Pros and Cons of Houseboat Cruise in Kerala with Particular Reference to Kumarakom

Aju Mathew, Dr B. Sathiyabama and Dr N. Santhosh Kumar
Additional contact information
Aju Mathew: PG & Research Department of Commerce Maruthupandiyar college of Arts & Science, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, Affiliated to Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India.
Dr B. Sathiyabama: Department of Commerce, Govt Arts College (Autonomous), Kumbakonam, Affiliated to Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India.
Dr N. Santhosh Kumar: PG & Research Department of Commerce Maruthupandiyar college of Arts & Science, Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, Affiliated to Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India.

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, 2025, vol. 9, issue 7, 1878-1884

Abstract: This study investigates the dual impacts—economic and environmental—of houseboat tourism in Kumarakom, Kerala. Drawing on responses from 150 participants across three key stakeholder groups (local residents, tourists, and tour operators), the research examines both the benefits and challenges associated with this form of ecotourism. A structured questionnaire was employed, and data were analyzed using chi-square statistical techniques. The findings indicate that while houseboat tourism fosters job creation, community identity, and infrastructure development, it also poses significant environmental concerns such as water pollution, reduced fish yields, and invasion of local privacy. These contradictory outcomes necessitate stricter policy regulation and environmentally responsible tourism practices. This paper contributes to the discourse on sustainable tourism by offering recommendations for balancing ecological preservation with economic gain.

Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/ ... ssue-7/1878-1884.pdf (application/pdf)
https://rsisinternational.org/journals/ijriss/arti ... erence-to-kumarakom/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bcp:journl:v:9:y:2025:issue-7:p:1878-1884

Access Statistics for this article

International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science is currently edited by Dr. Nidhi Malhan

More articles in International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science from International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS)
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Dr. Pawan Verma ().