India as a Multi-Cultural Tourist Attraction - Essay Example

?Running Head: Tourism Tourism [Institute’s Tourism While the world is now considered to be a global village and people can view and experience different cultures, various countries, learn different languages, and many other things through the click of a mouse; people are still highly inclined towards experiencing and seeing various things in person. Hence, they travel to different places in order to taste different cuisines, enjoy particular festivals, to buy specific products, or to enjoy certain sights. Such leisurely travelling is termed as tourism and may be induced for various reasons. Tourists explore various parts of the world for the sake of interest in different areas or curiosity or because the place is a highly amazing tourist attraction. Such attraction may be because of the film industry, because of certain themes shown in films which may arouse interest in that particular area, because of certain exciting attractions such as Mount Everest or the Taj Mahal, or because of scholarly reasons as the place may be depicted in a literary text (Squire, pg. 105-108, 1992). Many countries have thousands of tourists visiting them every year for various reasons such as India which has thousands of tourists because of the Taj Mahal, the exquisite cuisine offered, the diverse and rich culture, and the biggest film industry in the world. In the same manner, Paris gets many tourists because of the essence of the city, the wining and dining options, and many museums and rich architecture for scholars (Smith, pg. 123, 2006). Moreover, the Eiffel Tower is also amongst the Seven Wonders of the World the same way that the Taj Mahal is. Many other countries in Europe also benefit from the same characteristics and are amongst the most popular tourist attractions (Ahmed, pg. 90-91, 1992). There are several different categories of tourism that will be explored in turn further in the paper. Film-induced Tourism: Film-induced tourism is a smaller branch of cultural tourism. It is instigated and induced through movies and films which promote a certain place and hence attract tourists towards that place for a leisurely vacation. This type of tourism has not been properly researched or discussed to a large extent as academics have not realized how heavy an impact movies and films may have upon the tourism industry of a country (Beeton, pg. 75, 2005). Basically, movies that feature a very attractive landscape or are shot at certain locations promote that area as a tourist attraction and arouse the interest of tourists to visit that area (Beeton, pg.75, 2005). Literary Tourism: Literary tourism is of two types and may be categorized or defined as the tourism induced through depiction of certain places in literary texts such as Shakespeare’s plays or other scholarly books. It is also defined as the type of tourism which is a result of scholars or tourists on the lookout for certain books or texts and hence explore various countries to search for these texts. Such scholars are on the lookout for certain books, libraries, bookshops, or any other place where they can explore literature and expand their scope of knowledge (Squire, pg. 115-118, 1992). Multicultural Tourism: Multicultural tourism is based on the tourist’s attraction towards a cultural experience outside of his home country. This can be for any reasons whether it is for an attending a cultural festival, enjoying exquisite and cultural cuisine, or admiring architecture from different countries. Many tourists travel to China, India, Japan, and other high-context countries for a taste of their exquisite and different culture, attend colorful festivals, and eat their highly diverse cuisine (Smith, pg. 5-7, 2009). Experiential Tourism: Experiential tourism is the form of tourism when tourists travel to a place for the purpose of experiencing a certain event, activity, or other form of action. This can be in the form of rock climbing, skiing, or any other “ hands-on” experience which enables the tourist to use his/her senses to see, smell, feel, touch, or taste, a certain experience in life. An example of this form of tourism may be prevalent in tourists who travel to India or Nepal to climb Mount Everest or people who travel to Switzerland to ski on the Great Alps. Out of the various types of tourism, this paper will aim to examine multicultural tourism as it is one of the most prevalent and common types of tourism (Vongqain & Liyun, pg 16-17, 2003). Analysis of Multi-cultural Tourism: As explained in the introduction of this paper, multicultural tourism is the form of tourism in which the tourist’s intention is to experience a culture outside of his/her home country. Usually, such tourism is induced in high context cultures which offer a vast array of activities, events, and experiences for a tourist. Countries such as India, China, Japan, Bangkok, and other Middle Eastern/Asian countries are visited often because of their high context cultural experiences (Erik & Avieli, pg. 760-765, 2004). More recently, Europe has also been one of the most attractive tourist destinations for the purpose of experiencing culture. All European countries offer a distinct and unique cultural experience that is somewhat less impactful than high context Asian cultures but has its own subtle charm in it (MacCanell, pg. 95, 1977). This form of tourism is the most prevalent throughout the world as most tourists take up long journeys to travel to unique lands in order to experience a totally diverse culture from their own. Experiencing different cultures enables them to lift cultural barriers and communicate with different people in a more effective manner. It also removes attitudes of ethnocentrism and enables a person to have a more flexible and complete personality. Moreover, experiencing different cultures provides a person with a lot of knowledge and information. It enables a person to expand his/her scope of thought and the experience is a unique and satisfying event in itself (Robbinson, pg 200, 1995). Many tourists are attracted towards a place because of its rich cultural heritage and unique architecture. Such places may include Mexico, France, Spain, and Middle Eastern countries. Tourists may also visit places because of the variety and taste of the cultural food there. India and China are well known for their diverse and highly tasteful cuisines which seem to be attracting a lot of attention in the present world. Tourists may also visit places to take part in cultural festivals such as Holi. Diwali, Chinese New Year, and the ever popular Mardi Gras (Prenctice, pg. 24-30, 2001). Tourists indulge in sightseeing, shopping, dining out, and many other activities while on a multicultural vacation. Hence, the local community may benefit in many ways. Effects upon the Local Community: There may be several recurring effects upon the local community because of tourists pouring into the city because of multicultural tourism attractions. Most of the effects are beneficial, while some may be slightly consequential or annoying for the local community (Smith, pg. 7-9, 2009). With the in pour of multi cultural tourists, the local community prospers in the business sector. Tourists require places to stay, food, leisure, clothes, souvenirs, gift items, and indulge in sightseeing activities. Hence, local businesses such as the hotel sector, transport sector, retail sector, restaurant sector, and nearly every other business sector prospers or is affected in one way or the other (Erik & Avieli, pg. 770, 2004). Moreover, the local community also seeks to preserve their local culture and heritage for the sake of tourists as it is highly beneficial for them. Hence, the country’s cultural heritage is preserved to a large extent. The local community may also learn from the tourists as they may bring in their own ideas or even invest in businesses in the local community (Ahmed & Krohn, pg. 90, 1992). The country benefits on a whole as their currency also prospers when tourists constantly demand it in exchange for their home country’s currency. This makes the currency and the economy strong for that local community thereby resulting in the creation of more jobs, job security, higher pays, and an increased standard of living. Foreigners may also invest in new businesses in the country resulting in the formation of multinational companies and increased foreign investment. This is also quite beneficial to the local community as it results in several economic benefits. Moreover, foreigners and tourists bring their own culture, traditions, and ways to the tourist attraction, which leads the country in learning from such influences as well. Hence, the learning process is two-sided as both parties seek to learn from the other (Prentice, pg 20-22, 2001). However, there may also be slight consequences of such a heavy amount of multi cultural tourism in a place, which may include the loss of cultural heritage in the sense that too much foreign influence may change local traditions or ways that may not be desirable for the local community. Moreover, at times it may not be necessary that foreigners or tourists show as much respect to local traditions, culture, and other aspects. Hence, this may lead to annoyed sentiments on the part of the local residents who do not wish to have their local culture and heritage treated with such disrespect or such obliviousness. Such cases do often occur in Muslim countries where local practices are not observed by tourists and visitors and this may hurt or annoy the sentiments of the local residents. In addition, foreign direct investment and the setting up of multinational firms may also upset the local population as they may feel that this is interfering with the local traditions and the way that they have brought up their children. New practices and the introduction of new products may upset the local community and also harm local businesses to some extent (Vongqain & Liyun, pg. 17, 2003). Last are the factors of crowding and the overburdening of tourists in a local area. This may occur when the place is not prepared to cater to the needs of the sudden rush of tourists. Hence, it results in overcrowding and tourists seeking shelter in local areas which may annoy the local residents as they are not used to seeing strange people residing in their area (Prentice, pg. 24, 2001). India as a Multi-Cultural Tourist Attraction: India is one the fastest growing economies of the world which is because it attracts a large amount of tourists every year. Hence, once the land is experienced and explored by many people, this attracts a large amount of foreign direct investment and results in trading and business activities carried out on a large scale. Therefore, India’s economy has gotten stronger day by day and the local residents have been given a chance to experience new opportunities that may not have been available to them previously. Thousands of tourists take up a journey to India as India is one the most attractive multi-cultural destinations in the world. Christopher Columbus set out to India in the 1400’s in order to trade spices with the local residents of the land and accidentally came upon the Unknown Land, which is now known as the United States of America. Hence, India is very popular for its unique and spicy cuisine which is always one of the most influential factors for tourists to visit the place. Besides, India is known for its massive cultural festivals which include Holi (a festival of colors), Diwali (festival of lights), and their vast range of silk and embroidered cloth. Tourists enjoy the shopping experience in India as they find exquisite saris and heavily embroidered cloth which is unique for the tastes of Westerners (Ahmed & Krohn, pg. 90-95, 1992). India also offers a lot of cultural heritage and beautiful architecture to tourists such as the Taj Mahal and a view of the Himalayan Mountain Range. Hence, the country is one of the most prospering tourist attractions in the 21st century (Ahmed & Krohn, pg. 90-95). Conclusion: Tourists may have multiple reasons for visiting a place and there may be a linkage between the various types of tourism. However, multi cultural tourism remains one of the most popular reasons for tourists to visit a certain area as with the onset and spread of globalization; tourists have a need or want of experiencing different cultures first-hand. Multi-cultural tourism is one of the largest revenue generators for an economy and benefits the local community in several ways. However, along with this it may also pose some consequences in the form of unwanted foreign influence for the local community. While other types of tourism including literary tourism and film-induced tourism are gaining a lot of popularity and influence amongst the types of tourism, multi-cultural tourism is somehow implicit in every type of tourism activity as travelling to a different country does constitute experiencing a new culture. References Ahmed, Z., Krohn, F. 1992. “Marketing India as a Tourist Destination in North America- Challenges and Opportunities” International Journal of Hospitality Management. Volume 11, Issue 2. 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Vongqian, Z. & Liyun, W. 2003. “The Nature and Categories of Tourism Experiences and Developing Principles.” Tourism Science. Read More