Religious Tourism

Facing netizens' outrage over its newspaper advertisement, travel tech unicorn OYO on Friday clarified that the ad was meant to promote religious tourism in India and not hurt any religious sentiments. Several users took to social media platform X to raise objections to the phrase 'God is Everywhere. And so is OYO' in the advertisement about company-serviced stays in spiritual destinations including Ajmer, Ayodhya, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Mathura, Amritsar, Shirdi, Ujjain, among others. "Our intention behind the recent advertisement was to promote religious tourism in India, and not hurt any religious sentiments," OYO stated. "We have immense respect for the diverse faiths and beliefs of our country and celebrate India's rich spiritual traditions," it added. The company further explained that as more Indians embrace spiritual tourism, it is dedicated to enhancing this sacred experience - "and that is what we wanted to highlight through the advertisement". OYO has announced plans to a

Through history, the Mela has held different meanings for ascetics, the colonised, colonisers, and tourists-but all have been moved by its grandeur

Religious tourism accounts for over 60 per cent of domestic travel in India, according to a report by KPMG

Travel tech unicorn OYO on Wednesday said it is planning to add 500 hotels in religious hubs, including Ayodhya, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Puri, Haridwar, Mathura, Vrindavan, Amritsar, Ujjain, Ajmer, Nasik, and Tirupati, this year. The announcement comes at a time when religious tourism in the country is booming and the government has launched several initiatives that aim to improve infrastructure at tourist sites and develop tourist attractions, including the PRASHAD scheme, the Ramayana Circuit, and the Swadesh Darshan Scheme. In a statement, OYO said it will add over 150 hotels in Ayodhya, 100 in Varanasi and 50 each in Prayagraj, Haridwar, and Puri. Ayodhya also topped the list of most-searched religious destination for new year holidays, emerging as a major spiritual tourism destination. "This move comes in response to the surging demand for quality accommodation following the inauguration of the Ram temple last year. Ayodhya has also gained significant traction as the most-searche

Puri, Varanasi and Haridwar are the most travelled spiritual destinations while Hyderabad is India's top-booked city this year, according to OYO's 'Travelopedia 2024' annual report unveiled on Tuesday. The report delves into travel patterns and trends, with its findings based on the booking data of the travel tech major for the entire year. "In India, religious tourism continued to be a key focus, with Puri, Varanasi, and Haridwar dominating the pilgrimage sector. However, a significant trend emerged with Deoghar, Palani, and Govardhan experiencing substantial growth, indicating a shift towards less explored spiritual destinations..."OYO stated. Following Hyderabad, cities like Bengaluru, Delhi, and Kolkata rounded out the top spots for bookings, with Uttar Pradesh maintaining its position as the most popular state for travel. High volume of bookings were reported from Maharashtra, Telangana, and Karnataka, which continue to be dominant travel contributors. Smaller towns like Patna

The portals of the Badrinath Dham in Uttarakhand will be closed for the winter season at 9.07 pm on November 17, the temple committee said on Saturday. As per tradition, the "mahurat" of the closing date and time was decided on the occasion of Vijayadashami on Saturday after an assessment of the Hindu calendar and the position of the celestial bodies, Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee Chairman Ajendra Ajay said. More than 11 lakh pilgrims visited Badrinath this year while Kedarnath witnessed a footfall of over 13.5 lakh devotees. As per an earlier announcement, Kedarnath and Yamunotri will be closed on November 3 and Gangotri on November 2. Similarly, the doors of Rudranath will be closed on October 17, Tungnath on November 4 and Madhyamaheshwar on November 20. The temples in Uttarakhand which draw lakhs of devotees each year from across the country and abroad are closed during winter as they remain covered in snow.

Uttarakhand Finance Minister Prem Chand Agarwal on Monday said the GST Council has decided to cut tax on helicopter services for religious travels to 5 per cent. The 54th meeting of the GST Council, chaired by Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, is currently underway. "Helicopter services for religious purposes like Kedarnath, Badrinath has been reduced to 5 per cent from 18 per cent. There was no clarity on this. After this, there will be clarity," Agarwal told reporters. The Council is slated to deliberate on a host of issues, including lowering of taxes on life and health insurance premiums, as well as levy of GST on payment aggregators for small digital transactions up to Rs 2,000, via debit and credit cards. Agarwal further said the Council has referred the issues of levy of 18 per cent GST on payment aggregators (PAs), like BillDesk and CCAvenue, for small digital transactions up to Rs 2,000, via debit and credit cards to the fitment committee. Currently, payment ...

The Uttar Pradesh government is set to expand electricity-based adventure water activities and boat ride facilities in Ayodhya and Varanasi to boost religious tourism. The government is on the verge of starting the operation of four specialised electric boats in both cities, according to an official statement. "Under the scheme, one air-conditioned electric boat with a 50-seat capacity and two electric boats with 30-seat capacities each will be operated from Nayaghat on the Saryu River in Ayodhya," it said. "In Varanasi, a 50-seater air-conditioned electric boat will soon be available for tourists at Ravidas Ghat on the Ganga River," it added. The state-of-the-art AC boats will have a steel catamaran hull, while the non-air-conditioned ones will feature an FRP catamaran hull, the government said. The ghats will have the facilities for the docking and charging of these boats, which will be managed by the Uttar Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation. The boats will initially

The decision comes months after the demise of Sahara India's Subrata Roy, who was the principal shareholder and investor in the firm

UP tourism minister Jaiveer Singh directed the officials to promote and market the various Buddhist Circuit destinations of UP at the national and international levels

Tourism contributes roughly 12-14% to the state economy and employs over 7.5 million to 8 million, the third largest after agriculture and textiles

Muslim pilgrims have been streaming into Saudi Arabia's holy city of Mecca ahead of the start of the Hajj later this week, as the annual pilgrimage returns to its monumental scale. Saudi officials say more than 1.5 million foreign pilgrims have arrived in the country by Tuesday, the vast majority by air, from across the world. More are expected, and hundreds of thousands of Saudis and others living in Saudi Arabia will also join them when the pilgrimage officially begins on Friday. Saudi officials have said they expect the number of pilgrims this year to exceed 2023, when more than 1.8 million people performed Hajj, approaching pre-pandemic levels. In 2019, more than 2.4 million Muslims made the pilgrimage. The pilgrims included 4,200 Palestinians from the occupied West Bank who arrived in Mecca earlier this month, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Awqaf and Religious Affairs. Palestinians in the Gaza Strip were not able to travel to Saudi Arabia for Hajj this year, because

Record tourist influx and government investments drive property prices up in temple cities

Uttarakhand Chief Secretary said that in order to streamline the process of Darshan at the Dhams, state government has started a process of registration for Chardham Yatra

Chief Minister Mohan Yadav on Monday invited governments of other states to build dharmshalas (lodging facilities) at prominent religious spots in Madhya Pradesh for the visiting devotees. Yadav chaired a cabinet meeting before leaving for Ayodhya where he, state ministers and their wives are scheduled to offer prayers at the Lord Ram temple later in the day. The chief minister termed the Ayodhya visit a "very important occasion" and said the government will expedite the implementation of various decisions regarding the development of religious spots in MP. "Our government will also make efforts to build a dharmshala (lodging facility) in Ayodhya for pilgrims of Madhya Pradesh. We will also try to provide land to governments of other states for (constructing) dharmshalas at prominent religious places in MP for pilgrims from their states," Yadav said. Since a large number of people from various parts of the country visit the famous temples in Ujjain and Omkareshwar in MP, government

These projects - planned across leading religious tourism hotspots, including Ayodhya and Varanasi - pertain to hotels, resorts, guest houses, infrastructure development etc

Religious tourism is expected to create up to 2 lakh job opportunities in the next 4-5 years, global technology and digital talent solutions provider NLB Services CEO Sachin Alug said. Religious tourism has been gaining momentum in India and is expected to grow annually at over 16 per cent between 2023 and 2030, Alug said. According to him, the segment accounts for 60 per cent of domestic tourism. "In the next 4-5 years, religious tourism is anticipated to create up to two lakh job opportunities. With a projected revenue of USD 60 billion by 2028, religious tourism will open employment avenues for both temporary and permanent workers," Alug told PTI. According to industry reports, the number of overnight journeys for pilgrimages went up post-Covid and there was a 14 per cent rise in donations in 2021-2022, he said. The recent inauguration of Ram Mandir in Ayodhya could further boost religious tourism, he said. "The inauguration of Ram Mandir alone is expected to add nearly 25,000

After Ayodhya, SpiceJet plans to expand its business over the next two years and increase connectivity between various tourist and religious destinations including Lakshadweep, the airline's chief Ajay Singh said. The domestic carrier has also plans to operate seaplanes and is awaiting infrastructure development for water ports, the CMD told PTI in an interaction. "I think this is the time to expand. SpiceJet will do its utmost to expand its business over the next two years. We want to connect many tourist destinations, religious tourism, medical tourism, places like Lakshadweep," Singh said in reply to a question on company's expansion plan. According to Sing, the airline already has the licence to operate seaplanes and plans are in the works to connect several locations through seaplane services. On February 1, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union Civil Aviation Minister Jyotiraditya Scindia, and Minister of State V K Singh jointly inaugurated SpiceJet's direct fli

What does Ayodhya mean for the future of religious tourism? Will the Interim Budget boost welfare expenditure? Will Ayodhya-related stock rally continue? What's CAT III-B landing system? Answers here

An airport, railway station, connecting highways, roads, water, and power projects are among the initiatives announced ahead of the Ram Mandir temple consecration ceremony on January 22