said: “We plan to carry out most of the renovation works of boathouses after January while the hotels at Ooty and Kodaikanal will be redone in February and March because that is when there will be a slight dip in tourist arrivals. The rains and landslides have affected tourists arrivals at Ooty. But we are confident that tourists will flock to the hill station in summer.”
The number of tourists visiting the boathouses increased after the TTDC carried out marketing campaigns inside the state and also in Bangalore and Hyderabad.
Muttukadu, Mudaliarkuppam, Mamallapuram and Kanyakumari are showcased as popular destinations after Ooty and Kodaikanal.
The April-June season brings in more domestic travellers.
According to statistics, the tourist arrivals, both domestic and foreign, increased to 646.58 lakh in 2008 when compared to 524 lakh arrivals in 2007, a 23% growth.
Encouraged by the response, the TTDC is planning to make trekking a regular feature at Tirusulam, Top Slip and Yercaud. “We are ready to operate trekking tours on a regular basis if there is demand,” a senior TTDC official said.

HOTSPOT: Muttukadu will be among the destinations that will be showcased