There was remarkable increase in domestic and international tourists, registering 5.67 and 6.25 per cent, respectively in 2016 and Kerala counts on a 9-11 per cent rise this year, according to a Kerala tourism department official.

International tourist arrivals stood at 10.38 lakh and domestic tourists at 1.32 crore during 2016, generating revenue amounting to Rs.7,749.51 crore and Rs 29,658.56 crore, respectively, Tourism Information Officer KS Shine told mediapersons here today.

With the State shifting into high gear offering a new and assorted fare of tourism products, arrivals were expected to increase considerably, Shine said.

The main stay for international tourists remained leisure trips and also ayurveda treatment, he said, adding that with the upcoming greenfield airport at Kannur, the tourism department intends to establish Malabar, sharing the boundaries of Coimbatore, Coorg and Mysuru, as the new tourism gateway to Kerala.

To reach out to the domestic market, a string of road shows are being organised this year in Mysuru, Gurgaon, Amritsar, Lucknow, Kanpur, Bhopal, Vadodara, Rajkot, Ahmedabad and Nagpur, he said.

About how frequent hartals in the state affected tourism activities, he said that though it was affecting the tourism, the tourism ministry had requested all the political parties to not to give hartal calls, considering tourist arrivals.

On the impact of closing down of several bars and liquor outlets, Shine admitted that there was adverse impact and that was why the government had partially lifted the ban.

Political murders had not affected tourist arrivals, particularly from foreign countries, Shine added.