Sunday, April 06, 2008

In our own backyard...

Visit to Malpe, a beach in Karnataka coastal region will never be the same anymore. Malpe is 4 kms away from temple town of Udupi and 60 kms away from Mangalore. Till now Malpe was known for being a port, beach town and of course for St.Mary’s Island, which is full of volcanic rocks of different shapes and is a boat ride away from Malpe. House Boat at Malpe near UdupiApril 2, 2008 is a very special day for coastal Karnataka in general and Malpe in particular. New chapter in Karnataka’s coastal tourism was written when Paradise Isles of Malpe in association with Dept. of Tourism, Karnataka launched the House boat cruise programme(called ‘Paradise Lagoon’) in Hoode backwaters(Kemmannu Hoode) near Malpe, for the first time in Karnataka, which most of us till now would have heard/ seen only in backwaters of Kerala or Goa. These house boats have been designed in the lines of the ones conceptualized by Jungle Lodges of India. Presently you can choose from either 2 rooms or one room facility in the house boats here. Also you will be provided with one cook and two oarsmen. Houseboat is devoid of any engine to avoid engine noise and it is lit by hurricane lantern rather than electricity. You will even find resemblance to the traditional house of Dakshina Kannada if you observe the interior design of the boat. Well, it would surely be a tourist’s delight to have a cruise in this house boat.On the day of inauguration of house boat service in malpeSpeaking at the launch of ‘Paradise Lagoon’ in Malpe, C. Somashekhara, Director, Department of Tourism, Karnataka, announced the sanction of Rs.6.4 crores by the Union Government for the development of beach tourism along the 320 km coastal belt of Karnataka. Also, he hinted at the development of 8 beach spots in this region. This should send right signals to the private firms to chip in to make tourism in this part of Karnataka a success story as in Kerala.House boat interiors at MalpePeople of undivided Dakshina Kannada district have always been known for their spirit of enterprise. Tourism is one potential area where the entrepreneurial capabilities of the people of coastal Karnataka (Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts) have not been put into good use. Let us hope with the launch of house boat cruise here, we would see many more such developments in the future.

Regards,
Raveesh

Picture Source: www.mangalorean.com

References :
Mangalorean - Udupi: Karnataka coast gets first houseboat
Business Line - Karnataka gets Rs 6 cr for beach tourism development

Also Read,
Mangalore Beaches Series - Someshwara Beach
Mangalore Beaches Series - Kasaragod Beach

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