Adventure Tourism In India Tourism Essay
Adventure tourism is an extremely confusing term. The definition of this term varies from person to person, organization to organization. However the nearest definition to what majority would agree is Outdoor activity involving the natural environment where the outcome perceived by the participants is unknown.
World history of Adventure Tourism
It is difficult to trace its origin but first adventure travelers were merchants. To brush up your memories a bit here are a few example; Erickson discovered North America. Columbus discovered America and Vasco Da Gama found out India. But that was when modernization had not been a part of our daily lives.
The adventure travel as we know it today began three and held decades back when people started exploring the Nepalian Himalayan mountain ranges. The wanderers discovered all of this by accident. They traveled to Bhutan, Afganistan, Algeria Bali, Nile and very recently the Alps. In the world people have been going around but in India adventure has developed quiet recently. But the rise has been steady and India is believed to be one among the top ten destinations of the world.
Present Situation
In India tourism is the largest service industry bringing in 6.23% of the national GDP. It brings in 8.78% of the total employment of the country. Each year there is increase in number of tourists visiting India by 5 million mark. Besides foreigners, locals alone count up to 527 million. In US figures Indian tourism industry is a 100 billion dollar affair which is predicted to increase to 275.5 billion by next decade. All the credit can be given The Ministry of Tourism which is the main working institute behind promotion in India. To create interest in tourism, the ministry introduced an ‘Incredible India’ campaign. The punch line of this campaign is ‘Atithi Devo Bhava’ which means guest is our God.
Everything is not as rosy as it looks. India falls behind certain countries it faces serious issues in the face of inadequate number of hotel rooms. Until a year back India only had 25000 tourist hotel rooms. Other reason why tourism lags behind is that getting visa to the country is a complicated process. The Indian airports are crammed and foreigners do not take that fact too well. But despite all of it tourism is only expected to grow in the coming years.
This year saw a considerable decline in International tourism everywhere across the globe. But surprisingly the hospitality business in India was busy and flourishing. This happened as a result of service tax exemption and ending of fringe benefit tax.
This has resulted into luxurious expansive tourist destinations like the Kerala Backwaters or the Golden Triangle Tours to be affordable to foreign tourists. British have gone ahead and voted India as one of the top 10 overseas travel destinations.
Tourists that come to India are mesmerized by what they see here. The rich contrast of culture and varied topography topped with a huge diversification in weather is more than what a stranger in this land can handle. When he lands in a modern airport and when he steps out in the streets to honking horns and crammed streets with beggars on the roads and even cows sharing that space, the contrast mesmerizes. And this contrast is exactly what they come looking for. The colorful culture and vibrant helpful people, the lands, mountains and rivers, the religious places and thousand year old Yog tradition, India goes on attracting.
Major Adventure activities that you can avail here are:
Camel Safari
Thar Desert safari is one of Asia’s most popular adventure holidays. This safari also takes you through camel treks. These include camel treks which pass through the sand dunes of Jaisalmer.
Mountaineering
The Himalayan mountain ranges are the major reason why mountaineering and other related activities are so popular here. The mountains are perfect for rock climbing and rappelling. The gorges and valleys are challenging. People who go mountaineering also try jeep safaris, bike trips as well as biking trips to these high altitudes.
Elephant Safari
The large number of national parks and tiger reserves in India makes elephant safari the most done activity in India. Be it in Jaipur in the Amber fort or seeing the tiger from behind the elephants back, th experience of sitting on this giant animal is one you can never forget.
Scuba Diving
The long coast line of India makes scuba diving a much sought after sport. The marines’ life in the Andaman and Nicobar Island, Lakshadeep and Goa are so rich that one can have a helluva time simple snorkeling.
Skiing
Abundant snow and mountain in the winters make skiing a sport for all age group. Skiing in Alchi or any other cold place is a very obvious activity among tourists.
White Water Rafting in India
The rivers like Ganges, Brahmaputra, Kali and Yamuna are turbulent and offer great opportunities to the tourists to try white water rafting.
As much there is for a person to desire, India goes on quenching the thirst of all the adventure lovers.
