Kerala Tourism | Vellar Tourist Village Kovalam

Vellar all set to become a tourist village

Arts and crafts village, Kerala tourism, Kudumbasree, tourism Department, tourist village sections, Vellar near Kovalam, Vellar tourist village

A rocky hamlet near Kovalam, Trivandrum, Kerala will soon become a tourism village. The arts and crafts village of Kerala Tourism at Vellar, will become fully functional before the next peak tourist season.

The Kerala tourism department and Kudumbasree have tied up to develop Vellar into a tourism village which in due course will evolve into an ethnic hangout. The village is expected to give a genuine Kerala shopping experience with its handicrafts stalls, ethnic food points and recreational facilities in the leisure zone. Due to its proximity to Kovalam, Vellar was chosen for the village.

The village, modeled on the lines of the Dilli Haat in New Delhi has been set up of a cost of Rs.7 crore on a 15 acre abandoned quarry to promote ethnic and authentic products of the State. Kerala tourism has got the seven acre site from the Harbour Engineering Department. The natural features of the site, originally an abandoned quarry have been retained. A hillock, rising 15 meters from the ground, offers a fine view of the sea. The buildings are of the Kerala style.

The village has three sections – Travancore, Kochi and Malabar. The Travancore section, close to the reception , will have 14 stalls, a traditional house and a food court which will serve ethnic cuisine.

At the lowest level there will be stalls, curio shops selling local handicrafts.

A vast space has been left open near the reception and the car parking area for erecting makeshift stalls to organize craft fairs. The Kochi section has a covered theatre aimed at imparting training in making craft items. There will be a camping site where art exhibitions would be hosted.

The Kudumbasree units would have a permanent facility to market their products at the stalls in the village.

The village will have dedicated facilities for traditional artisans to work and finish their products.

A state of the art craft design technology development centre, marketing office with modern facilities and training centre have also been set up.