Kerala Travel Mart concludes with record B2B meetings

On the occasion, a valedictory function was organised, which saw the participation of several key stakeholders

With a record 75,000 B2B meetings, held in-person and in a matter of three days, Kerala Travel Mart 2024, positioned as the largest B2B travel trade fair in Asia, concluded with resounding success at Kochi on Sunday.

The event, organised jointly by KTM Society and Kerala Tourism, the 12th edition of KTM set several new records for the show, with over 2,800 buyers and almost 350 exhibitors turning up for the show, making it a record participation for KTM.

The 12th edition of KTM set several new records for the show

On the occasion, a valedictory function was organised, which saw the participation of several key stakeholders, including high-placed officials of India Tourism as well as Kerala Tourism.

Sikha Surendran

“KTM Society, which is now into its silver-jubilee year, has gifted meaningful contributions to public-private partnership in tourism, which is the state’s most dynamic economic segment,” said Sikha Surendran, Director, Kerala Tourism in her address. 

“As the premier body of the state’s travel and hospitality industry, the Society has played a vital role in this successful collaboration,” she added at the ceremony that was presided over by KTM Society President Jose Pradeep with D Venkatesan, Regional Director, India Tourism, as the chief guest.

“By presenting before a global audience how the state lives up to its reputation as God’s Own Country, KTM hosted an array of business sessions and panel discussions besides a mega exhibition. These will impart scale and speed to Kerala Tourism, known for its resilience and innovativeness to generate novel ideas and models,” she added.

Jose Pradeep

Hailing KTM as the “Kumbh Mela of the country’s tourism”, Venkatesan of India Tourism said in his address that KTM has found prospective emulators from other states. Hailing the Kerala government’s efforts to bring the state’s travel and hospitality industry back to normal after the Wayanad tragedy of end-July, he extended India Tourism’s “full support” to the mission.

“The four-day mart gifted invaluable insights and networking connections to the participants. Our emphasis on Responsible Tourism is a model for the rest of the world,” Pradeep, President of KTM Society, said in his address.

Janeesh J

On the sidelines of KTM 2024, Janeesh J, Chairman of Marketing Committee, said that this year KTM drew a record response from overseas as well as domestic buyers.

“We almost have 75 countries participating and all the six continents are represented as buyers have come from as far away as Chile, Argentina and Botswana,’’ Janeesh tells India & You.

The high level of participation, adds Janeesh, is also reflected in the highly productive 3-day event which saw a record number of B2B meetings. “The buyers and exhibitors are both very satisfied as the buyers find that for them to come all the way to Kerala to attend the fair in person has been very useful and the exhibitors, too, are happy with the quality of buyers that we have selected,’’ he adds.

By the end of Day 3, this number reached a record level of 75,000 meetings

Janeesh adds that by Day 2 itself over 55,000 B2B meetings had taken place between the buyers from all over the world and the local tourism stakeholders in Kerala. By the end of Day 3, this number reached a record level of 75,000 meetings. Janeesh says this marks a significant jump of almost 45 pc from the 55,000 meetings that were held in the last edition of KTM, held in 2022.