TABLE OF CONTENT

CHAPTER NAME & No.

PAGE NO.

CHAPTER 1:

INTRODUCTION 2-6
CHAPTER 2 :
CONCEPT AND SIGNIFICANCE OF YOUTH
TOURISM..7-13
CHAPTER 3:
LATEST TRENDS IN YOUTH TOURISM...14-16
CHAPTER 4 :
SCOPE OF YOUTH TOURISM.17-24
CHAPTER 5:
LITERATURE REVIEW..25-30
CHAPTER 6 :
RESEARCH METHODOLOGY3132
CHAPTER 7 :
OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY.33-35
CHAPTER 8 :
OUTLINE OF THE DISSERTATION..

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION

INTRODUCTION
I simple terms Tourism is the act of travel for the purposes of leisure, pleasure or business, and
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the provision of services for this act. There are two important components that make up tourism.
These are the practice of travelling for pleasure recreation etc. and the business of providing tours
and services for persons travelling. The issues incorporated in the first component are
discretionary income i.e. money to spend on non-essentials, the time involved and the
infrastructure in the form of accommodation facilities and means of transport. Other component
has four basic services to be provided for Tourists. These are, travel arrangements, board and
lodge, food and entertainment.
The United Nations Conference on International Travel and Tourism held in Rome in 1963
considered a definition and recommended that it be studied by the United Nations Statistical
Commission. A revised definition was prepared and adopted. The conference considered the term
Visitor as any person visiting a country1 other than that in which he has his usual place of
residence, for any reasons other than following an occupation remunerated from within the
country visited.

Definition
Tourists, i.e. temporary visitors staying at least twenty four hours in the country visited and the
purpose of whose journey can be classified under one of the following headings:
Leisure (recreation, holiday, health, study, religion and sport)
Business, family, mission, meeting.
Excursionists, i.e. temporary visitors staying less than twenty four hours in the country visited
(including travelers on cruises)

Types and Forms of Tourism

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While discussing the types and forms of tourism it is better to identify and consider the important parameters based
on which we get different types and forms of tourism. These types and forms of tourism are many and no single
source of information can cover all of these. But a detail knowledge and idea of destination resources, destination
environment and destination market analysis can introduce types and forms rightly. So, types and forms of tourism
are largely destination specific and ever changing keeping in view the changing market areas and demand aspects.

Eco-tourism
Tourism that combines local economic development, protection of the quality of the
environment and promotion of the natural advantages and the history of an area. The
combination of all or some of the above mentioned kinds of tourism could contribute
significantly to the development of tourism in any country. The availability of tourist packages
involving gastronomy, entertainment and information about the cultural wealth of a country
should be regarded as a priority issue for tourist agents, as it will reduce the concentration of
tourist activity in certain areas and will improve and enrich the tourist.

Rural Tourism
Any form of tourism that showcases the rural life, art, culture and heritage at rural locations,
thereby, benefiting the local community economically and socially as well as enabling
interaction between the tourists and the locals for a more enriching tourism experience an be
termed as rural tourism. It is multifaceted and may entail farm/agricultural tourism, cultural
tourism, nature tourism, adventure tourism, and eco- tourism. The stress of urban lifestyle has
led to this counter- urbanization approach to tourism. There are various factors that have lead
to this changing trend towards rural tourism like increasing levels of awareness, growing
interest in heritage and culture and improved accessibility and environmental consciousness,
Tourists like to visit villages to experience and live a relaxed and healthy lifestyle.

Ethnic Tourism
Ethnic tourism is travelling for the purpose of observing the cultural expressions of
lifestyles of truly exotic people. Such tourism is exemplified by travel to Panama to study the
San Blas Indians or to India to observe the isolated hill tribes of Assam. Typical
destination activities would include visits to native homes, attending traditional ceremonies
and dances, and possibly participating in religious rituals.

Event Based Tourism

Events are an effective way of attracting visitors. Sikkim has been operating a number of
successful, long-running events, and over recent years new events have been introduced.Major
themes of existing events could be Tibatean food, wine, yak riding, agricultural-related, fishing,

heritage and gardening. Irrespective of the events devised for Sikkim, it is essential that events
are: Relevant to community in which they are held; Spread visitation across the year and the
region; Support the theme for the town and region; Reinforce the name Sikkim and its
destinations in their publicity; and Create interest for both local residents and visitors.

Conferences
A noticeable trend in comparatively old destinations of Sikkim is the increasing emphasis on
MICE tourism. Opportunities exist to make greater use of Sikkim for conferences with a
separate positioning.
However, tourism related infrastructure development; quality
accommodation etc. need would need to be addressed for future.

Sports Tourism
Sikkim has an immense potentiality for adventure and sports. This highly specialized tourism
activity can ensure quality tourism with high per capita tourist expenditure. Recreational
fishing, trekking, bi-cycling, river running, mountaineering, By working with facility
owners/managers and representatives of sporting organizations, there may be potential for
organized sporting events to be developed during times when the facilities are not normally
used.

Cultural Tourism
The regions cultural assets need to be utilized to create interesting experience, opportunities for
visitors. The Aboriginal culture at Cherbourg is considered to be under-utilized as a tourism
product, given the high standard of facilities available at the community's visitor centre with its
arts, crafts and botanic gardens. Activities around the established farming venture have good
potential for further development.

Special Interest Tourism

Small Sikkim has a wide ranging scope for special interest tourism with many unique interest
and fabulous experience. Orchid, wine, tea, forests, horticulture and floriculture, ropeways,
helicopter services, lakes are some of the key interest components for unique experiences.

Wine Tourism
Wine tourism is special-interest travel based on the desire to visit wine-producing regions, or in
which travelers are induced to visit wine-producing regions, and wineries in particular, while
travelling for other reasons (Getz, 2000).This definition is a demand-side understanding of
tourism behavior. The emphasis is on understanding who engages in wine tourism, as well as
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why (e.g. motivation and preferences) and how (e.g. where they go or what they do). From the
destinations perspective (supply-side), wine tourism is developing and marketing wineries,
vineyards, wine events and wine-related themes to attract visitors. Considering both the demand
and supply side aspects of wine tourism in Sikkim it can be said that the State has a huge
potentiality for wine tourism.

Cave Tourism
South Sikkim and West Sikkim are very famous places for ancient caves. Caves, rocks and
Stupas are important resources for cultural and special interest tourists in Sikkim and almost all
North-Eastern states in India.

CHAPTER 2:
CONCEPT AND
SIGNIFICANCE OF YOUTH
TOURISM

Concept of Youth Tourism

Travellers, long term budget travelers, drifters, wanderers.
Youth tourism is a new, fast growing sector in the tourism industry.Youth tourism in a nutshell is
young travellers having preference for budget accommodation, emphasis on meeting other
travellers, independently organised, flexible travel schedule and longer rather than brief
holidays.
Youth tourism can be seen through modern initiatives including (but not limited to); travel,
backpacking, youth hostels, working holiday programs, education, student flights, cultural
exchange, backpacker transport, au pair, adventure tours, volunteering, internships, student
travel insurance, youth travel agents, tourism boards, internet cafes, language courses, student
identity cards and student exchange (World youth student and educational travel 2009).
Studies show youth tourists travel for purpose. Whether to experience a different culture learn a
language, volunteer, work or study .They are keen to experience the local lifestyle and meet
other people . In fact, youth tourism heavily promotes opportunities to socialize with fellow
travellers . The majority of youth tourism travel on a strict budget, sourcing cheap
accommodation enabling them to have a relatively long duration journey and spend their money
on a wide range of activities such as nature, culture and adventure. Interestingly enough, youth
tourism spends more money than those in other tourism sectors as they spend 4 times longer
travelling than the average visitor. Furthermore, youth tourists value their flexible itineraries.
They report the most memorable travel experiences are often those that are unexpected, and the
finest discoveries are those they make themselves.
Reputable youth tourism leaders such as Hostel International (HI) and Youth
Hostelling Australia (YHA) have created mission statements which support this new, fast
growing tourism industry. HI provides accommodation and programs to specifically help all,
especially the young, gain a greater understanding of the world and its people. HI aims to
promote global awareness through cross-cultural interaction, educate travellers and involve the
community through its hostel programs. Similarly, YHA aims to encourage their travellers to
approach their journeys as being open ended, free spirited, exploration, education and selfdevelopment.
Return home open eyed, open minded, grown up, laidback, chilled out, easy going, a little more
seriously and achieve self-development through travel .

SIGNIFICANCE OF YOUTH TOURISM

Todays generation of young people are more informed, more mobile and more adventurous
than
ever before. Youth travel is one of the fastest growing and most dynamic markets of the global
tourism sector. UNWTO estimates that around 20% of the 940 million international tourists
travelling the world in 2010 were young people. Yet the importance of this market goes far
beyond the numbers. Young people have been recognized by the United Nations as a major
force for development and social change. This is true also for tourism, with youth travellers
leading positive change in the sector, investing in local tourism businesses and championing
environmental protection. As such, youth travel is one of the most promising paths towards a
more responsible and sustainable tourism sector.
Youth travellers seeking to interact with and make a difference to the lives of local
communities have also been decisive in encouraging dialogue and mutual understanding
between cultures, the objective at the heart of the 2010-2011 UN International Year of Youth.
Over the last decade youth travel has seen rapid development. As the industry matures more
research is available to help fill out the picture of the motivations, needs and behaviours of
young travellers and the industry that serves them. It is clear from the research undertaken by
WYSE Travel Confederation and UNWTO that youth travel has moved beyond its original
status as a specialised tourism niche. The social, cultural and economic value of youth, student
and educational travel is increasingly recognised by employers, educational institutions,
official tourism organisations and governments worldwide. More than any other market
segment, youth and student travellers are leading with innovation and paving the way for
responsible tourism as they take responsibility for the impact of their travel ambitions on
climate change. These multiple, distinctive impacts of youth travel have much broader
relevance to the global tourism agenda and governments across the world are increasingly
taking a more active role in developing youth travel policies, products and marketing
campaigns.
Yet there is more that can be done. WYSE Travel Confederation and UNWTO believe that there
is great opportunity for governments, official tourism organisations and business leaders to
further their engagement with youth travel to the economic and social benefit of their long term
tourism policies and strategies.

Why Youth Travel is Important ???????

Youth travel is important because it is a market for the future not just for the future
development of the young people themselves, but also the places they visit. WYSE Travel
Confederation research shows that:
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 Young travellers often spend more than other tourists

Young travellers are likely to return and give more value to the
destination over their lifetime
Young travellers are a growth market globally, while the spending
power of older generations in Western economies may decline in the
long term
Young people are less likely to be deterred from travelling by terrorism,
political and civil unrest, disease or natural disasters
Young travellers are the pioneers who discover new destinations
Young travellers are at the cutting edge of using new technology
Young travellers gain cultural benefits from their travel, and contribute
to the places they visit
UNWTO and WYSE Travel Confederation are convinced that youth travel has moved far
beyond its original status as a specialised travel niche to become an important element of the
travel mix in any tourism destination. One of the reasons for this is that travel underpins many
different aspects of youth lifestyles. For young people:
Travel is a form of learning
Travel is a way of meeting other people
Travel is a way of getting in touch with other cultures
Travel is a source of career development
Travel is a means of self development
Travel is part of their identity you are where youve been.
Young people see travel as an essential part of their everyday lives, rather than just a brief
escape from reality. This has far-reaching consequences for the places they visit. Because of the
way they travel, the social and cultural consequences of hosting young people are becoming
even more important than the economic effects. The added value to be extracted from youth
travel lies in innovation, positioning, cultural links, international trade and exchange, social
support, education, learning support for local communities, and so on.

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ECONOMIC IMPORTANCE OF YOUTH TOURISM

Following points justifies the economic importance of Youth Tourism:

1) Youth travel is high value

Research by UNWTO and WYSE Travel Confederation indicates that the
international youth travel market generated US$ 165 billion in 2010. Young people
themselves are often money poor but time rich, which means they spend longer in
the destination than other tourists. The last WYSE Travel Confederation New
Horizons survey indicated that young travellers spent a total of US$2,600 on their
main trip, compared with an average of US$950 per trip for international tourists as
a whole. Because young people often take much longer trips than most other
tourists, they end up spending more. Young travellers visiting Australia for a stay of
six
months or more spent an average of AU$21,228 in the country in 2009. This
compares with an average international visitor spend of AU$3,313 per trip. One
secret to this greater spending power is being able to tap into the resources of their
(often time poor but money rich) parents and the ability to work to earn additional
money during their travels. For example a survey by Global Gossip in April 2009
indicated that 36% of young travelers were funded at least in part by their family.
The idea of parents paying for travel is now being extended into commercial gap
year and volunteer travel products, and extending into the work experience
market. An example of this is the extensive press coverage in the US and UK this
year about the
growing number of parents willing to pay upwards of US$ 9,000 to secure work
placements for their children. The high value of youth travel also lies in the
lifetime value that young
people deliver to destinations through their travel career. They often return to the
places they have visited in later life. In Australia, for example, research has
indicated that 54% of young travellers return there.

2) Youth markets are resilient

When the going gets tough, the young keep travelling. The recent economic crisis has underlined again
that young travellers are relatively intrepid, and are unlikely to be phased by economic problems,
political unrest or epidemics (WYSE Travel Confederation, Industry Review no.1: Youth and student
travel market 2011). In fact, there is even anecdotal evidence to suggest that young people may be
stimulated to take more long trips when the economy is poor if there are fewer job openings,many
young people consider taking a gap year or gaining some work experience until the economy picks up

11

again. Many are also engaging in what WYSE has termed funemployment using their redundancy
money or savings to have time out until a new job comes along. These trends are supported by the study
from Global Gossip, which shows that although some young travellers shortened their trips in the
downturn, just as many decided to stay away longer. The result is that youth markets tend to be less
volatile than the tourism market as a whole. Figures from the WYSE Travel Confederation Industry
Review indicated that although the youth sector was affected by the crisis, it generally declined less and
recovered faster than mainstream tourism.

3) An Economic Impact Felt At Local Level

Because they travel for longer periods, young people also tend to spenda greater proportion of their total
budget in the destination. The WYSE Travel Confederation research indicates that around 60% of youth
travel budgets are spent in the destination. In some cases the proportion is even higher. Recent research
by Tourism Australia indicated that backpackers spent 68% of their total travel budget in Australia. One
of the biggest factors in the economic impact of tourism for local communities is the degree of leakage
from the local economy. Particularly in smaller economies in the developing world the extent of leakage
can be high, as international companies often cream off a large proportion of the revenue from tourism.
Young travellers often try and avoid international chains and spend their money directly with local
suppliers. This tends to increase the local impact of their expenditure, as leakages are reduced
and more money ends up with local businesses.

4) Young people make an important contribution to other industries

Young people often travel to study and/or work in the places they visit. Student
travel is now being recognised as an increasingly important economic driver and
the mobile and flexible workforce supplied by young travellers is becoming almost
irreplaceable in some parts of the world. In 2008 the Australian overseas student
industry contributed $15.5 billion in export income to the Australian economy,
according to Australian Education International (AEI). The 623,805 international
students visiting the US in 2007/2008 spent US$15.54 billion to support their
education and stay. UK international students are estimated to generate around
$15 billion for the UK economy, and support almost 22,000 full time equivalent jobs
outside higher
education. Around $4.5 billion is spent directly with universities themselves. The
money that educational institutions earn from international students makes a
valuable contribution to the
educational system as a whole, allowing the host country to support facilities that it
would often not be able to afford otherwise. WYSE Travel Confederation research
shows that the global higher education market is growing rapidly and that
education away from home is increasingly attractive to students from both
established and emergent economies. Research in Australia has also shown that
young people on working holiday schemes generate more jobs than they take in
the host economy. In 2008 working holidaymakers generated a total of 28,000 jobs:
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8000 more than the jobs they occupied. The jobs they take are also difficult to fill
with local labour, particularly in rural areas.

5) Young people often attract others to the destination

Young people have an important role in attracting other visitors to the destination.
In Australia, for example, it was estimated that each young visitor taking a course
in higher education was visited by an average of 1.3 people during their stay,
generating an additional AU$1.2 billion for
the Australian economy each year. Young people also add atmosphere and buzz to
destinations, attracting other visitors and businesses. This effect has now been
recognised in
many cities across the world, and there are growing numbers of projects to relocate
university facilities in city centres to act as hubs for cultural and creative activities.
The provision of student accommodation is often also an important feature of such
schemes. This brief review shows that it is important to take a broader view of the
economic impact of youth travel. As we have seen, the economic impact is not just
about daily spend levels or the price category of youth travel accommodation, but
the implications of longer stays, more extensive travel, a desire to consume local
services and the likelihood that young people will attract other travellers and return
themselves in the future.

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CHAPTER 3:
LATEST TRENDS IN YOUTH
TOURISM

14

Trends and societal changes that have

led to the development of Youth
Tourism :

Youth Tourists are trend setters and pioneers in exploring

tourism frontiers and opening new markets.

Loans:
The availability of loans that youth now have creates easy
access to borrowed money which they may invest into
travelling .

Visas:
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Countries and worldwide bureaucracy have become more

welcoming of foreigners. Therefore, travellers are able to
obtain visas fairly easily to travel to foreign countries .

Internet:
Internet has now become part of everyday life. As a result of
this accessibility to technology, young travellers are able to use
the internet to book and plan their own trips.

Social media:
Marketing and communication amongst travellers is evident via
social media. Youth tourists share their experiences through a
wide of audiences on their social networks; communicating,
promoting and influencing.

Publications:
Guidebooks (such as Lonely Planet) and magazines (such as
backpacking editions), provide word of mouth, advice and
guidance to forthcoming tourists.

Resilience:
Youth tourists tend to be more resilient to economic downturns
and are less risk adverse than mainstream travellers.
Therefore, any tourism market that chooses to ignore this niche
market will be at a very severe competitive disadvantage.

Economic Importance:
Youth tourism has developed into an economically significant
and high profile market in the last few years. Through foreign
exchange earnings from travellers; increases in employment
opportunities, ability to afford imports of necessary goods and
services and boosts in local economies is created. Working
holiday visas also positively impacts on the local economy, as
youth travellers have the opportunity to earn money whilst they
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are travelling. Without this incentive they may not have

travelled to the destination to begin with due to affordability.
Additionally, as youth tourism tends to spend longer duration
on travelling, budget for cheap accommodation enabling them
to spend more money on activities and travel to less popular
destinations; youth tourism distributes economic
benefits throughout local economies.

CHAPTER 4 :

17

SCOPE OF YOUTH
TOURISM

Scope of Youth Tourism

In an era of unprecedented challenge for the travel industry, youth travel
represents not just an important market segment, but also a vital resource for
innovation and change. With 356 million 10-24 year-olds, India has the world's
largest youth population despite having a smaller population than China. Today,
young travelers (aged 16 to 25) represent more than 20% of international tourist
arrivals, according to statistics by the World Tourism Organization.
Accordingly to the WTO, youth travel includes all independent trips for periods
of less than one year by people aged 16-29 which are motivated, in part or in full,
by a desire to experience other cultures, build life experience and/or benefit from
formal and informal learning opportunities outside ones usual environment.
Youth tourism in India is an emerging concept but it is not yet recognized by the
government policies as a niche market of travel industry. Todays youth being
independent loves to move around, see places, make new friends, explore new
destinations, indulge in physical activities & gain more knowledge. The youth

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tourism industry is divided in two categories: the qualitative and quantitative

aspects. The qualitative aspect concerns the aspects linked to quality, security,
flexibility and access. The quantitative aspect concerns the growth in youth
tourism, its importance in relation to tourism and the travel expenses of young
people. Interestingly enough, youth tourism spends more money than those in
other tourism sectors as they spend 4 times longer travelling than the average
visitor.
Activities Youth like to take up during tours in India

Cycling: Cycling holidays through Kerala, Rajastan and Himalayas

Trekking: Trekking Holidays in Kerala and Himalayas
Kayaking: Kayaking in the backwaters of Kerala and the Periyar River
Multi Activity: Cycling, Hiking, kayaking and safaris in India
Family Holidays: Fun filled adventure and activity holidays for the whole
family
Birding Tours: Birding Holidays in Western & North India, Eagle's Nest,
Western Ghats & the Andamans
Wildlife: Glimpses of the amazing wildlife and bio-diversity of India
Eco & Culture: Eco tours and cultural holidays in India
Youth Travel: Transforming youth through adventure, social work and
conservation

The Young Travelers of India have preference for

Budget Accommodation

Emphasis on meeting other travelers

Independently organized, flexible travel schedule and longer rather than

brief holidays
Indulge in physical activities

Youth tourism is a significant phenomenon in India but there is definitely a scope

of improvement & innovative marketing campaign. ICSI has given its proposal to
ministry of Tourism to run a nationwide campaign to develop awareness of youth
tourism and to unite country youth to help in sustainable development of youth
tourism through various events, contest, seminars and youth conferences.
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Things to keep in mind from Youth point of view

Develop cost effective techniques
That is reducing prices but always offer the same quality.
Create flexible travel itineraries
Those that are unexpected, and the finest discoveries are those they make
themselves.
Know what youth actually wants
Tourism professionals must be flexible and must know how to adapt to the various
needs of young people.
Offer a safe environment to all
This would create a healthy image of India among its own citizen as well as our
potential foreign tourists as well.
Maintain proper hygiene
Sanitary standards must never be neglected, despite the cuts in prices.
Create & provide a positive atmosphere
Young people must feel they are appreciated and there must be a trustworthy
relationship between all participants as it is not just the tourist that gains
knowledge about the destination visited but even the host community can learn a
lot about other cultures.
Organize more youth related programs
Tourism department must organize programs like educational workshops in
different states of India as well as abroad, National and International level youth
fests, adventure camps, competitions and other tourism awareness campaigns on
large scale involving mainly youth.

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In a nutshell, Youth Tourism is all about innovation, creativeness & thinking out
of the box so that we can give our youth some space & move with the pace of our
fast moving young generation.

Scope of Youth Tourism In

India
YouthTourism in India has seen exponential growth in the recent years. India is
one of the most preferred destinations for both overseas and domestic travelers.
Youth Tourism enables the international traveler to understand and experience
India's cultural diversity first hand. According to official estimates the Indian
tourism industry has out performed the global tourism industry in terms of growth
in the volume of foreign tourists as well as in terms of revenue. United Nations
has classified three forms of Tourism in its Recommendations on Tourism
Statistics:
(i) Domestic tourism, which involves Residents of the given country traveling
only within the country;
(ii) Inbound Tourism, involving non-residents traveling in the given country; and

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(iii) Outbound Tourism, involving residents traveling in another country. The UN

also derived different categories of Tourism by combining the three Basic forms
of tourism:
(a) Internal tourism, which comprises domestic tourism and inbound Tourism;
(b) National tourism, which comprises domestic tourism and outbound Tourism;
and
(c) International tourism, which consists of inbound tourism and outbound
Tourism.
The main reason for the growth in Youth tourism in India is the tremendous
progress made by the Indian economy. Though it must be said that infrastructure
is still a constraint. To sustain the current growth the government should invest in
infrastructure like transport, accommodation, better roads, health and hygiene etc.
To propel growth the industry has invested in new technology like CRM tools and
state of the art security systems. The scope of Youth travel and tourism is truly
immense: in the last six years, it has created 11 million jobs and has the potential
to create another 37 million jobs (estimated by the NSSO, Ministry of Tourism) of
the 120 million projected requirement by 2020.

Adventure Tourism
India's varied geographical and climatic conditions offer excellent opportunity for
adventure sports. In recent times the popularity of adventure tourism has
increased. Adventure sports like river rafting, rock climbing, mountaineering,
trekking, skiing, snow climbing, scuba diving and angling can be undertaken in
the country and the country offers multiple locations to choose from. The trans
Himalayan region, the Garhwali and Kumaon mountains, the Western Ghats,
deserts of Rajasthan, Andaman and Lakshadweep islands are some of the most
popular destination for adventure tourism. The endless scope of adventure tourism
in India is largely because of its diverse topography and climate. On land and
water, under water and in the air, you can enjoy whatsoever form of adventure in
India you want. It is one opportunity for you to leave all inhibitions behind and
just let yourself go. The mountainous regions offer umpteen scope for
mountaineering, rock climbing, trekking, skiing, skating, mount biking and safaris
while the rushing river from these mountains are just perfect for river rafting,
canoeing and kayaking. The oceans are not behind in any manner as well. The
vast and deep expanse of water provides tremendous opportunity for adventure

22

sports in form of diving and snorkeling. The forest and the desert region have their
own distinct place in providing scope for adventure tourism in India. You can
enjoy animal safari, jeep safari, bird watching, wild camp, wildlife safari and
jungle trail in the forest region while jeep safari and camel safari are the most
favoured adventure sports in the desert region. After all this, if you think the list of
adventure sports in India has ended, think again. There is still much left in form of
paragliding, hand gliding, hot air ballooning, etc.
MEDICAL TOURISM:
It is one of the fastest growing segments in India. India has been able to leverage
on certain advantages it has over other countries like highly skilled doctors, cost
effective treatment, improved quality of private healthcare etc. Some of the
common treatments for which overseas patients to come to India are heart surgery,
knee transplant, cosmetic surgery and dental care. India's traditional rejuvenation
therapy like yoga and ayurvedic therapy are also becoming popular. Indias system
of traditional medicine are a combination of Ayurveda, Siddha Yoga and
meditation, it aims at curing ills and helping the patient to lead a healthy, balanced
lifestyle. There are a number of health farms and nature spas in India that attract a
number of young foreigners looking for help in bringing about lifestyle changes
and detoxification of the body. The Ministry of Tourism has recognized the scope
of medical tourism and has initiated MDA (Market Development Assistance)
Scheme to key players in the Medical Tourism space. Road shows are organized at
regular intervals to promote India as a Medical Tourism destination.
ECO-TOURISM
It is relatively new segment in India. It involves visiting natural areas without
disturbing the fragile ecosystem. Eco tourism generates wealth for the local
people, who in turn take measures to conserve and protect the environment and
natural resources. India with its natural diversity is one of the pristine places in the
world for eco tourism. The Himalayan region, Kerala, Northeast, Andaman and
Nicobar Islands and Lakshadweep islands the Western and Eastern Ghats are some
of the hot spots for eco tourism in India. India has some of the best wildlife
reserves in the world, rich in flora and fauna. Ecotourism is more than a catch
phrase for nature loving travel and recreation. Eco-tourism is consecrated for
preserving and sustaining the diversity of the world's natural and cultural
environments. It accommodates and entertains visitors in a way that is minimally
23

intrusive or destructive to the environment and sustains & supports the native
cultures in the locations it is operating in. Responsibility of both young travellers
and service providers is the genuine meaning for eco-tourism. Eco-tourism also
endeavors to encourage and support the diversity of local economies for which the
tourism related income is important. With support from Youth tourists, local
services and producers can compete with larger, foreign companies and local
families can support themselves. Besides all these, the revenue produced from
tourism helps and encourages governments to fund conservation projects and
training programs. Saving the environment around you and preserving the natural
luxuries and forest life, that's what eco-tourism is all about. Whether it's about a
nature camp or organizing trekking trips towards the unspoilt and inaccessible
regions, one should always keep in mind not to create any mishap or disturbance
in the life cycle of nature. Eco-tourism focuses on local cultures, wilderness
adventures, volunteering, personal growth and learning new ways to live
on our vulnerable planet. It is typically defined as travel to destinations where the
flora, fauna, and cultural heritage are the primary attractions. Responsible Ecotourism includes programs that minimize the adverse effects of traditional tourism
on the natural environment, and enhance the cultural integrity of local people.
Therefore, in addition to evaluating environmental and cultural factors, initiatives
by hospitality providers to promote recycling, energy efficiency, water reuse,
and the creation of economic opportunities for local communities are an integral
part of Eco-tourism.
Heritage Tourism
Heritage tourism is a very lucrative segment in India. It is widely believed it
would emerge as the most important segment within tourism in terms of revenue
generation by 2010.India has a rich cultural history and reflection of its glorious
past is still visible in its numerous forts, monuments, palaces, places of worship
etc. Heritage tourism itself can be further classified as colonial heritage, urban
renewal, religious tourism, industrial heritage and ethnicity. The Indian
government must show keen interest in preserving the heritage sites from a
tourism perspective.
Cultural Tourism
Cultural tourism India is the predominant factor behind Indias meteoric rise in the
youth tourism segment in recent years, because from time immemorial, India has
24

been considered the land of ancient history, heritage, and culture. The government
of India has set up the Ministry of Tourism and Culture to boost cultural and youth
tourism in India. The ministry in recent years has launched the Incredible India!
campaign and this has led to the growth of culture and youth tourism in India.
India has had many rulers over the centuries and all of them made an impact on
India's culture. One can see the influence of various cultures in dance, music,
festivities, architecture, traditional customs, food, and languages. It is due to the
influence of all these various cultures that the heritage and culture of India is
exhaustive and vibrant. This richness in culture goes a long way in projecting
India as the ultimate cultural tourism and youth tourism destination given boost to
tourism in sector in India. The most popular states in India for cultural tourism
are:
Kerala
Rajasthan
Tamil Nadu
Uttar Pradesh
Uttarakhand

CHAPTER 5:
LITERATURE REVIEW
25

Review of Literature

The chapter outlines all the relevant literature which was reviewed to guide this
study. A review of both empirical and theoretical literature was done. The review
of empirical studies locates this study in the growing body of literature on youth
travel market, identifying the existing gaps. Theoretical review on the other hand
locates this study in a broader global scene and has been utilized to develop a
conceptual framework for the study. The chapter is presented in the following subheadings namely youth travel market profile, factors that influence youth travel

26

decision making; preferred tourism products and travel constraints. Finally it

gives summary of knowledge gap expected to fill by this study.

variety of research have been done in this area but still there is no agreement
about the general definition of young tourists (Seekings, 1995) and lack of
agreement about the parameters of youth tourism (Richard and Wilson, 2003). In
1991, WTO provides a definition to ease the statistical analysis in research.
Accordingly youth tourism defined as as all travels by young people aged between
15- 29. In 2002 the study had been done by WTO concern young travelers as less
than 25 years old people. However, Horak and Weber (2000) in order to increase
the coherence of the group refer to not more than 26 for youth tourists age.
Travelling in the purpose of studying, business and visiting friends as well as back
packing were also consider as youth tourism in different studies. Richard and
Wilson (2003) referred to the growth of this market and provide reasons why
studying this market seize the attention of lots of researchers. They assert that
youth travelers:
C
an build bridges between people and cultures.
G
enerally has a greater propensity to travel than other segments (ATI, 1995), as
theirhigh degree of mobility is a major factor on which youth tourism is based
(Horak &Weber, 2000).
C
an often develop prototypes for the new tourist by setting trends
27

C
an create new attractions and help to establish whole new destinations (Horak
&Weber, 2000).
C
an spend longer periods travelling than other tourists, spreading their
economic contribution further in terms of both time and space.
T
end to concentrate their spending within local communities, resulting in lower
leakage factors.
( In the case of students, despite their relatively low incomes) can have
proportionally high levels of discretionary income, a great propensity to save
money for travel and free time to spend on leisure pursuits, including travel
(Rechard and Wilson, 2003, P.9). Presenting another view, Nash et al. (2006)
relate the definition of youth travelers to backpackers. There are considerable
problems associated with defining exactly what or who a backpacker actually is,
because backpackers are not easily distinguished economically or
demographically. A variety of terms have been used by authors to describe a
backpacker. They have established the following characteristics associated with
backpackers that have similar characteristics with youth travelers:
A preference for budget accommodation.
An emphasis on meeting other travelers.
An independently organized and flexible travel schedule.
Aged between 20 to 24
Longer rather than brief holidays.
An emphasis on informal and participatory holiday activities. Office of the
Minister for Children (2007) had a research in titled National
Recreation Policy for Young People.
For their purpose the definition of recreation was provided as comprising all
positive activities in which a person may choose to take part that will make his or
her leisure time more interesting, more enjoyable and personally satisfying
(adapted from Laidlaw Foundation, 2001 in Office of the Minister for Children
28

(2007, P. 3). Driver (1992) refers to the benefit of recreation as: physiological
benefits, psycho-physiological benefits, psychological benefits, social/cultural
benefits, environmental benefits, and economic benefits. Regarding to the length
of stay of youth travelers in Canada D Anjou (2004) and Richards and King
(2003) find an average of over 60 days. Local people get the benefit out of youth
travelers visiting their place since they like to buy local made merchandise (D
Anjou, 2004 and Seeking, 1998). Reisinger and Movondo (2002) believe that
young travelers will be the future tourists as they will have flexible income
therefore they can easily spend for their upcoming trips. Young travelers also play
an important role in tourism development, as far as they consider as the earliest
visitors of the place, they can perform a significant role in development of the
place and make it ready for other tourist to visit. Moreover, being satisfy with the
visited place will make them a potential future market (Seekings, 1998). In
addition, they can act as an indirect promoter and do the marketing for the place
(words of mouth).
URBAN TOURISM
According to Ashworth (2006), cities were the origin of most tourists and the
destination of many. He mentioned that touch of the tourism industry was centered
in cities even if rural attractions were part of the holiday package and the
aggregate economic and social impacts of tourism were higher in urban than in
rural areas. Milgram (1970) mentioned that cities have great appeal because of
their variety, eventfulness, possibility of choice, and the stimulation of an intense
atmosphere that many individuals find a desirable background to their lives.
Further, he mentioned that three personal factors could affect an individuals
response to a city are:
A persons impression of a particular city will depend upon his or her standard
of comparison.
The perception of a city was affected by the status of the perceiver. A tourist, a
newcomer to the city, an old-timer, and someone who is returning to the city after
a long absence all may have different perceptions of the city.
\Finally, a person comes to a city with preconceived ideas and expectations
about it. Even though these preconceptions may not be accurate, they contribute to
the impression of the city.

29

Ashworth (2006) argued that the relationship between cities and tourism is
asymmetrical. He mentioned that cities are important to tourism but this does not
automatically imply that tourism is important to cities. Moreover, tourism is
highly selective and cities are only very rarely locked into an inevitable tourism
development. Tourism may need the varied resources of the city but this
does not imply that the city needs tourism. In the same way, tourism is only one of
a number of activities that occur in the city, the youth tourism is only one tourism
resource among many in the touristy city. According to Ashworth and Tunbridge
(1990), three characteristics of tourism in the city are:
The tourism activities of cities exist within a wider regional and national
tourism context, whether in terms of organizational structures, visitor placeimages, spatial patterns of visitor behavior, or distributions of tourism resources.
The urban central place occupies a pivotal position within the functional networks
in the wider regional hinterland.
Moreover, an extent contradictorily, cities exist within functional networks with
each other regardless of, and separate from, their regional or national context. This
is particularly marked in tourism where a mixture of inter-urban co-operation and
competition can create various sorts of national and international tourism circuits.
Tourism in cities was dominated by variety, in two senses. The variety of
facilities offer to visitors, and thus the variety of types of holiday experience, is in
itself one of the main attractions of cities. Equally, these facilities were rarely
produced for, or used exclusively by, tourist but are shared by many different
types of user: in short, the multifunctional city serves the multi-motivated user.
Urban area and life style (especially in developing countries) are encountering a
number of environmental and social problems such as garbage crisis, lack of green
areas, drugs among the young, rising crime rate, conflicts over resource
management and weak communities. These problems are effects. Major causes
behind them are city development policy, city planning, efficiency of urban
government, and the strength of urban communities (Patanakan and Kodokoro,
2005), which tourism activities are part of it. Urban tourism is about how to sell
the city - marketing the city. It is to to maximize the urban potencies and reduces
the threats and weakness. Its use has been accelerated in an attempt by cities to
position themselves strongly in the fierce competitive arena for finite and
increasingly mobile resources, whether investment capital, relocation of
companies, visitors and residents (Kavaratzis and Ashworth, 2006). City
marketing has been employed in most cases as a response to certain economic,
30

political and social changes in cities and their operational environment (Ashworth
and Voogd, 1990). It should be pointed out that city marketing does have
the intrinsic characteristic that it is very difficult to distinguish between the
various groups of city users. Unlike commercial companies, a city is not in a
position to exclude groups of users, for reasons of social justice, political balance
or future security and sustainability (Kavaratzis and Ashworth, 2006).

CHAPTER 6 :

31

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Research Methodology is the study of research methods and rules for
doing research work. Research is defined as Diligent and systematic
inquiry or investigation into a subject in order to discover or revise
facts, theories, and applications
Websites Research Methodology is a systematic way of solving a
problem it includes the research methods for solving a problem.

Type of Research
Descriptive research is the description of the condition as it exists at
present for example of Youth tourism
Data source - Secondary data
32

Data collection method - There will be no data collection method since

data source is secondary data.
Data collection tools Internet, Books, and Research Papers.
Data Collection
The task of data collection begins after a research problem has been
defined. In this study data was collected through secondary data source.
Secondary Data: Secondary data consist of information that already
exits somewhere, having been collected for some other purpose.

CHAPTER 7 :

33

OBJECTIVE OF THE
STUDY

OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY

The purpose of this study is to To explore the emerging trends of youth
tourists .This sector of the tourism industry is lacking greatly in empirical
studies. This sub-sector of tourism contributes significantly to the tourism
sector as a whole. It is set to increase dramatically in the future as the
world population of students is greater than ever particularly in places
such as India and China. The researcher therefore thought it would be
fitting to look into students opinions of youth travel, as there is only a
limited knowledge of the advantages and disadvantages of travelling. The
study has an over all aim: to explore the emerging trends in Youth
Tourism and Procuring deep study about the same. The main findings of
the study are that students believe the main advantages of youth travel to
be the chance to experience new cultures, learning a new language and to
have the chance to improve their skills by becoming more independent

34

and more aware of other destinations.. All of these aspects were

highlighted in the literature review. Moreover,
The aim of the study is to identify the perception, importance and
satisfactionlevels that young tourists percieve
. In so doing, this thesis contributes to tourism studies by
providing an understanding concerning the actual young
tourists behaviour , identifying their profile and mentioning the
motives they had for travelling and the importance of Youth
Tourism overall. Furthermore, it mentions which features or
attributes are considered less or more important during young
tourists travel. Moreover, it illustrates the satisfaction
levels that young tourists have from their visit
The main objectives are :
First, to identify the meaning of Tourism :
This objective tries to understand the meaning of Tourism
.Specifically, it tries to explore various kinds of tourism such as
medical tourism, heritage tourism, cave tourism etc.
Second, to understand the meaning of Youth Tourism
.This objective tries to clarify the meaning of youth tourism laying
emphasis on major constituents in Youth tourism.
Third, to investigate the Scope of Youth Tourism ands its latest
trends :
This objective tries to examine how wide youth tourism has its
scope and prevailing trends in Youth Tourism
Fourth, to measure the positive impact of Youth tourism and its
Siginificance in the tourism sector
These objective tries to examine possible associations between
the levels of perceived importance and satisfaction of young
tourists and their demographic and travel characteristics.

35

CHAPTER 8 :
36

OUTLINE OF THE
DISSERTATION

OUTLINE OF THE DISSERTATION

Recommendations
The Government needs to simplify procedures urgently to give a boost to Youth tourism.
There is need to open more youth based activities .
A more liberal aviation policy is needed and more new International airlines may be
allowed to operate to India without the reciprocity clause.

37

 Tourism Finance Corporation of India should cater to smaller projects and especially
those with a loan amount up to one crore to enhance Youth based activities.
The inland water ways authority as well as national highway authority of india should
provide suitable tourism facilities on their routes specially for the places where youth
tourist are attracted.
India should develop a world-class image not only for the purpose of tourism but also to
develop international and domestic trade and commerce, exchange of knowledge and
understanding.

Conclusion
Study of Youth tourism showing upward trends as most of the
destinations are well attracted by young travellers.
The scenario of economic growth in India is quite well and
contributing in Indias overall economic growth.
Great biodiversity found in its national parks is truly incredible and the wildlife
experience has to be more ecologically friendly, educative and sustainable which allows
wildlife tourism cherished by young generation in the form of adventure tourism.

38