Kerala tourism 2025: Moments that made us smile

Apart from wooing travellers from across the world, Kerala's 2025 was a year filled with awards, appreciations and international attention. While a host of international influencers visited the state and said they felt safer in Kerala than the rest of the country, many non-Malayali visitors also applauded our clean trains, friendly neighbourhoods, and culture. Amid them all, certain moments, frozen in time, drew the most attention. Here we glance through a few among them. And why, despite so many other head-turners, did they win over many wanderlusters? 

The whale shark of Kappil
In early December, an 'endangered' guest, a gentle whale shark, arrived at Varkala's Kappil beach. However, surfers, fishermen, domestic and foreign tourists teamed up, keeping aside their differences, to help it return home. The images and reels of the incident went viral across the country, lauding those who took their precious time out to help the animal. After all, tourism is not just about discovering places, but also about respecting and sympathising with other beings and their ecosystems. 

The British fighter Jet in Thiruvananthapuram
In June this year, a British Royal Navy F-35B fighter jet landed at Thiruvananthapuram International Airport due to a technical failure. While initially the 'arrival' didn't win much attention, its continued 'stay' in the capital did. Department of Kerala Tourism even went on to make a viral post about it, saying the jet does not want to leave because it is in love with the state! The creative take also won some interesting responses on social media, with many 'recommending' the jet an Ayurvedic massage, sadya, and even wearing a mundu! 

Mona Lisa in Kerala sari
This year, for Onam, an international 'naadan' beauty drew more attention than any Malayali girl. Decked up in Kerala's special kasavu sari, jasmine flowers and sporting a bindi, it was Da Vinci's Mona Lisa! Thanks to the time when the Bollywood films 'Paramsundari' and 'The Kerala Story' earned notoriety for their stereotypical and erratic portrayals of Kerala women, netizens were quick to give the avatar some interesting names too. 

'Mona Lisa Unnikrishnan from Thiruvananthapuram,' taking a jab at a character in 'The Kerala Story' and'Thekkapetta Sundari Monalisa Pillai' inspired by Jhanvi Kapoor's character in 'Paramsundari' were the most suggested names. Jokes apart, the image gifted Kerala a sadya of laughter on Onam day.