Consider the hype: God's Own Country. The surprise: It works. India is full of places that would make the mythical Eden look like a hovel. Then again Eden didn’t have Ayurveda. It probably did not have much by way of food except apples and culture beyond snake oil. Moreover, it never had a bunch of clever tourism officials who would combine its destination's charms with a superlative sell-job, helping create a fresh international destination after the jaded decades of pushing Agra, Jaipur and Khajurao. If India is Ayurveda and the improbable land of tranquility, then Kerala has reintroduced the idea to the world with its enticing healing bouquet. And in the bargain, doubled foreign tourist inflow in five years to over two lakhs a year, and maintaining a five-fold increase in business compared to the national average.

The elegant mix of herbal cures, spa tourism, beach holidays and wildlife backed by world-class marketing has led to Kerala being voted among the best destinations by the planets major publications and TV channels. Today, Kerala is mentioned in the same breath as Bali. In India, it has become a textbook example of tourism promotion. When you hear people talking about the Kerala Model, it is wise to ask if it is the path-breaking blueprint adopted for socio-economic development, or tourism; an industry even government officials openly claim is the one thing that works in the state. If Kerala's tourism growth keeps its head, it may come to mean the same things that make India proud, India Today Independence Day Special Issue, August 19, 2002