tourism promotion amended

7/30/2019 Tourism Promotion Amended

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MARKETING MANAGEMENT IN TOURISTATTRACTION IN RELATION TO HIMACHAL

PRADESH

SUBMITTED BY SUBMITTED TO

ANISH KAUSHAL Dr.

Ph.D 2 nd Semester


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INTRODUCTION

India has attracted travelers from time immemorial. Tourists travelled from placeto place to enjoy natural endowments, and religious and spiritual heritage. This is

because of the country`s glorious historical past, its cultural heritage and itsvaried landscape and terrain that lend natural beauty. Thus the process of travelling aptly termed as tourism started in antiquity. In those days, travel wasmainly restricted to the nomads who used to travel sporadically. This process, inthe modern times, has gradually evolved into one of the most flourishingindustries globally. Tourism and hospitality, due to its diverse of nature andcomplementarity of service has gradually evolved into a large-scale industry. Itcontributes approximately over $4 trillion in gross global output. This meanstravel and tourism is one of the world`s largest industry in terms of size andeconomic impact.

To define tourism and hospitality services, one should take into consideration thesum total of the processes that arise when an individual travel from onedestination to another. Travel and tourism as a whole means the business of providing information, transportation, accommodation, catering and otherrelated services to the traveler. Therefore, the hospitality and tourism industry

takes into account all the services associated with traveling for business andpleasure. It is multidimensional and multifaceted activity which touches manylives and generates additional activities that help in overall growth of theeconomy.

The hospitality component of the industry provides a wide range of services toboth visitors and local residents, including hotels, motels, resorts, restaurants,clubs, casinos and other places. The tourism component of the industry deals

mainly with travel, both local and inter-state, include travel agencies, tourisminformation offices, tour wholesalers, attraction, meetings and conventions andtour guiding.

The essential feature of tourism and hospitality is the duration of the stay that theindividual traveler undertakes. The duration of the stay should be of temporary


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nature, i.e. a tourist is expected to stay for a minimum period of 24 hours andmaximum period of six months in the related travel destination. But suchactivities should not for the purpose of seeking permanent residence and/oremployment. Although travelers may also sometimes undertake a brief tour, likea picnic or an outgoing, this process, if it does not involve a night stay it isconsidered as tourism.

Therefore tourism is always considered as a leisure activity which is very oftenmeant for recreation as well as other purposes. Defining tourism and hospitalitytakes account of three basic steps:

1. The purpose of travel or visit which indicates a particular level of motivation. This motivation is either directed toward spending leisure orfulfilling a business purpose.

2. The element of time is crucial. The minimum duration of stay must be 24hours.

3. Seasonality and periodicity largely influence the trend. This mainly refers toclimatic environment which influences tourism activities. For instancetourism at hilly destinations reaches its peak during the winter season whilesea beaches face a tremendous tourist rush during the summer.


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TYPES OF TOURISM Tourism, depending on the nature and function, can be classified into the followingareas:

RECREATIONAL TOURISM: This is the most common form of tourism and suggests ismeant for recreational purpose only.

CULTURAL TOURISM: Cultural tourism is conducted to experiences related to newer cultural activities such as the folklore, art, music, etc.

ETHNIC TOURISM: This involves contact with unusual or quaint customs in remoteareas.

RELIGIOUS TOURISM: This involves tourism solely based on religious reasons whichlargely takes into consideration pilgrimage activities.

ENVIORNMENTAL TOURISM: This takes into consideration tourism related to theenvironmental aspects.

ADVENTURE TOURISM: This involves tourists who undertake activities such asmountaineering, trekking and other adventure activities.

HISTORICAL TOURISM: This involves visits to heritage locations within or outside thecountry.

Tourism is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. The number of tourists worldwide has been registering phenomenal growth and it is expectedthat this number would shortly touch 1.5 billion. Tourism contributes about 11%of the world workforce and 10.2% of the global gross domestic product. Thedynamic growth of this industry is evident from the fact a new job is added to thesector every 2.5 second. Nature has bestowed Himachal Pradesh with uniquebeauty and splendor with its lush green valleys, snow covered Himalayan ranges,a serene, peaceful, hospitable and comfortable environment, smiling people anda rich cultural heritage - which tourists would be hard put to find elsewhere.Being in the lap or Himalayas this fact becomes its natural and unique USP withglobal appeal. The outer fringe of Himachal is formed by the Shiwalik hills, whichare characterised by shallow valleys and dense scrub forests. The mid ranges havethe majestic Himalayan cedar and the spruces -followed by alpine meadows thatintersperse themselves with the snow clad peaks of the Greater Himalaya.Tourism, as we understand it today, in Himachal Pradesh, received recognitiononly in the 19th century, when the British established their chain of hill stations.


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Earlier, Himachal had been a destination for pilgrims only. A fillip to tourism wasadministered when British declared Shimla as summer capital of India in 1864.Post independence and up -gradation as fledged State in the year 1971 led tomore investment in the infrastructure sector leading to opening up of the state.

However the biggest explosion in tourism occurred in the mid 80s and 90s withthe Kashmir problem when the number of hotels and hotel rooms increasedwithin this period from 350 to present 1710 and 6300 to 36000 respectively withits concomitant chaos and haphazard growth which the State would have donewell without. With the wisdom of hind sight the State is now more equipped todeal with the problems of yesteryears and this document attempts to addressthose very problems.During the year 2004, the tourist arrivals in the state were 6.5 million which isroughly equivalent to the population of the State.( 2.04 lacs were foreigners).In

terms of numbers therefore the State has done more than expected. Thechallenge now is to attract quality tourists and increase the stay of the tourists inthe State .We also need to think globally as even the domestic tourists today havea choice unlike in the past. By focusing onquality tourist the State Governmentalso aims at promoting sustainable tourism and encouraging the private sector todevelop tourism related infrastructure in the State without disturbing theexisting ecology and environment.In order to increase the duration of the stay of the visitors/tourists, a specialemphasis is being placed on the development of activity-based tourism and

opening up new sub destinations. To promote tourism in the countryside and tolesser-known areas, appropriate infrastructure will be developed within availableresources. Himachal was earlier known only for the summer season. Efforts arebeing made to break the seasonality factor and tourism products have beendiversified to attract the tourists in other seasons too. Now Himachal is known asA Destination for All Seasons andAll Reasons. Tourism Policy proposes to increase it to 15% by the year 2020.


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OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

(1) To establish Himachal Pradesh as a leading tourist destination in the countryand abroad.

(2) To make tourism a prime engine for economic development and prosperity of the State and as a major means for providing employment.(3) To encourage a strong and sustainable private sector participation in creationof tourism infrastructure especially through public private partnerships.(4) To promote sustainable tourism, which is not only environmentally compatiblebut also leads to economic betterment of the rural people.(5) To attract quality tourist and to increase their stay in the State.(6) To safeguard the State s natural and manmade heritage.(7) To encourage civil societies & non-governmental organizations for promotion& the conducting of tourism related activities.(8) To position Himachal Pradesh as a one stop destination for adventure tourism.


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PLAN OF THE STUDYHimachal Tourism - A SWOT Analysis

An analysis of Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunitiesand Threats (SWOT):STRENGTHS:1. One of the rare places in the world offering five distinct seasons, thus havingpotential to attract tourist inflow round the year.2. Political and Social stability.3. Recognized as a peaceful and hospitable State.4. Salubrious climate.5. Pollution free environment.6. Offers a rare conglomerate of eco-tourism, pilgrimage, adventure, culture,heritage, leisure, wilderness etc.7. Fairly good infrastructure.8. High literacy.9. Rich history and heritage that has something to offer to all. Its Buddhistmonasteries, which are of thousand years of old, ancient temples, churches andcemeteries.10. Special package of incentives for setting up of tourism units.

WEAKNESSES:1. Negligible air and rail link in the State.2. Inadequate flow of foreign tourists.3. Non-disbursal of tourists round the year, putting severe strains on civicinfrastructure during the peak season.4. Lack of trained tourist guides at important tourist places and historical touristsites.5. Saturation at the established tourists destinations.6. No new major tourists destination has come up recently.7. Lack of adequate parking places at important tourist places.8. Poor marketing of the State abroad and inadequate marketing within thecountry.

9. Very little budget.10. Problem of land acquisition.11. Problem of conversion of forest land.


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OPPORTUNITIES:1. Strong potential for activity based tourism such as white water rafting, Para-gliding, trekking, mountaineering, water sports, mountain biking, Car Rallies etc..2. A strong base for heritage tourism to attract persons from all walks of society

and religious beliefs.3. To develop an ideal destination for nature lovers by promoting eco-tourism.4. Create synergy between heritage and pilgrimage tourism.5. Development of wetlands of the State to attract nature lovers especially birdwatchers.6. Promote the State as an open university and learning centre in mythology,anthropology and ornithology etc.7. Position it as an ideal destination for the film industry.8. Himachal has something to offer to persons of all ages, groups, beliefs and

interests. There is unlimited scope for development of varied tourist packages.9. Himachal can become one of the leading adventure destinations in the world.10. Promote wilderness tourism for lovers and seekers of nature, peace and quiet.11. Create new destinations in yet unexplored but beautiful areas. This would alsoease the burden on established tourist destinations.THREATS:1. Tremendous strain leading to collapse, at times, of civic amenities at leadingtourist destinations during the season.2. Haphazard growth & construction threatening the environment, especially at

the leading tourist destinations.3. An alarming growth of concrete structures creating a disharmony with the localenvironment.4. Unscrupulous commercialization of tourism could erode the social and culturalvalues.5. Aggressive competition amongst the leading tourists States and a strongpromotion of tourism by other States.6. Lack of coordinated strategy by the different Government Departments.7. A large increase in volume and limited increase in value.


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Analysis Using Porters Model An analysis was done using the Porters five forces model, concentrating mainlyon the customers. The five forces, according to Michael Porter, which everyindustry must take care of, are as follows:

Customers Competition Suppliers Substitutes New entrants (A) CustomersCustomers are the most important force to any industry. The industry existsbecause of them. The industry must therefore try to achieve maximum customersatisfaction. But todays customer is far more difficult to please and even more soin the tourism industry, it being a service. Todays customers have more optionsto choose from, they are more knowledgeable, more information is available tothem, and so on. Hence it is necessary that their needs and preferences areunderstood so that the tourism industry in Himachal can understand as to whereit stands in providing satisfaction to the tourists.The various satisfaction variables could be classified under the following factors orcomponents as follows:1. Infrastructural factors: Accommodation Transport Accessibility Shopping facilities Informative 2. Services and Safety factors: Catering Entertainment Local people Safety 3. Necessities: Food Water Amenities


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4. Cost related factors: Prices Value for money 5. Natural or unique factors: Scenery Climate Overall satisfaction. It can be noticed that overall satisfaction is clubbed with variables like sceneryand climate thus suggesting that a tourists satisfaction depends largely on aplaces unique offerings. Here satisfaction of a tourist is related to the primeofferings of Himachal i.e. scenery and climate infrastructural factors, servicefactors, necessities, cost factors and natural or unique factors.. (B) Competition Himachal faces various levels of competition in the tourism industry. Within Indiaitself there is competition from other hill stations like: Darjeeling Nilgiris ( Ooty ) Uttaranchal Jammu & Kashmir It also faces competition at a higher level from other tourist spots in India like: Goa Kerala Rajasthan At the international mountain tourism level there are big players like: Switzerland New Zealand Alaska To counteract these various levels of competition, Himachal must find ways todifferentiate itself from others with its unique offerings and position itself uniquely in the minds of the people. For this it must build a unique sellingproposition (USP). To match international competition it must first benchmarkitself with them . (C) Suppliers

Suppliers in the tourism indicate all the service providers like: Airline industry Railways Travel agents


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Locals Hotel industry Government Service, unlike a product, has different characteristics like intangibility,

inseparability, variability, perishability, etc. To manage these, the use of thefollowing 3 Ps will come in handy- Physical evidence People Place (D) SubstitutesThe substitutes to Himachal tourism are any other options that a person wouldlike to do on a holiday like: Religious gatherings is gaining ground

Internet Television Video games Parks These substitutes although do not directly affect tourism, they can still be adeterrent to it. Instead of traveling to far off distances for a holiday, todays manfinds easy entertainment from the above. Also the concept of an annual holiday isyet to catch up in India. They must therefore be used to ones own advantage bymaking them available at the tourist spots.

(E) New EntrantsEach state in India is now beginning to realize the potential of tourism and thusare uniquely positioning themselves like: Temples in Tamil Nadu Wild life in Assam


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. RESEARCH DATA

1. Number of Tourist visited H.P. in previous years

YEAR TOURIST ARRIVAL (in lakhs) TOTALINDIAN FOREIGNER

2005 69.28 2.08 71.362006 76.72 2.81 79.532007 84.82 3.39 88.212008 93.73 3.77 97.502009 110.37 4.01 114.382010 128.12 4.51 132.66

(Source: Tourism Deptt. H.P.)

2. Number of Tourist visited H.P. in 2011 District wise

DISTRICT TOURIST TOTALINDIAN FOREIGNER

Bilaspur 962061 86 962147Chamba 786163 3253 789416Hamirpur 554970 12 554982Kangra 161232 91709 1722941Kinnaur 384936 18742 403678Kullu 2395990 133707 25296997Lahul-Spiti 362660 59125 421785Mandi 1006418 10485 1016903Shimla 2485564 127737 2613301Sirmaur 748599 2712 751311Solan 673932 5780 679712Una 819461 268 819729

(Source:Tourism Deptt. H.P.)


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FINDINGS AND SUGGESTIONSFINDINGS ON THE BASIS OF SWOT ANALYSIS

Strengths: Pleasant weather which is ideal for the tourists to come f or the annual summerholiday to escape the scorching heat of the plains. Scenic beauty of the Himalayas, which draws tou rists away from the crowdedand polluted towns and cities. Terrain is ideally suited for various adventure activities. Some very well known tourist hill- stations. It can attract tourists all throughout the year. Hospitable people Weaknesses: Inadequacy of transport facilities Funds constraining the development of regions. Inadequacy of information channels. Overcrowding of popular tourist centres. Some places are inaccessible, especially in winter. Inadequacy of marketing. Lack of adequate infrastructural support .

Opportunities: The concept of holidaying is gaining popularity in India among various classes of

people. Increased disposable incomes of the Indian middle class. Adventure sports and trekking. Eco - tourism is gaining popularity. Himachal contains many unexplored regions .Threats: Kashmir is being opened up and could divert a large portion of to urists to itself. Various other places in India are providing stiff competition. Environmental factors also impose a threat .


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FINDINGS ON THE BASIS OF PORTER`S ANALYSISThe findings of the study indicated the following with particular reference toHimachal Pradesh. Holidaying is the most common purpose of visit to Himachal Pradesh. This is a

fact that must be leveraged to accrue benefits. People who came for religiouspurposes were mostly from nearby places in North India. Hotels are the most used means of accommodation used by tourists while thereare few takers for camping and guest houses. The average duration of stay was found to 5 days which is not too long not tooshort. Himachal should find means to elongate the stay by providing thenecessary offerings. Most of the tourists used bus for reaching Himachal Pradesh. Railways andairways must be provided to facilitate convenience to the tourists in reaching

Himachal. Word of mouth was found to be the most eff ective method of communicationin influencing the tourist to choose Himachal as a tourist destination. Othermediums of information also should be used effectively to get across the requiredmessage. Holidaying in Himachal is done generally with the company of ones family and relatives. Visiting with friends is also an option. Therefore group travel is morepreferred in this region. Tourist traffic is concentrated to few places like Shimla, Ku llu, Manali, etc.

A large portion of Himachal is yet to be explored . It can be noticed that overallsatisfaction is clubbed with variables like scenery and climate thus suggesting thata tourists satisfaction depends largely on a places unique offerings. Here satisfaction of a tourist was related to the prime offerings of Himachal i.e.scenery and climate infrastructural factors, service factors, necessities, costfactors and natural or unique factors. Packaged tours have been used by a very small numb er of tourists. Thesatisfaction gained in using them are not so significantly different from not using

them. But there were factors like catering, food, etc which were more satisfactoryfor those who had used a packaged tour. Most of the people felt that Himachal Pradesh had the potential of becomingone of the worlds top tourist destination. Their opinion was based on the factthat Himachal has the natural beauty and climate and if the other facilities couldbe improved then it certainly could become a top destination.


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Peoples expectations in Himachal were g enerally met with but they depend onthe presence of necessities and infrastructural facilities. Himachal is compared more attractive than similar places in India by mostpeople but it is equally or not so attractive when compared to places abroad.

Inconveniences faced by the tourists during the visit to HimachalPradesh: Many respondents did not mention any inconveniences , but those that werementioned were quite common to most of the respondents. Some of theinconveniences faced were: Lack of t ransport facilities Water shortage in summer months

Bad and zig -zag roads High population concentrated in certain places Expensive (especially in the peak periods) High bus fares Lack of proper information available to tourists Land slides Locals and coolies occasionally taking advantage of tourists Lack of shopping facilities catering to the upper segment No diverse culinary (ex: difficult to find catering of South Indian food).

Packaged tours should be used. The satisfaction gained in using them are not sosignificantly different from not using them. But there were factors like catering,food, etc which were more satisfactory for those who had used a packaged tour. Most of the people felt that Himachal Pradesh had the potential of becomingone of the worlds top tourist destination. Their opinion was based on the factthat Himachal has the natural beauty and climate and if the other facilities couldbe improved then it certainly could become a top destination. Peoples expectation s in Himachal were generally met with but they depend onthe presence of necessities and infrastructural facilities.

Himachal is compared more attractive than similar places in India by mostpeople but it is equally or not so attractive when compared to places abroad.


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RECOMMENDATIONS AND SUGGESTIONS Himachal must be able to provide hotels to cater to all segments of the society.It must market its camping facilities more and ensure that they are safe to use.Packaged tours also have to be marketed.

It must open avenues for business opportunities, could be tourism related itself,and cash on its vast religious backdrop. Railways must be given a boost so that long distance travel becomes easy. Lowcost airlines and helicopter services also can be used to reach the inaccessibleregions depending on the climatic conditions. Entertainment facilities must be provided in order to ensure a longer stay by thetourists. They must have a unique thing to take back with them. Newer sources of communication like the internet must be used effectively toinfluence and advertise. Family entertainment facilities must be developed. More playgrounds and parksmust be made. Schools can also be targeted for excursions. Create new planned tourist destination spo ts from the unexplored regionswhich must be opened up at least in the peak months. Basic infrastructural facilities have to be developed further. Roads need to beimproved. Parking space must be provided. Basic necessities must be provided. Water availability has to be catered to. Adiverse range of culinary must be provided to cater to the wants of tourists fromvarious places across India and the globe. Shopping facilities need a boost. Shopping malls can be opened up. Information must be available to tourists at all places. Eco -tourism must be developed and promoted. Exploitation of tourists by locals must be minimized. Facilities for higher educ ation must be improved. Local culture and handicrafts must be promoted. Congestion in popular tourist spots must be dispersed. It can attract more movie makers since it is endowed with scenic spots. A filmcity could also be built for this purpose. Insurance could be available to tourists, especially for adventurers. Private participation in developing tourism must be given a boost. Melas and festivals must be held so as to include the tourists. Rope cars, skiing and other facilities can be pr ovided. Orchards and forests may be promoted as tourist picnic spots.


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Himachal emporiums across India must be able to act as agents for promotingHimachal tourism. International cricket matches and other sports could act as marketing agents totourism.

Celebrity endorsements could help to market tourism. More advertising in media, magazines, etc are needed. Guided tours could be improved and promoted. Cleanliness and environmental sustainability must be taken care of. It could endorse vacati ons for prize winning lotteries. Role of government and travel agents needs to be emphasized. Keeping all the stakeholders in mind, a sustainable strategy is needed. The Tourism Dept. in collaboration with the Dept. of Art, Language and Culture

shoul d organize Talent Hunt on the lines of INDIAN IDOL by appropriately

naming the event ( Himachal ki shaan.suggestion only) and identify the bestartistes of Himachal Pradesh. These best Artistes of Himachal could be exposed tothe visiting Tourists in various Hotels. This will not only help in identifying the newtalent and enabling them acquiring new means of livelihood, but also helppromote our culture

ON THE BASIS OF PORTER`S MODEL Provision of required information in tourism centers Clean and maintain the environment in certain places Improve roads and transport facilities

Shopping complexes Provision for hot water More coverage in the media More parking space Diverse culinary must be available Presence of hotels for the lower segment in peak months Clinics must be provided Non-exploitation by locals Parks and play grounds must be provided Improve higher education facilities Should be well connected and accessible More entertainment facilities for tourists Display of required information Publicize local handicrafts


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All the above information is very valuable as it directly provides the attitudes,behaviour, needs, wants, preferences, etc of the tourists, which are very helpful inbuilding marketing strategies to encourage tourism.


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tourism promotion amended

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