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The combination of fitness and tourism brings a plethora of opportunities in today’s globalised world. As India is planning to invest more into medical tourism and become a hotspot of international wellbeing travel, one state in particular comes into limelight. Kerala’s ayurvedic tradition is vast and thriving for decades. The tourism season in Kerala, which often extends from October to march, also opens up a variety of sources for health care tourism. Kerala is one of the Indian states which has realised the opportunities of medical tourism and is heavily invested in it.

There are two major backbones of Kerala tourism. One is its extensive landscapes and backwater. And the other is its ayurvedic treatments and practices. Kerala is also a pool of highly trained medical professionals and has a good network of hospitals and health centres. More and more international travellers are taking notice of the advantages of choosing Kerala as a destination for wellness travel.

Social hurdles to medical tourism

It is important that the tourists who come in search of legitimate ayurvedic treatment does not get dissatisfied or cheated and lose the impression of our medical tourism sector. Intermittent or parallel agencies and fraudulent ayurvedic practitioners should be spotted and discouraged. The social atmosphere also plays a major role in tourism. We must take care to not let the political and religious conflicts of the state to meddle with tourists travel. Social atmosphere also includes the behaviour of residents and local people. It’s true that Kerala people have a good tradition of welcoming foreigners as our motto says it “ adhiti devo bhava”. But one should not overlook the fact that a vast majority of Indians still bears the seeds of colourism, groupism and distrust towards foreign culture, inside their heart. It does not help the fact that a good part of the population is poor people struggling to meet the ends meet. They may, as a result has more inclination to turn to cheating and fraudulent activities, have they receive the opportunity.

Scope of medical tourism in Kerala

The state sees immense scope in medical tourism in the future. Improvement in physical environment like basic amneties, infrastructures etc. can make huge results. We must not make a compromise in the standard of health care institutions and services we provide. Good standards coupled with affordable rates are the right mixture for a successful medical tourism business. Authorities should also take measures to ease the difficulties and complications of foreign travel.