Kerala targets high-spending Arab tourists to lift off-season retail demand

Kerala Tourism is positioning Ayurveda, medical travel, luxury stays and souvenir shopping for Arab visitors, who spend about $3,000 a day versus $550-$700 for traditional European tourists. Oman is now its third-largest foreign source market, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE are in the top 10.

— Filed Thu, 23 Jul, 2026, 19:16 IST · Source The Hindu BusinessLine · Updated

Kerala Tourism expects high-spending Arab visitors to lift Ayurveda, medical, luxury travel and souvenir retail. Oman is now Kerala’s third-largest foreign source market, while Saudi Arabia and the UAE rank among the top ten, supporting off-season June-September demand.

Why this matters

The Arab-market push follows Kerala Tourism's Responsible Tourism and industry-status push, its Global Travel Meet promotion of South Kerala circuits, and its domestic-travel campaign tied to Modi's 'vacation in India' call.

Footfall is steady, with 456 signals recorded in the past 90 days; no QoQ change figure is provided.