45122378-Tourism

Kruti Thakkar

MBA Executive – Semester

III

Roll Number - 30009

Travel And Tourism

JANKIDEVI BAJAJ INSTITUTE

OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

Travel and Tourism

Tourism has always been a major social phenomenon of any society. It is motivated by the natural urge of every human being for new experience, adventure, education, knowledge and entertainment. In order to understand each other's cultures and values as well as to cater several other social, religious and business interests, it has resulted in development of many tourist and infrastructure facilities. This, along with the progress of proper transportation network globally, especially of airways and waterways, has encouraged people to venture out to the foreign lands. It has facilitated the trade and commerce between the different regions of a country and between the different countries. As a result, over the years, it has acquired the status of a service industry. Tourism, being one of the largest industry, plays a key role in achieving the socio-economic goals of the development plans of a nation. It is an important service-oriented sector which has made rapid strides globally in terms of gross revenue and foreign exchange earnings. It is a composite of service providers, both public and private, which includes travel agents and tour operators; air, rail and sea transportation operators; guides; owners of hotels, guest houses and inns, restaurants and shops; etc. They are involved in meeting the diverse interests and requirements of domestic and international tourists. The tourism industry provides

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incentives to foster the quality of environment, generates more employment opportunities (particularly in remote and backward areas) as well as develops necessary infrastructure facilities like roads, telecom and medical services, in the economy.

Tourism is an industry that operates on a massively broad scale. It embraces activities ranging from the smallest sea-side hotel, to air-lines, multi-national hotel chains and major international tour operators. Originally, non-traditional industries such as tourism emerged as a solution to strike a balance between ecology and industry. The tourism industry is now one of the largest sectors earning foreign exchange for the exchequer. In the face of such benefits, many countries have started assigning due weightage to the tourism industry in their national development agenda.

Tourism in India

In India, tourism industry holds special position as it not only have potential to grow at a high rate, but also stimulate other economic sectors through its backward and forward linkages and cross-sectional synergies with sectors like agriculture, horticulture, poultry, handicrafts, transport, construction, etc. That is, it can provide impetus to other industries in the country and generate enough wealth to help pay off the international debt. It is the third largest net earner of foreign exchange for the country. The travel and tourism sector contributes to the national integration; preserves natural and cultural environments; as well as enriches social and cultural lives of the people. It has the capacity to create substantial job opportunities, particularly for unskilled and semi-skilled workers as well as to alleviate the poverty in the country. That's why; it has been regarded as the core sectors of the Indian economy.

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Given India's unique endowments of biodiversity, forests, rivers, mountains, historical places, temples and pilgrims, caves, museums, monuments and culture, the industry holds immense strength for obtaining higher growth rate. The challenges in the sector lie in successfully preserving these in their original form, and making them accessible to domestic and international travelers. India offers various categories of tourism products, such as adventure tourism; medical tourism (ayurveda and other forms of Indian medications), eco-tourism; rural tourism; cruise tourism; meetings, incentives, conferences, and exhibitions (MICE) tourism; etc.

Tourism statistics

• Tourism is one of the world's fastest growing industries at present and holds the status of the world's no. 1 industry.

• The tourism industry as a whole is presently estimated to earn over US$ 3.5 trillion worldwide.

• The industry creates a job every 2.4 seconds with every one of those direct jobs creating another 11 indirect ones.

• Tourism spending amounts to 5%-10% of total consumer spending in a year worldwide.

• (India’s share of the total market is a pittance at 0.51%. The non-tourist countries like Malaysia and Indonesia get much more tourists than India.

• The average duration of stay of foreign tourist in India is one of the highest in the world. On an average, it exceeds 27 days in the case of non-package tourists and is 14 days in the case of package tourists.

• Tourism has the distinction of being the third largest export industry after gems and jewellery and readymade garments in India.

• The Tourism industry's foreign exchange earnings in India are around $3.2 billion. Tourism is the highest foreign exchange earner if we consider the fact that net value addition in Gems and jewellery is less than 30 % whereas, in tourism it is more than 90 %.

• It also has one of the best employment multipliers when compared with any other industry in India. It generates maximum job opportunities, as it provides direct employment to 9.1 million people and indirect employment to another 12.4 million.

Key numbers:

• From 1950 to 2005, international tourism arrivals expanded at an annual rate of

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6.5%, growing from 25 million to 806 million travelers.

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• The income generated by these arrivals grew at an even stronger rate

reaching

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11.2% during the same period, outgrowing the world economy, reaching around

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US$ 680 billion in 2005.

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• While in 1950 the top 15 destinations absorbed 88% of international

arrivals, in

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1970 the proportion was 75% and decreased to 57% in 2005, reflecting the

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emergence of new destinations, many of them in developing countries.

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Current developments & forecasts:

• Worldwide arrivals reached 842 million in 2006, representing a 4.6% year on

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year growth.

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•

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2007 looks set to be the fourth consecutive year of sustained growth for a

global tourism industry that continues to show its resilience to any natural or

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man-made crises.

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• UNWTO predicts a 4% growth of international tourist arrivals in 2007, in

line

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with its long-term forecast growth rate through to 2020 of 4.1%.

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• By 2020 international arrivals are expected to surpass 1.5 billion people.

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Average le ngth of stay in the country

Government Initiatives

Ministry of Tourism

It acts as the nodal agency for the development and promotion of tourism in the country. It plays a crucial role in formulating national policies and program as well as coordinating and supplementing the efforts of the State/Union Territory Governments and private sector in improving the quality of tourism infrastructure. It catalyzes private investment, strengthens promotional and marketing efforts and helps in providing trained manpower resources. As regards the domestic market, the Ministry aims to popularize the culture and natural beauty of different regions, pilgrim sites and various new tourism products.

Some of the examples for development and promotion in tourism are:

Country DaysIndia 31.2Brazil 13.0Spain 12.9Japan 8.80Thailand 8.4France 7.31Malaysia 5.50Canada 5.22Hong Kong 3.38China 3.38Singapore 2.60

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Rajasthan-The Land of the Kings

Rajasthan, the Land of the Kings, is India at its exotic and colourful best. It is the home of the Rajputs, a group of warrior clans who have controlled this part of India for 1000 years according to a code of chivalry and honour akin to that followed by medieval Europe's knights. Although the fortunes of its former rulers may be in tatters, the culture of Rajasthan, with its battle-scarred forts, amazing palaces, riotous colours and sense of gallantry, is still very much alive.

The harsh Rajasthani landscape and tribal customs have fashioned a people and culture which are visibly different from those found in the rest of India - from the huge, pastel-coloured turbans and soup-strainer moustaches sported by the men to the bright mirrored skirts and chunky silver jewellery of the women. They have also endowed the state with a magical air of romance, speckled with desert forts, lush oases, and exotic cities that rise out of the landscape like shimmering backdrops to Tales of the Arabian Nights. No-one visits Rajasthan without taking home superb memories, a parcel of folk art and a lot of sand. Though these resources are there, so what? They are also present in other states like Madhya Pradesh. Then what is different for Rajasthan?

Before deciding what to offer to the international tourist, a state should first find out that what is it that this tourist wants? Rajasthan seems to have found an answer to it and thus has become a favoured destination of tourists.What Rajasthan offers is not a mere site-seeing tour like any other historically significant place, but treats the tourists to an experience of times bygone. It may be a ride aboard 'Palace on Wheels' or a stay in any of the Heritage hotels strewn across the state, for the right price Rajasthan makes you feel royal. This has not been any easy task to accomplish. The combined efforts of the public and the state government have made it possible for desert state to triumphantly march in the country's otherwise funereal tourism scenario. of tourism, 30 other operating heritage properties and 12 are in the planning stages. And as many as 56 properties have expressed interest in offering

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themselves for the heritage status.

Kerala – God’s own Country

Any mention about Kerala, conjures in one’s mind, an image of pristine backwaters, palm fringed beaches, tranquil villages and greenery in profusion. God has generously bestowed this land with the bounties of nature and so it only seems natural when Kerala is referred to, as God’s own country.

A much sought-after destination for tourists in India and abroad, Kerala is named as one of the ‘Ten Paradises of the World’ and ‘Fifty Places of a Lifetime’ by the National Geographic Traveler Magazine. The alluring serenity of this place leaves every tourist spell bound, making them come back after year

Be it the sun-kissed beaches or the misty hill stations; the rhythmic backwaters or the forestlands rich with all varieties of flora and fauna; pilgrim centers or historic monuments; Kerala has everything you might travel far and wide to see.

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Example for neglected state for development and promotion is:

Sikkim- Small but Beautiful

Sikkim the tiny Himalayan state and one of the smallest of the Indian union has the potential of becoming a large tourist attraction. Nestled in the magnificent Himalayas this state has nature at its most beautiful. In addition, the untouched air of this state takes one back to the time when man and nature coexisted harmoniously. The pure air and clean water does wonders for one's senses. Everywhere one marvels at sites of a spring stream orchard bloom. Despite being endowed with virgin resources, which could turn it into a major international destination for special kinds of high-value tourism, the state remains in the backwoods of such activities. The tourism in the state is virtually absent, the reasons sited by the office bearers are -the security-oriented approach of the centre, which virtually throttled the development of the state, is tourism. To visit this state one has to go through number of clearances and if one is a foreign national then this number increases exponentially. But this seems to be a silly excuse by the government to hide its inefficiencies. The infrastructure in the state is so poor that the even locals would not rely on them. Basic facilities like roads are absent. Whatever the reasons this jewel of the Himalayas lays wasted when India is crying out for international tourists.

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The Ministry has a public sector undertaking, namely the

• India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC)The main objectives of the Corporation are:

o To construct, take over and manage existing hotels and market hotels, Beach Resorts,

o Travelers’ Lodges/Restaurants;o To provide transport, entertainment, shopping and conventional

services;o To produce, distribute, tourist publicity material;o To render consultancy-cum-managerial services in India and abroad;o To carry on the business as Full-Fledged Money Changers (FFMC),

restricted moneyo changers etc; ando To provide innovating, dependable and value for money solutions to

the needs of tourism development and engineering industry including providing consultancy and project implementation.

• Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM)Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management (IITTM), an

autonomous organization of the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, is one of the premier institutes in the country offering education, training, research and consultancy in sustainable management of tourism, travel and other allied sectors.

• National Institute of Water Sports (NIWS)The National Institute of Watersports (NIWS) has been setup by the Ministry of Tourism as an ‘apex’ institute of training, education, consultancy and research to usher in an era of leisure-watersporting segment in the country.

• National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT)National Council for Hotel Management and Catering Technology and its

affiliated Institutes constantly endeavor to impart Hospitality, knowledge, skills, concepts and techniques in the right environment for the students to learn and emerge as global Hospitality Service providers.

• Institutes of Hotel Management (IHM).

The Ministry has been undertaking several policy measures and incentives so as to boost growth of the sector and attract the investors the world over. The most important being the,

National Tourism Policy

Formulated in the year 2002, it aims to develop tourism in India in a systematic manner. It envisages a framework, within which the Government helps to create the basic infrastructure and legislative set up for tourism development, while the private sector helps to provide the quality products and offer active support services. The broad objectives of the policy are to:-

• Position tourism as a major engine of economic growth.

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• Harness the direct and multiplier effects of tourism for employment generation, economic development and providing impetus to rural tourism.• Focus on domestic tourism as a major driver of tourism growth.• Position India as a global brand to take advantage of the burgeoning global travel trade and the vast untapped potential of India as a destination.• Acknowledge the critical role of private sector with Government working as a pro-active facilitator and catalyst.• Create and develop integrated tourism circuits based on India’s unique civilization, heritage and culture in partnership with States, private sector and other agencies. • Ensure that the tourists to India gets physically invigorated, mentally rejuvenated, culturally enriched, spiritually elevated and 'feel India from within'.

With these objectives, the Ministry of Tourism has been broadly implementing/ implemented the following schemes/programs.

• Scheme for Product/ Infrastructure Development and Destination and Circuits

• Scheme for Integrated Development of Tourist Circuit• Scheme of Assistance for Large Revenue Generating (LRG) Projects• Scheme of Capacity Building for Service Providers (CBSP)• Scheme of Rural Tourism• Scheme of Financial Assistance to States for Organization Tourism

Related Events• Scheme of Central Financial Assistance for Information Technology (IT)

Projects• Scheme for Support to Public Private Partnership in Infrastructure

Development (Viability Gap Funding)• Scheme of Market Development Assistance (MDA)• Capital Subsidy• Time Share Resorts (TSR)• Market Research- Professional Services

Besides, the Ministry has been running a scheme of

National Tourism Awards

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It is given to various segments of the travel and tourism industry every year. These awards are presented to State Governments, classified hotels, heritage hotels, approved travel agents, tour operators and tourist transport operators, individuals and other private organizations in recognition of their performances in their respective fields. For instance, awards for best adventure tour operator, best domestic tour operator, most innovative tour operator, best MICE operator, and best tourist transport operator, best hotels in the different categories, etc. Awards are also given to the meritorious students of the Institutes of Hotel Management as well as Indian Institute of Tourism and Travel Management. The selection of the awardees has been made by the Committees constituted for the purpose. The decision of the Ministry is final and binding.

'Incredible lndia' campaign

There has been a remarkable growth, in the recent years, in foreign tourist arrivals to India due to the various efforts made by the Ministry, including promoting India through the 'Incredible lndia' campaign in overseas markets. Incredible India is a multi-pronged promotional campaign launched by the Ministry in order to position the country as a preferred tourist destination for the travelers the world over. As a result of all such efforts, India's share in international tourist arrivals, which was 0.34 per cent in 2002, has increased to 0.49 per cent during 2005. The foreign tourist arrivals have increased by about 65 per cent from a level of 2.38 million in 2002 to 3.92 million in 2005. In the year 2006, it has risen to 4.43 million, registering an impressive increase of around 13 per cent. Similarly, the foreign exchange earnings from tourism have also shown a phenomenal growth from US$

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5730.86 million in 2005 to US$ 6569.34 million in 2006, achieving an increase of 14.6 per cent.

World Tourism Organization (WTO)

According to the WTO, in the year 2005, about 808 million tourists traveled internationally (registered a growth of 5.6 per cent over 2004) and the tourism receipts have been about US$ 682 billion.

To give recognition to tourism as a source of income and employment generator in the economy, a 'Tourism Satellite Accounting (TSA)' has been developed. TSA enables the Ministry to quantify the benefits of tourism in terms of contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) and employment (both direct and indirect impacts). India is among the few countries in the world to develop TSA. As per the TSA study, the contribution of tourism in GDP of the country has been 5.90 per cent in 2003-04, while employment in tourism sector (both direct and indirect) has been 41.8 million in the same year, thus accounting for 8.78 per cent of total employment in the country.

WTO is the forum for business leaders in the travel and tourism industry. It addresses challenges and opportunities that affect all sectors of the industry globally. It works to raise awareness of travel and tourism as one of the world's largest industries, employing approximately 231 million people and generating over 10.4 per cent of world GDP. It is firmly committed to realizing Indian tourism industry's potential for growth and ensuring maximum and sustainable benefits for everyone involved. According to the WTTC, tourism accounted for 10.6 per cent of global GDP, 12.0 per cent of the total world exports and 8.3 per cent of global employment in the year 2005. For 2006, it forecasted that travel and tourism would generate 234 million direct and indirect jobs worldwide, accounting for 8.7 per cent of global employment, and contribute up to 10.3 per cent of global GDP. According to the same estimate, the global travel and tourism activity is expected to increase by 4.7 per cent between 2007 and 2016. Thus, Indian travel and tourism industry has been on rise and is gaining popularity amongst travelers all over the world. It is an engine of growth for Indian economy and helps to promote sustained development of infrastructure, such as airports, railways and roads, leading to connectivity of various tourist destinations. Besides, improvement and expansion of existing and new tourism products such as cultural and heritage tourism, rural tourism, adventure tourism, health and healing tourism, etc; promotion of 'Incredible India' campaigns; as well as active participation of State Governments therein establishes India's competitive advantage in the sector. This has enhanced the foreign exchange earnings of the country as well as

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improved its trade relations with other nations. All such measures and incentives, undertaken by public and private sectors, are a source of several investment opportunities in the industry.

World Tourism Day

The institution of so-called world days to highlight among government and private circles and the public at large, salient features of the activities of intergovernmental organizations, is a widespread practice.

Each year, the organizations belonging to the United Nations System, for example, celebrate world days devoted to the United Nations; world peace; human rights; health; literacy; environment; womanhood; childhood; cooperation for development; meteorology; telecommunications, etc. Establishment of the World Tourism Day

It was at its third session (Torremolinos, Spain, September 1979), that the General Assembly of the World Tourism Organization (UNUNWTO) decided to institute, commencing in the year 1980. WORLD TOURISM DAY is to be commemorated on 27 September each year by appropriate events on themes selected by the General Assembly, on recommendation of UNWTO's Executive Council. This date was chosen to coincide with an important milestone in world tourism: the anniversary of the adoption of the UNWTO Statutes on 27 September 1970.

The main purpose of World Tourism Day is to foster awareness among the international community of the importance of tourism and its social, cultural, political and economic values.

The timing of World Tourism Day is indeed particularly appropriate in that it comes at the end of the high season in the northern hemisphere and the beginning of the season in the southern hemisphere, when tourism is of topical interest to hundreds of thousands of people worldwide from all walks of life and to tourists and the operational sector in particular.

The Organization invites all interested parties to take part on 27 September each year in the special celebrations taking place in their respective country or holiday destination. The UNWTO Secretary-General issues a message each year to mark the occasion

Steps taken to make India - a tourist attraction

1. To provide for the safety and security of tourists, Andhra Pradesh, Goa, Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir, Rajasthan, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi have deployed trained and motivated police force at tourist places. The Centre has taken up with state governments the issue of enactment of a Tourist Trade Act, to conserve and preserve tourist areas and for the approval of persons/agencies/institutions dealing with travel and tourism trade offering quality services. Revised guidelines for tourist guides, travel agents, tour operators and tourist transport operators have been issued to prevent harassment of tourists.

2. Hotel management and catering education programs assume special importance in view of the modernization and expansion of the country’s hospitality industry.

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Currently, there are 24 Institutes of Hotel Management and six Food Craft Institutes which follow the curriculum of the National Council of Hotel Management and Catering Technology (NCHMCT). The Indian Institute of Travel and Tourism Management (IITTM at Gwalior caters to the requirement of professionals in the travel and tourism sector.

The National Institute of Water Sports at Goa and the Indian Institute of Skiing andMountaineering at Gulmarg are premier institutes meeting the needs for upgrading the skills of service providers in adventure and water sports. In order to break new ground in culinary arts, the Ministry of Tourism is setting up an Advanced Institute of Culinary Arts as a joint venture with private academic institutions.

3. A new scheme on Capacity Building for Service Providers, launched in the TenthPlan, provides training, through one to five day modules, to persons who are working in the unorganized sectors, and others who come into contact with a large number of tourists, like those working in small hotels, roadside eating places, dhabas, ticketing agents, travel agencies, police personnel etc. The training covers cooking techniques, basic nutrition values, nutrition preservation, etiquette, basic tourism awareness, communication skills, behaviour skills, first aid and also energy conservation. The scheme has provided the basic framework for a countrywide training program in human resource development for various groups of service providers in the tourism industry.

4. The major beneficiaries of tourism development are private sector agencies like tour operators, hotels, transport operators, restaurants etc. There is need for higher levels of participation by the private sector in all stages of tourism development. The Ministry of Tourism has issued guidelines for the privatization of assets created with Central financial assistance like accommodation units, wayside amenities etc for better management and maintenance. The Ministry has also introduced a scheme for private participation in revenue generating projects with 25 percent equity from the government. The scheme of the Ministry of Finance for viability gap funding for supporting public-private partnerships in infrastructure covers, inter alias, support for convention centers. The feasibility of covering budget hotel accommodation under the scheme is being considered.

5. It is evident from the increased activity in the development of hotels and resorts along the wildlife circuits that the tourism sector is responding to the increasing demand for ecotourism. India has a significant number of wildlife sanctuaries and national parks and they provide a great opportunity for expanding the tourism market. The Ministry of Tourism formulated a policy on eco-tourism in 1998 involving a selective approach, scientific planning, effective control and continuous monitoring. The cardinal principles of the policy are:

o Involve the local community in tourism activities.o Identify and attempt to minimize the likely conflicts between use of resources

for tourism and livelihood of local inhabitants.o The form and scale of tourism development should be in harmony with the

environment and socio-cultural characteristics of the local communityo It should be planned as a part of the overall area development strategy,

guided by an integrated land-use plan and be associated with commensurate expansion of public services.

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6. Operational guidelines for the implementation of the policy by the states and the tourism trade are also in place. The Central government has also set up a National Committee on Eco-Tourism and Mountains to work out details of managing the fragile ecosystem and to consider programs for development of eco-tourism in the country.

The Committee needs to give priority to the eco-systems, which are coming under pressure from growing population and nature-related factors like lower rainfall

7. Health tourism is another area with a high potential for growth. Health tourism is non-seasonal and the average length of stay of a person is long, depending upon the medical procedure involved. The low cost of medical treatment, high level of expertise and varied systems of medicine of India are factors that can lead to an increasing share of health tourists in the total tourist arrivals. The southern states, especially Kerala, have developed health tourism as one of the products for promotion of tourism.

8. The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) looks after the heritage sites that are major tourist attractions. For the integrated development of heritage sites, the Ministry of tourism has taken up a large number of projects during the Tenth Plan period involving upgrading of facilities in the most popular sites in close co-ordination with the ASI. Action plans are being formulated with the active involvement of state governments for developing popular heritage sites outside the purview of the ASI through public-private partnerships. Public sector and private sector organizations are being encouraged to adopt some of the well-known heritage sites under the ASI for maintenance under the National Cultural Fund ASI levies entry charges to each heritage site. In order to make lesser-known heritage sites also attractive in region, a scheme should be introduced to facilitate tourists to visit the maximum number of heritage sites with concessional entry chargesSome of the steps are as follows.

o Reduction in Entry Fee and Passenger Tax for Monumentso Over 17,000 additional international air seat capacity.o Maximizing use of Information Technology For Promotiono Touch Screen Information Kiosks.o Up-gradation of Domestic Airlines, better services and increased frequencyo Communication revolution.o Increase Hotel Rooms to 1,25,000 by 2002.o More budget for Overseas Marketing Being Restored.o More Efficient Immigration.o Faster Processing of Visa By Indian Missionso Visa on Arrival

Initiatives by private sector

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Apart from the Govt. players there are private, tour operators and . We have taken the case of an online tour operator, Indian-visit.com; its profile is as follows:

Indian-visit.com - Presenting India in a Way Never Seen BeforeIndian-visit.com is a part of Indian Holiday Pvt. Ltd. (earlier known as

TRAFFORD TOURS & TRAVELS), a proactive travel organization in Indian tourism industry for the last 10 years. They are a professionally managed closely held agency and management control is vested with the first generation promoter entrepreneurs. Transaction level operations are executed by a team of professionally qualified professionals, who are well versed with the complexities of Travel & Tourism Trade. Their guest service team has a cumulative experience of 100 man-years in tourism industry. The team is well aware and equipped to cater to requirements of various market segments and understands the nuances of tourism in India.

Services Tours:They have been operating a variety of tours for their Groups and

Individual tourists and have been able to mastermind their tours with great deal of efficiency. The company specializes in inbound tours and offers a host of tourism related services to inbound tourists in the India and neighboring countries like Nepal, Bhutan, Tibet, and Srilanka. Various tours they offer are as below.

o Tailor-made packageso Cultural tourso Adventure tourso Religious tourso Yoga & meditation tourso Rejuvenation & Ayurveda tourso Safariso Special interest tours, conferences, incentives and much more

Hotel Booking: Individual or group booking in any hotel of any category and in

any part of Indian subcontinent can be provided instantly. Owing to their very good connections with the hotels in almost every part of the country, they are always in a position to offer very lucrative discounted rates to their clients. Enter their hotel query form and just let them know the name of city and category of hotel and wait for sometime. Their professionals will get back to you in no time with a number of suitable options. Air Booking:

Their exceptionally good relations with the Domestic and International Airlines enable them to come up with very good discounts for their clients. Their online reservation system - Abacus helps us in confirming the bookings instantly even in the very busy sectors. Itinerary Planning and Tailor Made Holiday:

Indian-visit has long been helping their guests with necessary arrangements in many exciting programs. Just tell them the time of arrival & departure, the total duration of travel and your approximate budget. Rest all leave to them. Transport:

They have a large fleet of cars / coaches at their disposal, and

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having the fleet itself is not enough, they need to see that they use best transport for their clients, and provide them a good value for their money; hence they have maintained a separate department taking care of all their transport requirements.

Other Services:School and college group tours:

College and school group tours are probably the most difficult one to handle as the young boys and girls expect and demand far more from their traveling experience than other travelers and they have and an insatiable appetite for enjoyment. Even a small problem in the tour can dampen their enthusiasm or can drive them crazy so everything has to be absolutely perfect for such tours. Their meticulously planned and well executed tours have won a number of young friends for them.City sightseeing and tour excursions:

They can arrange city sight seeing tours for individual / group traveler in any of the tourist destination. The city tour can be provided in an a/c and non a/c car or coach. A four hour half day trip would not give the tourist short exposure, to the city and a full day city tour is there if they have more than 04 hours to spare. Beat area of all the cities are covered with a variety of excursions, all organized in such a way that they start in the morning and after an experience to remember, they would come back to the place where they started from, in the evening. Limousine/luxury car/ coach services:

They always have a large fleet of cars and coaches at their disposal and can provide the same at any part of the subcontinent for sightseeing tours, for airport transfers or for any such purpose. The operations of their Transport department are incredibly swift and silky smooth - thanks to the large and luxurious fleet of air- conditioned, well trained and dressed chauffeur driven cars and coaches at its disposal. Their quality control concept allows us to not to use more than 03 years old cars / coaches on longer drives. Their chauffeurs are well aware of the basic ethics of the travel trade and hospitality industry thus a personalized service to all the valued guests is guaranteed, even if they are traveling only along with the chauffeur.Multilingual Guides & Professional Experts:

Sight seeing without guides serves no purpose and can just be a dull and boring experience. They provide guides who with their eloquence and immense knowledge about the city and the monuments make the sightseeing a gratifying, memorable and enjoyable experience. They provide not only the English speaking guides but also arrange the guides who speak French, German, Italian, Japanese or Spanish etc on prior request. On special request, the professional escort from the company accompanies the guests during the entire tour at a very nominal

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cost and help in making their trip all the more interesting, comfortable and entertaining. An accompanying escort would not only ensure the smooth movement of tours, but with his / her vivacity would add to the enjoyment and would keep on appraising the tourist with the inner and deep beliefs of the local residents. Discounted Tours:

Indian-visit.com your complete travel guide to the incredible land of India offers tours at the lowest discounted expenses. Opt for any of the discounted tours presented to you and end up saving while you spend. Besides the discounted tours are the special packages and custom-tailored tours are available for various tourist destinations they provide services including accommodations, sightseeing tours, optional excursions, guides and personal drivers, ground transportation, package tours, combined in the discounted package tours and low transportation charges. The accommodation on the discounted tour will be of the tourist’s choice and as per their budget.

Why Tourism?

Tourism – an Economic and Social PhenomenonOver the decades, tourism has experienced continued growth and deepening

diversification to become one of the fastest growing economic sectors in the world.

Modern tourism is closely linked to development and encompasses growing number

of new destinations. These dynamics have turned tourism into a key driver for socio-

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economic progress.

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Today, the business volume of tourism equals or even surpasses that of oil exports,

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food products or automobiles. Tourism has become one of the major players in

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international commerce, and represents at the same time one of the main income

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sources for many developing countries. This growth goes hand in hand with a

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increasing diversification and competition among destinations. This global spread of tourism in industrialized and developed states has produced

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economic and employment benefits in many related sectors - from construction to

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agriculture or telecommunications.

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The contribution of tourism to economic well-being depends on the quality and the

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revenues of the tourism offer. UNWTO assists destinations in their sustainable

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positioning in ever more complex national and international markets. As the UN agency

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dedicated to tourism, UNWTO points out that particularly developing countries stand to

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benefit from sustainable tourism and acts to help make this a reality. Tourism is one of the most important forces shaping our world. Economically, tourism is a provider of foreign exchange and employment. Developing countries are encouraged to use it as a means of economic development which inflicts less damage than extractive industries & is less costly in terms of infrastructure & investment than industrialization. Tourism offers social, cultural and environmental benefits which also add to its allure. Tourism contributes to the well-being of tourists by giving restorative holidays. Tourism contributes to

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the preservation of cultures at a time when globalization causes cultural homogenization. Ecotourism has shown that tourism can help restore or conserve environments. It is a force promoting peace and understanding between peoples and societies. Despite this diversity of positive impacts there is a tendency to focus on the economic and business domains, a process which severely restricts its capacity to contribute in these other valuable areas. Tourism has succumbed to “marketization” accompanying the emergence of “neoliberal” values in the global community. As a result of this, tourism industry leaders are able to harness tourism’s opportunities for their own private wealth accumulation and commandeer scarce community resources for their purposes, tourism’s full potential is ignored and its promise of many powerful benefits for humanity remains unfulfilled. This paper is an effort to remind those concerned with tourism that it is much more than just an “industry”; it is a social force which, if freed from the fetters of “market ideology,” can achieve aims vital to all humanity.

S.L.E.P.T. Analysis of the Tourism Industry in India:

Social: Tourism was always looked upon as something that led to the

destruction of the social fabric of a place. The more the amount of outside people coming into a place, the more the perceived risk of that place losing its identity. A good example is Goa. From the late 60's to the early 80's when the Hippy culture was at its height, Goa was a haven for such hippies. Here they came in thousands and changed the whole culture of the state. This had a ripple effect on the country. People became cautious, especially of the international tourists. Whenever a certain place became famous, the example of Goa was cited to discourage the inflow of international tourists.

However some places such as Kerala and Rajasthan have been able to strike a balance between their own culture and the demands of the international tourists and have profited handsomely in the bargain. People are now adopting themselves to the fact that tourism pays and it can be a major source of income for them.

In addition, tourism as a form of recreation has really caught on. People themselves have started traveling and are willing to travel to a place that is out of the way and exotic. While traditionally traveling on a holiday meant going to a hill station or a beach, now people are willing to go in for adventure tourism and also visit places that might be exotic and cannot really be called hospitable. For example, now places like Leh and Lakshwadeep are mentioned in the same breath as Goa or Kashmir.

Legal: The laws that govern the industry are not the same in all the parts of

the country. Many of the laws that are in effect are old and archaic, and not geared to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

With respect to taxation, the World Travel and Tourism Council has observed that“Tax paid by tourists in India is the highest in the world. Indian hotels charge

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about 40% tax compared to other Asian countries where it varies between 3% and 6%". Such high taxation renders the tourism sector as a whole uncompetitive. Further, there is considerable disparity between state level taxes, especially on food and beverages. In fact, the sales tax on imported beverages varies widely, e.g. 63% in Karnataka to 28.75% in West Bengal.

With respect to Foreign Investment in any tourism related venture, clearance must be obtained from the Central government (RBI or Foreign Investment Promotion Board). 51% foreign equity is automatically approved subject to meeting certain prescribed criteria, including having a capital base proposal below US $143 million (Rs. 6 billion). In the case of NRIs, 100% foreign equity is automatically approved. Foreign equity holding above 51 percent are possible, but are subject to FIPB approval. It is to be noted that the Ministry of Industry provides final clearance of FIPB approvals. Dividends on such investments are reparable.

The National Policy on Tourism lays emphasis on sustainable development of tourism. In accordance, the Government has brought out a comprehensive Eco Tourism Policy and Guidelines. There are several Acts and laws, which ensure sustainable tourism. These are the Wild Life Protection Act 1972, the Environment (Protection) Act 1986, and Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1986. These do not set aside any specific area for tourism, but such areas have to be identified by the State Governments and obtain the required approvals/relaxations.

Eco-tourism policies and Guidelines have been formulated by the Government in consultation with the industry and are being implemented on a voluntary basis.

Economic: The tourism industry not unlike the other industries grows with the

increase in the spending of the people. The more the people spend the more the industry grows. The spending power of the people has been increasing in the country and all over the world. Since we are concentrating on the international tourists, the large increase in the spending power in most developed countries has left a large amount of idle cash in their hands. This has led to a tourism boom the world over and India has been no exception. There have been more people coming into the country with more cash than ever before. This has lead to an increase in the demand for better hotels. People who previously used to come to the country on a shoestring budget and hunt around for the cheapest accommodation can now afford to go in for luxury hotels. This has led to an increase in the number of hotels in the country. However, an increase in spending does not only limit itself to accommodation. The increase in the spending is also evident in the increase in the number of people traveling by air. Even the number domestic tourists traveling by air has dramatically gone up.

Political: The political factors are the main driving force of the industry. The

Indian tourism industry is built on the backbone of Government support and the industry cannot sustain itself without it. The various archaeological sites and the places of historical importance, the roads and the railways are all in

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the hands of the Government. All the support services like the hotel industry, the airlines industry and the tourist operators to name some are heavily dependent on the support and the cooperation of the Government.

The major reason as to why tourists visit India is for the vast and rich heritage that our country has. That is under the control of the Government, through the Archaeological Survey of India. Any policy change that comes into force can have dramatic effect on the way the industry players perform. For example, the Government charges high rates of taxes on the luxury and the star category hotels and this has always been a cause of disagreement between the hotel associations and the Government. There are many areas where the growth of tourism has not been rapid or has seen dramatic fall because the political environment has not been conducive. Examples are the North East for the former and Kashmir for the latter. The neglect of the Government in developing the North-East has led to a situation where there is practically no tourism in the seven states.

Similarly, the political turmoil in the state of Kashmir and now in Gujarat has caused a virtual decimation of the flourishing tourism industry. However, there has been a change in many of the policies of the Government with regard to the tourism industry. The hotel industry has been getting many incentives and many State Governments are encouraging the growth of major hotels in their states. After years of tight control over airport infrastructure, Government has finally taken the decision to privatize the airports.

Technological: Although technology does not seem to be a major influence at first

glance, it plays a major part in the promotion of a place. Better communication facilities are one of the first prerequisites for growth in the inflow of tourists. This has been made possible with technology. Improved technology in the field of communication at cheaper costs has resulted in many remote and inaccessible areas of the country getting connected to the rest of the world. This connectivity has made these places visible to the world. Better communication means access to media. And that is very important if any place wants to be on the world tourist map. Similarly better transportation facilities have lead to a dramatic increase in the number of tourists visiting any particular place. The presence of an airport and the availability of frequent flights are a great convenience to any traveler.

SWOT Analysis of Tourism Industry in India:

STRENGTHS• India's geographical location, a culmination of deserts, forests,

mountains, and beaches.• Diversity of culture i.e. a blend of various civilizations and their

traditions.• A wealth of archeological sites and historical monuments. • Manpower costs in the Indian hotel industry are one of the lowest in

the world. This provides better margins for the industry. • A very wide variety of hotels is present in the country that can fulfill

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the demand of the tourists. There are international players in the market such as Taj and Oberoi. Thus, the needs of the international tourists and travelers are seen to while they are on a visit to India.

WEAKNESSES• Lack of adequate infrastructure. The airlines in India, for example, are

inefficient and do not provide basic facilities at airports. The road condition in India is very bad.

• A xenophobic attitude among certain sections of people. • No proper marketing of India's tourism abroad. Foreigners still think of

India as a land of snake charmers. There are many places where the image of India is one of poverty, superstition, and diseases. E.g. the case of Plague in Surat in 1994 led to a decrease of 36% in arrival of foreign tourists in India.

OPPORTUNITIES • More proactive role from the government of India in terms of framing

policies.• Allowing entry of more multinational companies into the country giving

us a global perspective. • Growth of domestic tourism. The advantage here is that domestic

tourism and international tourism can be segregated easily owing to the difference in the period of holidays.

THREATS• Economic conditions and political turmoil in other countries affects

tourism.• Political turbulence within India in Kashmir and Gujarat has also

reduced tourist traffic. • Aggressive strategies adopted by other countries like Australia,

Singapore in promoting tourism.

KEY POSITIVES

• India as a tourist destination - With 20% compounded growth in foreign tourist arrivals over the last four years, India continues to be a hot tourist destination. Though India accounts for a fraction of global tourist flows currently, the country is expected to increase its market share over the long-term. The recognition of tourism as an industry in the recent past has paved the way for increased competition. This, we believe, is likely to shape industry fortunes for the better.

• Infrastructure development - The road development project along with other aspects like airport modernization and port development is likely to result in increased economic activity. With air tariffs also falling steeply owing to increased competition, the tourism sector is expected to witness increased inflow of foreign tourists, higher inbound tourist flow and development of new tourist destinations within the country.

• New segments - Sensing the enormous potential, new segments have emerged in the country. Budget hotels, service apartments, mid-

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market segments have started gaining importance. Further, people are also visiting the country for medical tourism, wild life, spa and other non-work purposes.

KEY NEGATIVES• High cost of air travel - The inadequate number of international flights

allowed into the country in the bilateral Civil aviation agreements put a constraint on the availability of air seats for international tourists and leads to an increase in the air fares compared to fares for other destinations. For the last two years, an open skies policy has been declared on an ad hoc basis in the five winter months in order to make more seats available for the traditional rush season. However, there is not an adequate response since airlines are not able to plan addition to capacity on a long-term basis. In order to make India a major tourist destination, facilities and services at airports, which have been rated by tourists as between poor and average, are to be improved. Presently, Indian airports lag behind in international standards in many aspects. Domestic air travel is also expensive compared to neighbouring countries. Central excise duty and high rate of state sales tax - average 25 percent - on aviation turbine fuel (ATF) constitute 30 percent of operating cost of domestic flights in India.

• Getting expensive - The room rates on account of demand supply mismatch continued to touch new highs. This resulted in a drop in occupancy rates. Also, India compared to its Asian peers looked expensive as a tourist destination. As a result of the high room rates in branded hotels, unregulated, unorganized hotels and guesthouses segments have emerged, thus increasing competition.

• Regional hubs developing - As mentioned above, though India has the potential, in the tourism sector, competition is more global. The rapid growth of China, select South East Asian countries and the pace of development in the Middle East could affect India in terms of its ability to attract tourists into the country..

• Susceptible to geo-political events - Since tourism is a global phenomenon, any adverse developments on the geo-political front are likely to impact global tourist flows. India is no exception to the same, as was evident during events like September 11, Iraq war and SARS.

Types of tourismThere are a number or emerging dimensions of tourism. These include:

Medical Tourism:

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Indian tourism is aiming to promote its allopathic treatment as a tourist attraction. Medical tourism tends to provide world-class treatment at low price and is gaining worldwide acceptance. Doctors and other medical experts are organizing health camps and other general awareness programs. The vast array of health care services includes ayurveda, yoga, naturopathy, meditation, spas and many more.

Spiritual Tourism:

India has a rich heritage of cultures and religions. Hinduism, Buddhism, Christianity, Islam, Jainism have lived here for centuries. There is so much mental pressure and disturbance all over the world that people are looking forward to find solace. India is being represented as a destination for spiritual tourism. Spiritual tourism includes all the religions, religious places associated with them, and emotional attachment and beliefs attached to these centers. Thus, through religious tourism there is a sincere effort to bring better understanding among various communities, nations and thus foster global unity.

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Rural Tourism:

Real India is rural India. Almost 74% of the population is in rural areas. For the development of rural India, government is promoting rural tourism. Rural tourism showcases the rural life in India, the art, culture and heritage, the nature and wild life and various other aspects of rural India. The rural India has a great potential to attract foreign tourists. The rural tourism helps in improving lives of rural people and maintaining the quality of environment.

Adventurous Tourism:

India is an incredible destination for adventures. The snow capped Himalayas, erratic streams, safaris, etc all add to its natural glory. Water sports, elephant safari, mountaineering, skiing, gliding, trekking, river rafting, etc are breath-taking opportunities for adventurous people. Ladakh, the Garwal hills, the Himachal hills, Darjeeling, Goa, Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, are some of the places that offer adventure tourism.

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MICE Tourism:

MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) are associated with business travelers. It caters to various forms of business meetings, international conferences and conventions, events and exhibitions. India is gaining pace to become an ideal MICE destination due to the flourishing business here. The MICE industry converts the annual business meetings and conferences into a glamorous and enjoyable event for the delegates and attendants. To develop business tourism in India, some renowned MICE centers are already established. The Ashok (New Delhi), Hyderabad International Convention Centre (Hyderabad), Le Meridien (Cochin), Delhi International Expo Centre (Noida) are some of them.

Eco Tourism:

People are visiting India to unravel the secrets of nature. Eco tourism (also known as nature tourism) relates to nature and its attractiveness so that the visitors experience it in its pristine settings. Eco tourism attracts domestic as well as international tourists towards the magnificent ancient cities, hill stations, remote villages, desert areas and wildlife centuries and parks in India. It is the fastest growing sector of Indian tourism comprising 40 to 60 per cent of all international tourism.

India, the land of geographical varieties offers several tourist destinations

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that not just de-stress but also rejuvenate you. There are several ways to enjoy Mother Nature in most pristine way. There are series of eco tours for India that provide the coolest hangouts to take pleasure in indulging oneself into the God gifted environs.

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Holiday s in India:

What does a holiday in India symbolizes? This is a question that every traveler to this vast subcontinent of human beings, dust, chaos, and religion asks himself at least once. For many of them India is the exotic orient where you can find only the snake charmers or sadhus. For few who have gone through contemporary literature on the country, India is an organized chaos (as described one of the renowned writers and sociologists). For the ones who have seen the exploitations of Indian expats in Silicon Valley might consider the country as a future hub of knowledge economy.

For a quintessential vacationer in India, the country presents itself in the plethora of colors, hues, and shapes. With its inexhaustible range of culture, traditions, wildlife, beaches, and mountains India is huge. The country is not only about chaos and ways to control them; it is about life, the civilization and continuity of it that makes people look beyond the obvious. But obvious, we believe, is not the choice that you are going to make while visiting India. What you need is something different, something that is new, and something that is exciting. Concept tourism is one exciting option that a few tour operators like Indianholiday.com believe is worth taking interest in. These operators give you a number of exciting options categorized according to the interest and concept to tour India.

Wildlife Holidays

The wildlife attractions of India are huge and worth appreciating. Numerous rare and endangered species of animals, birds and reptiles can be found in the country. The marine life is equally interesting as well. The tigers, rhinoceros, elephants, black bucks, lions, cobras and peacocks are the prime wildlife attractions in the country. Apart from these, there are other wildlife species too that have commanding presence in the forest areas of the country. A wildlife trip to India will allows a close encounter with all these marvelous wildlife species.

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Heritage Holidays

India - colourful and vibrant; a land as diverse as its people. It is a mosaic of faiths, cultures, customs and languages that blend harmoniously to form a composite whole. One of the world’s oldest living civilizations - which gave to the world - the concept of zero, the primordial sound Aum…Yoga, and Buddhism.

Pilgrimages

In India we find the oldest continually operating pilgrimage tradition in the

entire world. The practice of pilgrimage in India is so deeply embedded in the cultural psyche and the number of pilgrimage sites is so large that the entire subcontinent may actually be regarded as one grand and continuous sacred space

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Beach Holidays :

Has the combination of Sun, Sand, Sea and Surf ever tempted you to take a break from the daily monotonous chores that you perform so religiously? Then we have just the right package for you with the sure-shot itinerary to relax you completely. The balmy beaches of India are perfect escapade for the fun loving holiday tourism seekers. India with its long coastline of 7500 kms, offers some of the most exotic beach holidays and beach tourism destinations in the world. The great peninsula with the Indian Ocean in the middle and accompanied by the Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal on each side besides the two archipelagos of Lakshadweep and Andamans is perfect for beach holidays for tourists the world over. The young state of Goa certainly happens to be the Beach Capital of India. It offers the perfect spot for the novice divers. The blaze of glory, the beautiful waves, the swinging palms and the many hues of the sky, the nature is for sure at its best at the beaches. India boasts of many beaches of Goa in the West, Kovalam in the South and Gopalpur in the East. So you may head towards any direction of the Indian peninsula and be invited to the sun bathed beaches. The never-ending shores and the untouched oceanic horizons seem to be mesmerizing. The photogenic dawn and dusks at the beaches are sure to be repetitive visitor to the shores.

Cultural Holidays:

Ever wondered at the cultural diversity of India? The enticing unity represented by the people of the country who display a wide range of religions,

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culture, customs and languages. The rich and varied heritage happens to be one of the many sources of pride of the nation. The mysterious ways of the people, their lifestyles and the inseparable culture cannot be done solved in words but can surely be enjoyed with experience.Adventure Holidays:

Ever felt the waves of a river on your face, wish to see to the land and everything on it from a height of 18,000 feet? Fancy trotting from one palace to another riding a camel or perhaps get a better view of the jungle sitting smart on an elephant? Well if any of them is an affirmative, the adventure holidays and tourism in India are just for you. Try out the aerial, aqua or land adventures and enjoy. The quest to do the uncommon, the desire to meet challenges makes people take up any of the adventure activities and rejuvenate themselves. India is the land of variety and diversity. The terrain of the sand dunes and long stretches of barren land is ideal for desert safaris, the queen of rivers, the fun of watching the wildlife at the Corbett National Park gets multiplied when enjoyed riding an elephant, the Ganges is irresistible for the water sports and the scenic beauty of Jammu is picture perfect for the paragliding. You name the adventure and India has the right spot for it

Ayurveda and Rejuvenation:

India adheres to the age-old philosophy of Ayurveda - in a traditional way - that's what makes India a different locale to visit. Ayurveda recognizes that each

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individual is different and so treatment too should be customized. Ayurveda, the traditional Indian system of medicine holds out to the world the promise of a healthy long life. Step into the world, where healing is a ritual and nurturing life a tradition, i.e. experience the magical power of Traditional Ayurveda. Ayurveda and Rejuvenation programs include a few programs combining Ayurveda along with sightseeing and other aspects of tourism in India. An extensive and well - crafted out Ayurvedic treatment package that would rejuvenate your body and mind and make you face the hustle and bustle of the city life again.Golf Tours:

If Golf, is what you are passionate about and you happen to be an avid traveler then the 21 day Golf Holidays package of India being offered is something you cannot refuse to go ahead with. The perfect break from the stressful routine religiously followed otherwise. Just catch up with the Golf fever that has caught the entire country in a big way. Add that extra touch of versatility in you by playing the different surfaces in the various golf clubs developed in several cities of India. The turfs, the mounds, the climate, the yards of green all make golf better than ever before.

Handicrafts Tours:

Handicraft items can be the best gift for occasions and can best describe a sense of emotion, feelings and can create life time memories. You will be amazed to hit upon a treasure of Handicraft each of which contains intricacy and great skill. In

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all, you will be attracted to see a range of enticing variety in India which is masterpiece in their own right!

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Festival Tours

India is the land of fun and frolic. The Indians celebrate the various fairs and festivals to the extent that there are more number of fairs and festivals in a year than the total number of days. The rites and the rituals followed by the Indians, the enthusiasm and faith that are constant features add to the charm of the fairs and festivals.

Railway Tours:

Be onboard the luxury trains of India, the Palace on Wheels, the Royal Orient and the Toy Trains are the pride of Indian Railways, the largest passenger train service in the world seem to invite you. The Palace on Wheels lives by its name and is no less than a fort on the swing. The lavish lifestyle, the facilities, the décor, the comfort and the style have made the first tourist train of India the most sought after. The marvelous train that today is a joint effort of the Rajasthan Tourism Development Corporation and the Indian Railways. During this excursion, the

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tourists are overwhelmed with the beauty at the major stations of Jaipur, Chittaurgarh, Udaipur, Jaisalmer, Jodhpur and Bharatpur, and Agra chugging through the culturally colorful states of Rajasthan and Gujarat. You may even opt for a voyage onboard the Royal Orient, the train offering both style and comfort. It is a project of the Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Limited along with the Indian Railways. The rainbow of cities trotted by the royal extravagance of the bygone era include Delhi, Chittaurgarh, Junagarh/Veraval, Somnath/Sasan, Gir/Ahmedpur, Mandvi/Palitana/ Sarkhej, Ahmedabad and Jaipur. Besides the Royal trains, the toy trains of India have attracted many a tourists. The ride on the train with a 4500 kilometers track chugs through the popular hill stations of the country like Shimal, Darjeeling, Ooty/ Udagamandalam or Ootacamund and Matheran. The toy trains are called so because of the narrow gauge railway lines they ride on. The wondrous miniature of rail engineering that offers the most scenic beauties of the Himalayas from Kalka to Shimla and another from Jal Pai Guri to Darjeeling.

Backwater Holidays:

Cruising along the backwaters of Kerala is an ideal way to discover the real Kerala. The placid backwaters that stretch for over fifteen hundred kilometers are covered with swinging palm trees. The tourists are left spell bound by the tranquility of the backwaters while riding the Houseboats, it's the most authentic and unexplored way to explore the beauty of the backwaters. The Houseboats that float on the backwaters are the improved version of the Kettuvalloms. The frequently visited tourist destinations amongst the backwaters in Kerala comprise of Kovalam, Alappuzha, Kottayam and Ernakulam. The tourists may indulge into tourism activities like boating, fishing and sightseeing while exploring the backwaters of

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Kerala. The backwater cuisine, which comprises of delectable fresh fish like pearl spotted fish, barramundi, crabs, mussels and prawns, is finger licking good. All these tours have been designed keeping in mind the requirements of travelers coming from different parts of the world.

Apart from these, there are some organizations which specialize in custom made tours. Some of these tours offered are:

Special theme parties:

Moonlight Boat Cruise on the Backwater of Kerala:

Guests are ferried aboard a spacious, specially decorated boat for a delightful moonlight cruise on the backwater of Cochin. South Indian culinary surprises are served. There is also a thrilling firework display.

Rajput Wedding:

A traditional Rajput wedding ceremony where the group members participate as 'Baraati' (the bridegroom's family and friends who form the wedding party) and the bridal party.

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Bollywood:

Guests in garish costumes, some posing as directors, some as action heroes, romantic leading ladies, and ruffians live their dreams of becoming a star.

Corporate incentive tours:

In today's world incentive travel is one of the most effective marketing and motivational tools especially in the corporate sector. After all those long hours at work let the corporate employee gets the much-deserved break in the form of an incentive. The various corporate incentive tours that are offered have been planned in a manner to rejuvenate and refresh the employees for the forthcoming assignments. Along with the corporate incentives tours arrangements can be made for conferences, conventions, seminars, board meetings, client presentations, training programs, workshops, dealers meet or any other relationship building activity in any destination in India.

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Dream Marriages:

Tie the knot with your knight in shining armor in the most royal way. Celebrate the biggest and the best occasion of your life - Marriage- in the most beautiful style. Get married at any of the captivating castles, pulsating palaces or the happening hotels and make your dream come true. At your dream marriage there will be fun and festivity all around backed by the music of your choice and decorations with your favorite flowers. The feast to your eyes and ears will be equaled by the sumptuous food that will treat the taste buds at the dream marriage. From champagne bottles and confetti to photographers we can arrange it all for the special you and the very special occasion of your dream marriage. The setting for the realization of your dream will be splendid and the arrangements will be spectacular for your marriage that will bring smiles on every face and heart!

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Sectors of tourism

The tourism industry comprises of the following main and distinctive sectors:• Transportation• Accommodation• Tour operators• Tourism Destination Operators/ Destination Management

Transportation

Tourism industry is heavily dependent on the transportation industry which comprises of airlines, cruise and ferry lines, passenger railways, coach and bus travel, car hire. Thanks to the increase in tourist traffic, over the years, the range of airline services has considerably, not only in terms of frequency of flights and number of destinations, but also in terms of different services, and differing levels of service to meet different passenger needs. This shows the important role marketing plays as competition and demand intensifies.

Passenger rail services have also changed, and their role in tourism is as wide as with, for example, Euro rail tickets allowing extensive international travel at basic(service) standard for students and budget tourists, to the luxury of Palace on Wheels – where the train voyage is the holiday.

Cruise lines are operating different services tailored to consumers’ budgets, and other shipping lines involved in the tourist industry, especially the ferry operators, are broadening and upgrading their range of services and facilities to meet consumer expectations, and to remain competitive.Coach and bus companies have acted in a similar fashion and so have the car rental companies.

Accommodation

Accommodation includes hotels, ranging from the biggest international chains recognizable worldwide such as Hilton and Holiday Inn to small independent establishments. In order to gain recognition in an increasingly competitive marketplace, many smaller independent hotels have grouped together, adopting a consortium approach. Under a central brand name, they can offer central reservations services, for eg. and present a recognizable identity to consumers which enables them to compete against the larger, more established chains. Other types of accommodations are also well established in tourist markets, notably self-catering apartments and club type complexes.

With the innumerable dream destinations India offers the best of the accommodation facilities to the travelers to the land. There are plenty of hotels and resorts in India that cater to the needs of tourists of all kinds. The hotels and resorts in India provide high standards of quality of accommodation, facilities and comforts to satisfy the client’s at the most reasonable rates. The variety of hotels and resorts in India ranging from Luxury Hotels, Standard Hotels, Budget Hotels to the Heritage Hotels In India. Then there are several Indian & International Hotel Chains in India. The services and the facilities are such that the hospitability of India gets revealed always. Throughout the length and the breadth of the country that is dotted with tourist destinations the hotels and resorts are available to make your experience of India unique.

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The incomparable and incredible land of India offers plenty of accommodation options such that the visit to the wonderland suits all pockets. The country where tradition and trends fuse to give you the best the range of possible accommodations is vast. There are the exclusive hotels and hotel chains that boast of luxurious amenities and world-class décor.

Hotels in India have been categorized on different parameters all of them taking into account the factors such as service provided, infrastructure, location, heritage value, and types of guests accommodated. Like many other countries worldwide, these categorizations help the common travelers zero down on the accommodation option he can afford or wanted to stay at during his/her visit.

Some of the examplesLuni Haveli-A dream in red sandstone

Luni is a small village some 30 km from Jodhpur and the haveli is at least two centuries old. No one lived there after 1860, save bats and sundry reptiles. In 1992-93 it all changed, extensive renovations were carried out and today the Luni Haveli is one of Rajasthan's more impressive heritage hotels. The property extends over two and a half acres, has 19 rooms and will soon offer its guests a swimming pool. It has achieved a 50% average occupancy. It is run by 27 years old Vikram Singh and Yamini his wife who till date thank a certain hotel chain who approached them to develop the property. However, the deal could not be made but the idea was implanted and today Luni Haveli is beginning to find itself on tourist itineraries.

Dera Dundlod Kila

Dera Dundlod Kila, a 250-year-old fort in the heart of Shekhawati. Its

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reins are in the hands of Thakur Raghubir Singh and his dynamic son, Kunwar Raghavendra Singh, better known as Bonnie. The father-and-son duo decided to convert the property into a hotel with a dual purpose in mind: it would, on the one hand, save the sprawling fortress from turning into a ruin and, on the other, generate some badly needed income for the family. Today, with 27 rooms and an annual turnover of Rs 10-12 lakh, the Singhs are reaping the rewards of their sagacity.Narain niwas palace - A rest house for camel caravans

Today the palace in the golden city of Jaisalmer has a yearly turnover of a neat Rs 70 Lakhs. Also the local crafts are finding a new lease of life with the increase in their demand. The various local arts are also reviving due to the same. Thus we see that if managed properly tourism is beneficial to all.

Tour operators

Tour operators are the firms which specialize in providing the whole holiday package, incorporating travel and accommodation needs for the consumer. They range from highly specialized operations such as Indian-visit.com, who customize every kind of trip that you can dream of, to large operators offering services at all different levels to cater for budget, family, or singles holidays to ‘near’ or ‘faraway’ destinations.

Thomas Cook is one of the best known of such operators; they also offer travel agency and financial services to their consumers. An independent local coach firm may also be a tour operator, and many transportation companies also offer holiday packages.

In today’s competitive market and with the increased bargaining power of the consumers there is only one way to survive in the rat race and that is by segmenting the market and offering different products pertinent to the demand of that segment.

Some of the government initiatives are:1. Travel Agents Association of India2. Pacific Asia Travel Association3. Travel Agents Federation of India

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4. Indian Association of Tour Operators

Tourism Destination Operators/ Destination Management

This is new category in many senses, as it is an area of the tourism industry which has seen a massive growth in the development of theme parks and other types of artificial tourist destinations in the recent years. However Disneyland and Disneyworld in America were the forerunners of this development in tourism marketing, and they have been well established for decades.

It is due to the recent growth, and the continuing trends, which make it area which should be considered separately as a tourism industry. The new EuroDisney theme park in France is an example of a tourism destination operation. On a smaller scale, heritage parks which being developed from Britain’s industrial wasteland such as Wigan Pier, which attracted over half a million tourists in 1991, and similar attractions now represent a significant amount of tourism activity.

Documents Requires during India Tour

THE PASSPORT

A passport can be defined as “an official document issued by a competent public authority to nationals or to alien residents of the issuing country”.Other than allowing access to another country, the passport can be used as a mean of identification. Another purpose of the passport is to provide evidence of legal entry into another country.Some countries allow joint passport. That means that two or more peoples travelling together hold a single joint passport. Spouses and / or their children may obtain a joint passport.

THE VISA- VISITOR’S INTENSION TO STAY ABROAD

A VISA is an entry in a passport or other travel document made by an official of a government, indicating that the bearer has been granted authority to enter or re-enter the country concerned. A VISA usually specifies the authorized length of stay, the period of validity and the number of entries allowed during that period.Under normal circumstances, once a VISA has been issued, then entry into the country should be granted. Some agents offer VISA services, in which case the agency will obtain detail information from the client and probably charge a fee for the service.

Travel Information Manual

The Travel Information Manual (TIM) provides up-to-date information required to ensure that correct official and governmental documentation is completed before travel. TIM is published each month in one language-English. It is used throughout the world, providing airlines, agents and others working within this industry with information on more than 200 countries’

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travel regulations, procedures and restrictions.

Tourism Associations

IATA:Air transport is one of the most dynamic industries in the world. The

International Air Transport Association (IATA) is its global trade organization.Over 60 years, IATA has developed the commercial standards that built

a global industry. Today, IATA’s mission is to represent, lead and serve the airline industry. Its members comprise some 240 airlines - the world’s leading passenger and cargo airlines among them - representing 94 percent of scheduled international air traffic. Representing…

IATA seeks to improve understanding of the industry among decision makers and increase awareness of the benefits that aviation brings to national and global economies. It fights for the interests of airlines across the globe, challenging unreasonable rules and charges, holding regulators and governments to account, and striving for sensible regulation. Leading…

IATA’s aim is to help airlines help themselves by simplifying processes and increasing passenger convenience while reducing costs and improving efficiency. The groundbreaking ‘Simplifying the Business’ initiative is crucial in this area. Moreover, safety is IATA’s number one priority, and IATA’s goal is to continually improve safety standards, notably through IATA’s Operational Safety Audit (IOSA). Another main concern is to minimize the impact of air transport on environment. Serving…

IATA ensures that people and goods can move around the global airline network as easily as if they were on a single airline in a single country. In addition, it provides essential professional support to all industry stakeholders with a wide range of products and expert services, such as publications, training and consulting. IATA’s financial systems also help carriers and the travel industry maximize revenues. … For the benefit for all parties involved:

For consumers, IATA simplifies the travel and shipping processes, while keeping costs down. Passengers can make one telephone call to reserve a ticket, pay in one currency and then use the ticket on several airlines in several countries.

IATA allows airlines to operate safely, securely, efficiently and economically under clearly defined rules.

IATA serves as an intermediary between airlines and passenger as well as cargo agents via neutrally applied agency service standards and centralized financial systems.

A large network of industry suppliers and service providers gathered by IATA provides solid expertise to airlines in a variety of industry solutions.

For governments, IATA seeks to ensure they are well informed about the complexities of the aviation industry to ensure better, long-term decisions.

WTTC:

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Raising awareness of the importance of Travel & Tourism, promoting synergies between the public and private sector, generating profit as well as protecting natural, social and cultural environment, are the fundamental components of WTTC's mission, as outlined in the Blueprint for New Tourism.

WTTC is firmly committed to realizing our industry's potential for growth and ensuring maximum and sustainable benefits for everyone involved. As one of the industries which generates the most employment, Travel & Tourism needs the complete understanding and support of governments and international organizations in order to realize its full potential, for the benefit of all.

This industry can only grow if governments realize its real economic and social value and create the necessary infrastructure to able to accommodate this development. Worldwide, Travel & Tourism is expected to grow at a level of 4.3 % per year over the next ten years, creating an opportunity for every country in the world to be part of this process and to share the benefits.Humanity is facing new challenges. With its close ties to the natural, social and cultural environment, Travel & Tourism has a significant responsibility and role to play, not only in global dialogue, but more importantly in implementing solutions which will lead to a better use of our limited resources.

UNITED FEDERATION OF TRAVEL AGENTS’ ASSOCIATIONS (UFTAA)

UFTAA represents national travel agents’ association in a significant number of countries. It remains the most prominent body representing the interests of travel agents worldwide and enjoys consultative status with the United Nations.

The UFTAA Secretariat consists of its Secretary General and a small team, based in Monaco, which is directed by an elected Board of Directors composed of a cross-section of travel agents from around the world.

WORLD TOURISM ORGANIZATION (WTO)WTO, not to be confused with the World Trade Organization, serves as

a global forum for tourism policy issues and a practical source of tourism know-how.Based in Madrid, WTO is entrusted by the United Nations to help countries maximize the positive impacts of tourism, such as job creation, infrastructure development and foreign exchange earnings, while at the same time minimizing negative environmental or social impacts.In the year 2005, about 808 million tourists travelled internationally (registered a growth of 5.6 per cent over 2004) and the tourism receipts have been about US$ 682 billion.To give recognition to tourism as a source of income and employment generator in the economy, a 'Tourism Satellite Accounting (TSA)' has been developed. TSA enables the Ministry to quantify the benefits of tourism in terms of contribution to gross domestic product (GDP) and employment (both direct and indirect impacts). India is among the few countries in the world to develop TSA. As per the TSA study, the contribution of tourism in GDP of the

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country has been 5.90 per cent in 2003-04, while employment in tourism sector (both direct and indirect) has been 41.8 million in the same year, thus accounting for 8.78 per cent of total employment in the country.

Tourism Marketing Process

Company:

The company in the Tourism Sector can be the Central Government, the State tourism Corporations, Tour Operators such as SOTC, ITDC, etc. The company carries out ‘External Marketing’ as well as. ‘Internal Marketing’

External Marketing:

It makes promises to the customers, for e.g. the Malaysian government’s advertisement “Malaysia, Truly Asia” that promises a veritable cultural paradise to the customer.

Internal Marketing:

The Company enables the Providers to fulfill the promises made by it to the customers. For example, the Malaysian Government maintains the local transportation within the country, maintains the tourist spots such as KL Towers, etc.

Providers:

The Providers include all the entities that finally fulfill the Company’s promise to the Customers. They undertake ‘Interactive Marketing’, because they are in touch with the final customer. Thus in the case of the Malaysian government, this would include the transportation providers (Malaysian Airlines, Air India, local bus transportation, local trains in Kuala Lumpur, car and two-wheeler rentals), the different hotels within Malaysia (Tanjam Putri), souvenir outlets at tourist areas, tourist spots (Genting highland, KL Towers, Twin Towers, etc.), restaurants (KFC Joints, Mary Brown, Pizza Hut), etc.

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The 5 Ps of Tourism

The Product Mix

The tourism product is essentially an intangible thing. Also, because tourism is a multi-segment industry, the task of formulating a product mix becomes more difficult & challenging. Selling a holiday is ‘selling dreams’. The way to win the customer’s heart is through the peripheral services provided along with the core product. Thus a tourism product is quite a complex one, including the destination, airline seat, hotel room, occasional tangible products such as souvenirs, a free bag or bottle of whisky, etc.

Innovation in the tourism industry helps to raise the sensitivity in this regard. There is nothing fixed or fundamental about the tourism product. The content factor is within the jurisdiction of the government that undertakes the maintenance, development and conservation of tourist attractions such as parks, museums, beaches, historical treasures, etc. Unless these factors are developed in the right fashion, the marketing professionals would never be successful in making the marketing resources productive.

Thus the direct or indirect patronage of the government is essential to get a positive response. The government and private tourist organizations work together to undertake activities such as developing infrastructural facilities such as transportation, water, banking, Medicare facilities, etc., and also developing and maintain hotels, cottages, havelis, lodges, etc.

The Price Mix

In pricing decisions, the product or the service mix of the tourist organization is important. They have to set prices in line with the quality of services to be made available to the customers. Pricing decisions are influenced by internal and external factors. The tourism professionals are supposed to watch the emerging trends in both the markets. They are required to think in favour of discounting price. These may include discounts for cash payments, seasonal discounts, trade discounts etc. But while offering the discounts, it is not to be forgotten that it may also create image problem since some of the value sensitive tourists may doubt the quality.

The Promotion Mix

Creation of awareness has a far reaching impact. The tourist organizations bear the responsibility of informing, persuading and sensing the potential tourists in a right fashion. The marketers need to use the various components of promotion optimally so that they succeed in increasing the number of habitual users. Promotion helps in maximizing the duration of stay, frequency of visit by offering new tourist products in the same country to areas which hitherto have remained untapped or partially tapped. The various dimensions of tourism promotion are as follows:

Advertising: Advertisement helps in furnishing important information

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to the actual and potential tourists. Its coverage is wide. Advertising is aimed at the public to create awareness of the travel offers available on a resort and its attractions to influence their business decisions. Intangibility can be compensated with the help of visual exposure of scenes and events. We can project hotel bedrooms, well arranged restaurants and cafeterias, swimming pools etc. Publicity: It focuses attention on strengthening the public relations measures by developing a rapport with media people and getting their personalized support in publicizing the business. It helps in projecting the positive image of tourists organizations since the prospects trust on the news items publicized by the media people. Eg. Kumarakom in Kerala after Prime Minister A B Vajpayee’s visit. The publicity programme include regular publicity stories and photographs to the newspapers, travel editors, contact with magazines on stories etc. There are different groups in publicity, such as advertising publicity, projected publicity, structural publicity and personal publicity.

Sales promotions: Sales promotion measures are the short term activities seeking to boost sales at peak demand periods to ensure that the firms obtain its market share and are used to help launch a new product or support an ailing or modified one. The tool of sales promotions is designed to appeal particularly to those customers who are price-sensitive. There are a number of techniques to promote sale and the tourist professional need to use them in the face of their requirements vis-à-vis the emerging trends in the business. Eg. In the tourism industry, a travel company offers give-aways to their clients, such as flight bags, wallets for tickets and forex and covers of passport. The hotels offer a number of facilities like shoe shine clothes, first aid sewing kits, shower caps and shampoo. Further, the VIP clients also get fruits and flowers in their rooms.

Thomas Cook offered 3 tier sales promotion based on price and one more novel technique as detailed below:

• Cook agreed to match the price of any holiday they sold which was known as price promise.• Money back guarantee to the clients who purchase the product or any tour operator known as trading charter.• Matching of customers need with a particular holiday known as formal guarantee.

Word-of-mouth Promotion: Most communication about tourism takes place by word-of-mouth information which in a true sense is word-of-recommendation. In the tourism industry it is found that the word-of-mouth promoters play the role of a hidden salesforce, who instrumentalize the process of selling. The high magnitude of effectiveness of this tool of promotion is due to high credibility of the channel, specially in the eyes of the potential tourists. The sensitivity of this tool makes it clear that tourist organizations need to concentrate on the quality of services they promise and offer. The marketers or the tourist organizations need to keep their eyes open, identify the vocal persons or the opinion leaders and take a special care of them so that they keep on moving the process of stimulating and creating demand.

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Personal Selling: Personal Selling is based on the personal skill of an individual. The oral representation in conversation bears the efficacy of transforming the motivation into persuasion. The travel and hotel business depend considerably on the personal selling. The development of travel and tourism has been possible due to well educated and trained sales personnel. The development of tourism business has been influenced by the services rendered by the travel agents and travel guides since they work as information carriers. Personal selling is the personal presentation of a tangible product or intangible services or ideas to the personal customers. It is important to mention that in the tourism industry, the personnel who attend tourists form an essential ingredient of the product, such as sales personnel are found responsible for dealing with customers behind the counter, the resort representatives cater to the need of tourists when they reach the destination etc. all of them play a vital role in ensuring that the tourism products satisfy the tourists. The phrase- the customer is always right applies specifically to the tourism industry. No reduction in price would compensate for impolite and indecent travel guide, a solvent waiter and a surly or a haughty coach driver. These facts are testimony to the proposition that the travel business is linked with the performance and behaviour of sales personnel or travel staff.

Telemarketing: it is a method of selling in which a professionally sound telemarketer expands the business. The quality of technology and the communicative ability of the telemarketers determine the magnitude of success of this component. In tourism, the travel agents, offices of airways, receptionist, and secretaries can’t work efficiently if the telephonic services are not up to the mark. This makes a strong advocacy in favour of recruiting a person considered to be professionally sound, personally-committed sales personnel having an in-built creativity, innovation and imagination.

Place

Place or distribution management is concerned with two things – availability and accessibility. Researchers in tourism must determine how and where potential customers prefer to buy tourism products and services.

Most tour operators sell their services through travel agents, however some deal directly with the consumers and eliminate middlemen. Other companies may also utilize more than one method of distribution. Airlines, for example, sell tickets through travel agents, and sell seats on flights to tour operators, and also offer travelers to book seats themselves through their own booking offices.

There exist, however, a number of intermediaries in the tourism marketing channel. It depends largely on the channel type. The intangibility feature in the service sector prevents intermediaries from taking possession or ownership of goods. Tourism, however, proves an exception where cuisine and souvenirs are goods and ownership is possible for the intermediaries.

Transport also plays a major role in the tourism industry. It makes the

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destinations accessible to people from around the world. Also, in the case of tangible products in tourism such as souvenirs and cuisine, transportation becomes a major logistical component.

People

We can’t deny the fact that sophisticated technologies have been successful in accelerating the pace of development. We also agree with this view that new generation of information technologies have simplified the task of decision makers. At the same time we also have to accept the fact that the sophisticated technologies can’t deliver goods to the development process if the employees operating and maintaining these technologies are not of world class. Technologies need due support of human resources who invent, innovate and develop technologies.

Like other industries, the tourism industry depends substantially on management of human resources. The tourism industry is an amalgam of the services of a lot of people and hence this industry cannot work efficiently if the travel agents, tour operators and travel guides lack world class professional excellence. Of course the offices of travel agents depend on the new technology but after all employees and the other staff contribute significantly to the process. The travel guides need professional excellence since the projection of a positive image regarding a destination in particular requires their due cooperation, failing which even the world class services offered by the travel agents are found meaningless. The tour operators also need to manage human resources efficiently.

In the management of people, the related organizations are required to think in favour of developing an ongoing training program so that we find a close relation between the development of technologies and the quality of personnel who are supposed to operate and maintain the same. They need a lot of credentials to fulfill the expectations of the customers. The organization has to make the environmental conditions conducive and focus has to be laid on the incentives to the employees for energizing the process of performance orientation. Employee orientation requires due weightage to efficiency generation, value-orientation and perfection.

In the tourism industry the travel agents and the travel guides are the two most important people who speak a lot about the industry. Hence it is imperative that they have to be at their best at all times. Travel guides especially, are expected to have a lot of patience, good sense of humour, tact to transform the occasional tourists into habitual ones, thorough knowledge of the places, linguistic skills etc.

The Government plays an important role in providing the right kind of people for this industry. As such there are a lot of Govt. and Pvt. Institutes which offer training for the same. At present, the Ministry of Tourism is running 21 Institutes of Hotel Management (IHMs) and Catering Technology and 14 Food craft Institutes (FCIs). The IHMs provide 3-year Diploma in Hotel Management, 1- 1/2 year Post-Graduate Diploma in Accommodation

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Operations, 1-1/2 year Post-Graduate Diploma in Dietetics and Hospital Food Science, 1-1/2 year Certificate course in Food Production, 6- month Certificate course in Food & Beverage Services, 6- month Certificate course in Hotel and Catering Management, 1-1/2-year Post Diploma in Hotel Administration and P.G. Diploma in Fast Food Operations. The FCIs are engaged in providing the craft Diploma in Cookery, Food & Beverage Service/ Restaurant & Counter service, Reception & Book Keeping, House Keeping and Bakery & Confectionery. The training courses run by the Institutes are designed to suit the needs of the various target groups.

Apart from this The Indian Institute of Travel Management (IITM), established in 1983, by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India is filling the vacuum for an institute that develops manpower exclusively for the tourism industry. The institute has successfully undertaken major initiatives for developing human resources required for the tourism industry. The institute took its shape after the National Committee of Tourism, which comprised members of Parliament, recommended that an institute catering to the requirements of tourism industry be set up immediately. The purpose of the institute is to provide academic opportunities to graduates and undergraduates directly and in collaboration with the leading institutes and universities, for successful careers in Holiday and Leisure Management, tour operation, transportation, accommodation and interpretation services. The institute is working with the objective of total professionalism of human resources engaged in business of tourism through diplomas after graduation, specially designed practical training and field research, foreign language training programs, executive development programs for retired defense service personnel, workshops, seminars and conference, tourism orientation talks at school and college levels and tourism promotion competition among young generation. A student who graduates from IITM is absorbed in the middle level executive positions in travel agencies, with tour operators, transport companies, hotels, domestic and international airlines, cargo services, besides getting into government jobs. The institute is also offering courses in computer applications and software studies, basic course of air travel fares and ticketing, basic course on airlines, travel agencies and tour operation management, basic course in air and sea cargo service management, basic course on computer application in travel and tourism industry, diploma in tourism and travel management and foreign language. Apart from IITM there are other institutes like The Institute of Hotel, Cargo and Tourism Management (IHCTM), another one run by World Tourism Organization and various other private institutes catering to the needs of the industry.

Unique Characteristics of The Tourism Industry

There are four main characteristics which distinguish the tourism industry from other service providers:

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Inflexibility: The tourism industry is highly inflexible in terms of capacity. The

number of beds in a hotel or seats on an airplane is fixed so it is not possible to meet sudden upsurges in demand. Similarly, restaurant tables, hotel beds and airplane seats remain empty and unused in periods of low demand. The seasonal nature of tourism activity exacerbates this problem.

Perishability:

Tourism services are highly perishable. An unused hotel bed or an empty airplane seat represents an immediate loss of that service as a means of earning profit. This has an impact on overall industry profitability.

Fixed location:

Tourism destinations are fixed locations so effort must be concentrated in communicating the facility to the potential consumer. A consumer can conveniently watch a Hollywood movie at the local cinema but has to be persuaded to travel to India to see the Taj Mahal.

Relatively Large Financial Investment:

Every modern tourist establishment and facility requires large investment, frequently over a long time scale. This means that the level of risk and the rate of return are critically important to tourism management.

Future Prospects

According to the 2002 estimates of the World Tourism Organisation (WTO), international tourist inflow in India by 2020 would be 10 m, which means the tourist influx has to grow at a CAGR of 6.5% for the next 14 years. This makes the country one of the fastest growing tourist destinations in the world second only to China. As of FY07, the increase in the tourist arrivals is well inline with the WTO estimates.

India accounts for 0.5% of world tourism, and the tourist inflow is expected to grow at the rate of 4% till 2010. Strong GDP growth, improving infrastructure, confidence on the country's economic prospects, open sky policy and the 'Incredible India' campaign has improved the outlook for India. This positive outlook would increase the tourist arrival in the country and the hotel industry is expected to be the major beneficiary. Even domestic tourism is gaining momentum. Rising disposable incomes, cheaper airfares and better connectivity would continue to increase the demand for rooms. The favourable demand supply gap is likely to continue till FY09 when major expansions would come in. With no new supply coming in the near future, average room rates are expected to surge higher. ARRs have grown at a compounded rate of 18% over the last three years.

Many international hotel chains either have or on the look out for setting up shop in the country. Companies like the Hilton and Hyatt group have already tied up with local giants East India Hotels and Asian Hotels. Others like Four Seasons, are

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on the lookout for a partner or would be setting up their own hotels, government permitting. This clearly shows that India is on the international tourism radar.

Although prospects are promising, any change in the global geo-political situations can and have adversely affected the performance of this sector. Also, the heightened demand for land, especially from real estate players has led to a steep escalation in the prices. Also, shortage of manpower is going to be a huge challenge going forward. Hotel players with a diversified portfolio across different segments are likely to be the key beneficiaries. This should be one of the determining factors while investing in this sector

Tourism sector to generate more than 2 lakh jobs by 2010

The Tourism and Culture Minister Smt. Ambika Soni has said that infrastructure and skilled man power have to be in right place in the next five years in the wake of boom in tourism sector and economic growth of the country. Addressing a group of budding air hostesses here today, she said it is projected that by 2010 about 10 million foreign tourists will arrive in the country and the out bound tourism will also grow manifolds which currently stands at 8 million tourists. She said modernization/ upgradation of international airports at Mumbai and Delhi, creation of about one lakh fifty thousand additional rooms in budget and star category hotels are the main challenges before all the stakeholders in civil aviation and tourism sector. The phenomenal growth in these two sectors has far reaching implications. The country will witness tremendous employment generation in the skilled and semi-skilled sector viz. pilots, aviation engineers, air hostesses, stewards, ground handling staff, guides, travel agents, tour operators and freight agencies. The Minister said the tourism sector is likely to generate two lakh plus jobs by 2010 in the wake of commonwealth games. She said tourism and civil aviation are inextricably linked; these two sectors feed upon each other and support each other. A strategy to develop manpower resource should take into account the demands and the growth trajectories of both aviation and tourism.

Smt. Soni said Government is ready to have public private partnership both in tourism infrastructure development and training and upgradation of skills through specialized institutions.

BRIGHT PROSPECTS OF GROWTH OF TOURISM IN INDIA : ECONOMIC SURVEY

Economic Survey-2007-08 The Economic Survey 2007-08 has said that the prospects for growth

of tourism in India are bright. The overall development of tourism infrastructure coupled with other efforts by the Government to promote tourism such as appropriately positioning India on the global tourism map through the “Incredible India” campaign, according greater focus to newly emerging markets such as China, Latin America and CIS countries, and participating in trade fairs and exhibitions will facilitate tourism growth.

The rate of growth of tourism sector in India has been way above the

world average in the last few years. 2006-07 is the fourth consecutive year of high growth in foreign tourist arrivals and foreign exchange earnings from

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tourism. 2006-07 saw arrival of approximately 46.33 lakhs foreign tourists in

India, thereby registering a growth of 13 per cent over the previous year. As per advance estimates, foreign exchange earned during 2006-07 due to tourism was $ 9696 million – a growth of 23.5 per cent over the previous year.

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