Skift Take
Religious travel is a significant aspect of tourist in India. Nevertheless, overcrowding at crucial religious locations frequently leads to potential dangerous circumstances such as stampedes. Uttarakhand has actually taken its initial step to resolve this problem, and Madhya Pradesh is now likely to follow.
Bulbul Dhawan
The central state of Madhya Pradesh might present a traveler registration system for its spiritual sites, consisting of the Mahakaleshwar Temple in Ujjain, Skift has gained from sources. The relocation aims to take on the concern of overtourism and overcrowding at the state’s leading traveler destinations.
The registration system is in line with Uttarakhand’s obligatory registration for expedition to the temples of Badrinath, Kedarnath, Gangotri, Yamunotri, or Hemkund Sahib.
“We wish to guarantee that we top the number of travelers according to our infrastructure capabilities, so that we can provide visitors with a great experience,” according to sources. However, this is still in the planning phase and the information are yet to be settled.
Tourism Boom in Madhya Pradesh: The government of Madhya Pradesh recently revealed that it got over 112 million travelers in 2023, going beyond pre-Covid levels.
This was substantially greater than the 34.1 million visitors taped in 2022, a boost of almost 230%.
Places of spiritual significance are often gone to by a great deal of people, specifically during celebrations and religious events, causing overcrowding and overtourism. This has actually led the state to explore measures such as compulsory registration of travelers for these locations, sources included.
Religious Travel and Its Effect: Nearly 50% of the travelers that checked out the state last year checked out Ujjain, primarily due to its spiritual significance. The second most-visited city in Madhya Pradesh was Maihar, another destination of spiritual significance. Omkareshwar was also a popular traveler location with almost 3.5 million pilgrims going to the city.
Places of religious travel in India witness significant pilgrimage. In the very first two months after the revamp of Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya and the opening of a questionable Hindu temple, the city experienced over 11 million tourists. A report by brokerage company Jeffries estimates that the city might bring in over 50 million visitors yearly.
Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh got an upgrade with the Kashi-Vishwanath corridor in December 2021. Post that, in 2022 and 2023, a cumulative 130 million tourists went to the pilgrim town, Skift previously reported.
Information released by India’s ministry of tourism revealed that in 2022, over 1.4 billion tourists went to spiritual websites throughout the nation. Additionally, locations of religious tourism earned INR 1340 billion (over $16 billion) throughout the year.
MakeMyTrip Introduces New Characteristic for Train Reservations
India’s largest online travel company MakeMyTrip has presented brand-new features for guests reserving their train journeys using the platform.
Seat Lock Feature: This function aims to allow guests to protect a confirmed ticket by paying a quarter of the fee at the time of reservation, with the remaining payable as much as 24 hours before the journey. This, the company stated, would enable travelers with unsure plans to have actually a guaranteed ticket in case they choose to take a trip.
Linked Travel: This assists travelers combine bus and train journeys and supplies numerous combinations while considering layover time and total travel period to provide the consumer with various options. Validated tickets are not constantly offered on direct trains or trains of option for the preferred date of travel, MakeMyTrip said this function offers more choices to travelers.
Apart from these the other new features are: Route Extension Support, Neighboring Stations Suggestions, Free Cancellation, Food in Train, and Train Tracking and Platform Locator.
Co-Founder and Group CEO Rajesh Magow said the new features serve the entire thread of train travel– from preparation and determining the right train, to the actual purchase experience and all the way through to pre-arrival stages.
Cygnett Hotels to Open 15 Hotels Over Next Year
Cygnett Hotels and Resorts is set to open 15 hotels consisting of 1,200 secrets over the next year, the company exposed throughout its yearly fulfill. Currently, the business has 10 homes under advancement and in the pre-opening stage.
In the next three months, the group will be opening brand-new hotels in Sonipat (near Delhi), Mahad in Maharashtra, and Jaipur. The business cited a report launched by HVS, stating that it was ranked second in brand-new hotel finalizings in 2023.
At present, Cygnett has about 20 operational properties throughout India and Nepal, and plans to increase this number to 33 by the end of 2024. It is especially looking at northern and northeastern regions in India to expand its presence.
55% Surge in Bus Ticket Demands in Delhi
There has been a 55% increase in the demand for bus tickets in Delhi, according to online bus ticketing platform redBus. This is in line with the summer season holidays in the Indian capital city.
In order to accommodate the increased demand, private bus operators are running more than 1,400 daily services from Delhi, the company stated.
Neighboring locations such as Manali, Kasol, Shimla, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Dehradun, Nainital, and Agra are seeing the most significant need for bus travel this summertime.
“The data highlights the vital necessity of bus travel to meet the increased demand during this essential duration and the growing trend of Indians indulging in leisure travel,” said redBus CEO Prakash Sangam.