Atna Journal of Tourism Studies

A Comparative Study on Tourist Preference for Homestay Destinations among Darjeeling, Kalimpong and Sikkim

Shomnath Dutta — 2024-02-09

In the hill bound nature based tourism, popularity of Homestays has been growing very fast in the Hilly regions of India and same trend has been witnessed in the two hilly districts of West Bengal, Darjeeling & Kalimpong and in Sikkim too. This present study was an attempt to investigate the competitive tourist pulling capability of such homestay based tourist destinations from the perspective of tourist’s preference upon destination attractiveness. In this study the multi-criteria decision-making tool TOPSIS has been used to assess the present competitive position of these destinations and finally paired sample t-test was applied for identifying any difference in tourist’s preferences among these three destinations. Interestingly the result portrayed a tight neck to neck competition with marginal difference in TOPSIS score and paired t-test confirmed the presence of significant statistical difference in homestay tourist’s preference for these hotspots of this region. Though Darjeeling is found slightly ahead marginally of others but facing a fierce competition indicating serious concern for tourism policy-makers, infrastructure upgradation etc. in order to give an edge over the other two rivals.

Examining the Impact of Climate Change on Tourism Sector of Uttarakhand : An Exploratory Study

Megha Jacob — 2024-01-31

Uttarakhand is recognized for its scenic beauty, fertile terrain and a rich cultural and religious heritage. Deriving a major proportion of its income from tourism and allied services, the tourism industry has become indispensable for its residents and for its government. However, the region is highly vulnerable to natural calamities like earthquakes, floods, forest fires and landslides due to its geography. Uncontrolled influx of tourists and pilgrims, unplanned construction of tourism-related infrastructure in eco-sensitive zones, massive greenhouse gas emissions, humongous waste generation and improper disposal have all added to the environmental degradation of this region. Hence, precarious condition of the terrain, rapid infrastructure development in addition to unplanned tourism and unregulated urbanisation have all led to highly volatile climatic conditions in recent decades and experts suggest that the situation will only get worse. The 2013 Kedarnath floods, the 2016 wildfires as well as the numerous reported landslides and earthquakes bear testimony to this fact. These in turn have an adverse impact on the tourism of the state. In 2016, Uttarakhand reported a sharp drop in tourist numbers after wildfires. In this paper we explore the question of sustainability of the tourism sector in Uttarakhand. We also intensively cover the various stakeholders of the tourist industry of the state, namely NGOs, Tourists, Local Communities, Local Businesses and Hotels and how losses to the same impact them. We study these impacts by using secondary data from secondary sources and primary data through interviews conducted by the authors, of locals in Rishikesh working at Tiny Lab Farm - a rural design and research studio. The authors also conducted a case study on Joshimath, which is an evident example of a tourism-dependent town in Uttarakhand, at the brink of losing its mainstay, as a result of environmental degradation. Opposing the idea of climate change being a problem of the future, the case study showcases the urgency of the situation by providing a sequential background on the course of events and its impact on tourism, as can be observed in real-time. Finally, the last section of the paper is a brief policy analysis of the current policies adopted by the government. The authors conclude that an increased community participation, usage of eco-friendly and locally sourced construction materials, promotion of tourism practices which are traditional and sustainably, a reassessment of forest laws, proper waste management, resurging indigenous practices and an increased involvement of women and elderly in the industry can pave the way for a balanced and sustained future of the tourism industry.

Keywords: Climate Change, Tourism, Uttarakhand, Policy Recommendations

JEL: O180, Q26, Q54, Z320, Z38

Festival and Urban Space: A Systematic Literature Review

Nidhi Sachdeva — 2024-01-31

Festival studies is not only an important field of research for tourism or event industry but is also critical for an architectural and urban design field. Due to the amount of the progress done in this field by many inter-disciplinary areas, the subsequent corpus of research on festivals appears to be relatively disintegrated. Through a systematic literature review (SLR) from 2000 to 2021, this paper examined festivals studies from tourism to urban design disciplines. In this paper, descriptive and thematic analysis were carried out to analyse the state of existing research in order to understand the concept of festival studies. The purpose is to describe a SLR that intends to establish the knowhow on festival spaces and try to explore the advancement in the field and deliver potential research directions. The corpus thus helps us in establishing the topic which is very least investigated and would need more research on.

An Analysis on the Trend and Pattern of Tourism in India with Special Reference to Medical Tourism

T.D. Simon Thermadham — 2024-01-31

Tourism in India has not received the due attention both in macro policy formulation and research. The present study tries to make an attempt to analyse the trend and pattern of domestic tourism based on the unit level data of NSSO. Medical tourism, which is an important component of tourism in India, shows a comparatively higher growth over the years, but especially after 2006 a lower growth rate and the covid pandemic accentuated this trend. Wide disparity could be seen among the states as well as across socio-economic groups in India. A higher share for health and medical tourists was visible among the vulnerable group. The marginalized groups like old age groups, tourism from rural area, SC/ST groups, lowest MPCE group and disabled persons had a higher chance to report medical tourism compared to their counterparts. As against the findings of the previous studies, the present study confirms comparatively higher participation of vulnerable groups.

Bibliometric Analysis of Sustainable Practices in the Hotel Industry: Current Trends and Future Research Directions

Iqra Sajad Khan — 2024-01-31

This research was conducted with the purpose of providing a bibliometric overview of sustainable practices in hotels. Following the PRISMA framework and using the Scopus database, a total of 228 articles were selected to analyse the trends and developments in sustainable practices in hotels. The results revealed that the International Journal of Hospitality Management is the prominent source of choice for the authors to publish the hotel’s sustainability practice research. Additionally, the findings of prolific authors showed that Acampora A was the leading author. The thematic analysis identified three themes based on various aspects of sustainable hotel practices. Based on the findings, implications and future research suggestions were provided .

A Rung Towards the Digitalization of Tourism Services in India; Assessment of Individual Perceptions using Technology Acceptance Model

Johnpaul M — 2024-01-31

The world has seen a radical change through the digital revolution. These Technologies have facilitated the entire Economy to run on the device, making all regular day-to-day activities easy, convenient, and more efficient. The mass adoption of digital technologies by consumers, enterprises, and governments has accelerated the Economy's growth rate. It can play an essential role in spurring economic growth and employment. However, the research literature shows that the impact of digitalization by country and sectors is uneven (Sabbagh, K. et al. 2014). Digital initiatives not only has positive connotation but has created a digital divide among the demographics across the communities (Benda et al., 2011). The study employs the TAM (Davis, 1989) model to analyze the Behavioural Intentions and Attitudes of the customers towards Technology Acceptance in tourism in India. The data is collected through questionnaires from regular travelers visiting tourist destinations across India using Snowball sampling techniques, the main means is Google Forms. Data analysis is executed by using SPSS software to find the R Square coefficient to test the influence of independent variables on dependent variables using a multiple regression model to analyze the TAM constructs to examine individual perceptions towards digital technologies in the Tourism sector in India.

Editorial

Bindi Varghese — 2024-01-31