HYDERABAD: Hyderabadis now seem to be sceptical in going ahead with their holiday plans in the God’s own country Kerala, thanks to the Nipah Virus scare. While some of them have made last-minute cancellations fearing carrying the virus back home, just like the two persons from the city who returned from Kerala infected, there are others who are ringing up travel agents and flooding them with queries whether it is safe to travel to Kerala now. Adding to this, WhatsApp messages in circulation are making many re-think their travel plans to Kerala.
Abhishek Chatterjee, an IT employee who planned a five-day, four-night trip to central and south Kerala, including Wayanad, along with his family, decided to cancel it as soon as he read about the suspected cases in the city. “I planned to go with my children in the first week of June, but I cancelled the plan on Friday. I don’t want to take any chances. I am still contemplating if we should plan another trip, or just stay back in the city,” he said.
Same is the case of Prashant Jain, who was looking forward for a short trip to the God’s own country. “It is not as if we would end up contracting the Virus merely by visiting Kerala. But why take chances? I am now headed to Goa,’’ said Jain, a businessman and a resident of Jubilee Hills. With the symptoms being as common cough, cold and fever, the level of panic among people have gone up, said Chatterjee. Even ardent travellers among my colleagues have decided to keep away from Kerala for a while, he added.
On the other hand, several travel agents in the city are receiving a inquiries regarding a stay in Kerala. In case of those planning to travel to north Kerala, the travel agents are generally asking the travellers to put their plans on hold for the time being. Nipah broke in Kozhikode and the closest tourist destination from there is Wayanad.
Travel Planners, a city-based agency, has received only two cancellations in the past three to four days. “Since the other places in Southern part of Kerala including Thekkady, Munnar and Alleppey are much more popular, the bookings there are the same,” said PG Ganesh, from the agency.
Keralatravels.com, an exclusive agency that operates from Kerala, has advised those calling them to hold their plans. “We are asking them to hold on and have offered a couple of them to postpone prior bookings to North Kerala tourist sites. The rest of the plans are going on as usual,” informed the agent. On an average, Kerala Travels receives around 10 inquiries per day, the agent added.