Keywords

Spiritual Tourism, Impact, Economy, Sustainable Development, Tourists.

Introduction

Throughout history, people have sought new ways of being. The two are linked to civilized civilization progress. Modern civilization accepts and encourages travel and spiritual discovery due to advances in communications, information technology, and travel. Tourism is inherently a significant economic opportunity. Today, many sorts of activities may dominate the economy of multiple countries. India, with a rich civilization and diverse spiritual systems, is also participating. International tourism in Uttarakhand has grown significantly during the past decade (Hampton, 2018). The state is trying to gain international tourism status. Uttarakhand is the spiritual and adventure capital. Uttarakhand is a strong contender in the worldwide tourist business. Uttarakhand attracts international tourists with its abundance of natural resources, beautiful mountains, rich cultural heritage, forests, agriculture, industry, multi-culture and diversity of people of plains and hills, weather variations in different districts, holy shrines like the "Char Dham," and other attributes. In the competitive market, no destination can flourish without effort (Rumki Bandyopadhyay, 2018). Thus, Uttarakhand's tourism planners would benefit from identifying its key qualities and assessing their impact on foreign tourists' destination choices. It will help them create effective marketing tactics, which are crucial for a spiritual destination to succeed in the increasingly competitive worldwide tourism industry (Cura, 2017).

The Emergence of Spiritual Tourism

Religious heritage tourism is spiritual tourism. It covers all faiths, religious centers, emotional attachments, and tourism infrastructure. Pilgrimage tourism is when consumers seek hardship to reach a spiritual objective or simple living. Spiritual tourism is a love-based inner experience. Mental tension is rising everywhere (Kato, 2017). Thus, spiritual reading, meditation, and heavenly bliss provide comfort. Pilgrim centers show India's spirituality and cosmopolitanism. India is famed for its many temples and cultural attractions. She represents compassion and serenity. India is known for spiritual tourism. India is failed to capitalize on this prospective sector. Scientific research on spiritual tourism in India is likely to be popular and broad (Busayo, 2017).

Spiritual tourism "looks to be a recent academic term, although it is not a new occurrence," according to researchers worldwide are studying spiritual tourism. Its potential to become the industry's largest section is driving interest, not its spirituality.

Literature Review

Mukherjee et al. (2020) focuses on how the Indian government should prioritize tourism and promote it across the nation. Uttarakhand was the eighth most visited state in India by domestic tourists in 2009, after Andhra Pradesh, which has several prominent spiritual sites. According to a 2009 Ministry of Tourism, Government of India report, Uttarakhand had the most domestic and foreign tourists. Domestic tourists like this state. However, the state closely tracks the national yearly growth rate, as shown. A significant number of Uttarakhand visitors are spiritual tourists. A poll by Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board estimates 0.227 million, 0.399 million, and 0.703 million international visitor arrivals in 2012, 2017, and 2020.

Singh et al. (2019) Tourism growth requires promotion. Recently, domestic and foreign tourists for pleasure, environmental change, and religious/spiritual objectives have surged. Tourism marketing academic study has skyrocketed. Many writers have examined visitor psychographic and demographic traits and their opinions on tourism services. I analyzed tourist marketing management while addressing other marketing management challenges. They stressed the necessity for tourist service providers like businesses and governments to maintain and analyze data.

Hampton et al. (2018) link visitor behavior to destination marketing. Tourists' opinions of Malaysia and Australia's Northern Territory informed the study. Transport infrastructure is a key aspect of destination growth, according to a study. The writers also suggested that a country's infrastructure may affect its appeal. A corporation must measure customer service. Effectively measuring customer service to enhance business operations is more essential than accurately measuring it.

Cheer et al. (2017) Individual tastes, likes, and variations have recognized different sorts of tourism. Tourists vary in personality, tastes, abilities, and interests. They like various things and circumstances. Nationality, citizenship, and geography define domestic and international tourism worldwide. Domestic tourism involves people visiting their own country. Domestic tourism requires no passports, visas, currency, or language issues. International tourism is when individuals visit other countries. This tourism requires passports, visas, languages, and currencies. In many nations, domestic and foreign tourism are blurring due to permissive policies.

Objectives of the Study

• To determine the potential for spiritual tourism in terms of destinations, visitors, and money made.
• To assess the state's economy's economic impact of spiritual tourism.

Hypotheses of the Study

H₁: To promote spiritual tourism, no established marketing strategy is currently used in the state of Uttarakhand.

H₂: The number of visitors to a spiritual location depends on how spiritual it is thought to be.

H₃: Potential tourists are discouraged from visiting their points of interest due to inadequate infrastructure.

H₄: The most valuable element in luring tourists is information.

H₅: The creation and implementation of marketing plans for sites of spiritual significance fall under the purview of the government.

Research Methodology

The planned investigation's goal is to research various facets of spiritual tourism marketing and the creation of marketing plans in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. 500 samples were assessed as part of the current study. Male and female samples were chosen at random from the target audience of Indian and international visitors at the locations. To gather information from travelers, hotel owners, travel agencies, and tour guides, separate questionnaires were created. Efforts were made to get in touch with each person separately and provide assistance in filling out the surveys. The following section contains information about the study's sample plan, data-gathering procedures, and questionnaire.

Research Design

The basic necessity for every scientific inquiry is the research design. The purpose of the present study is to conduct a thorough analysis of the marketing facets of spiritual tourism and to pinpoint potential marketing tactics within a particular geographic region. To achieve the necessary aims, descriptive research with a conclusive study design will be more suitable. Numerous widely dispersed societal elements are connected to tourism. Stakeholders in spiritual tourism include government policies, governmental organizations, non-governmental organizations, societies, various spiritual site officials, tour operators, tour guides, merchants, hospitality and other service providers, and visitors themselves. Therefore, the information needed for each pertinent investigation and subsequent analysis becomes enormous and multidimensional. Thus, it will be better to conduct the current study using a "multiple cross-sectional" research design. The required information may be gathered through secondary sources, such as published literature and reports, government, and non-government data repositories, etc., as well as directly from the sampled stakeholders via surveys.

Sample Size

The selection of the sample size is a difficult process that combines both qualitative and quantitative factors. The significance of the decision, the nature of the research, the nature of the analysis, the number of variables, sample sizes used in related studies, incidence rates, completion rates, and resource limitations are important qualitative factors that should be taken into account when determining the sample size. For this investigation, a "sample size" of 500 participants was used.

Sampling Method

Sampling methods may be roughly categorized as probabilistic and non-probabilistic. Non-probability sampling focuses on the researcher's discretion rather than chance when choosing sample components. Since there are a lot of spiritual visitors in the chosen places of Haridwar and Rishikesh, the "Simple Random Sample" approach was avoided while gathering data from them since it makes it difficult to establish a sampling frame. In the current study, data were gathered from the organized sector and visitors using the "Judgmental Sampling" approach.

Area of Study

The cities Haridwar and Rishikesh in the state of Uttarakhand have been chosen as the study area.

Questionnaire Design

In the present research, questionnaires were appropriately created to collect information from the various sample strata. The purpose of open-ended, dichotomous, and multiple-choice inquiries was to elicit information. While the current research employed the "Likert" scale as a non-comparative scaling approach, the "Nominal" scale and "Interval" kinds of scales were often used as the principal scales of assessment. The samples were given the questionnaires in person, and they were also returned in person. We avoided using other communication channels like phone interviews, e-mails, and/or FAX machines. Due to insufficient infrastructure, visitors cannot use such communications. The main reasons for not using these strategies for gathering data from other sources were potential delays and awareness levels.

Data Collection

Both primary and secondary sources were used to gather the data for the current study.

Primary source: The main tool for gathering information from a survey of a specified population or sample is a structured questionnaire. Four completely structured questionnaires are used in this research to obtain data. The respondents who made up the sources for assembling the main data included both domestic and international travelers, proprietors of hotels and restaurants, travel agents/tour operators, and tour guides. Differently crafted questionnaires were used to gather data from all respondents in the various categories.

Secondary sources: The secondary sources of information were gathered from online portals, government/semi-government/non-government/private entities, newspapers, magazines, and published journals. Every year, a sizable number of local and international visitors go to Uttarakhand. In addition to published literature in the field of study, government organizations like the Department of Tourism and non-governmental organizations like Trusts, Management Societies of various spiritual establishments, and private agencies are also directly or indirectly involved with tourism in these spiritual places, providing main sources of data.

Data Analysis

MS Excel software tools will be employed in the current study's data analysis. While simple statistical studies, such as those of demographic information and other trends, may be carried out using the MS Excel program.

Results of the Study

It is well acknowledged that one of the most significant economic activities is tourism. Apart from domestic visitors, several nations have the honor of being a center for spiritual activities that draw tourists from all over the globe. Based on the main data gathered during this inquiry and the data that is now accessible from multiple sources, this analysis examines spiritual tourism in Uttarakhand concerning its economy.

In survey-based descriptive research, analyzing the raw data and making conclusions is one of the crucial stages. The raw data were analyzed using a variety of techniques, and the results were then presented in the appropriate formats. Data were also utilized to assess the study's assumptions. analysis of various data collected by survey tools at several spiritual sites in Haridwar and Rishikesh.

Demographic Results

According to statistics collected via surveys, men made up 54% of domestic tourists and 43% of international visitors. 46% of local visitors and 57% of international tourists were female responders. In comparison to female respondents, there were 1.03 times as many responses in the whole tourist profile. It was fascinating to see that more female visitors go internationally. Additionally, it was shown that married domestic tourists (84%) are more oriented toward spiritual excursions than married foreign tourists (21%), who are less so. It's important to note that single travelers make up the majority of the foreign tourist population (47%) whereas local single travelers make up a negligible portion (16%) and mostly consist of students and other leisure seekers. This was also supported by information on the occupations of spiritual tourists, which is shown in Table 1.

Table 1 Occupational Strata Of The Respondents
S. No.	Participants Classification	Domestic		International
		Total	Share in Survey (%)	Total	Share in Survey (%)
1	Salaried	143	51.0	44	36.7
2	Business	41	14.6	45	37.5
3	Students	32	11.4	0	0
4	Unemployed	64	23.0	6	5
5	Others	0	0.0	25	20.8

Haridwar and Rishikesh tourist guides provided information. Most guides are young, and just 20% are 46–60 years old. Although this suggests inexperience in the profile, it might be seen as a constructive move by young people to combat unemployment with self-employment. With more spiritual locations and their growth, such tourist guides are needed more. Remarkably, the top 23% of tourist guides make barely five to ten thousand Indian rupees per month. No trip guide earns more than twenty thousand Indian rupees monthly.

Table 2 shows Haridwar and Rishikesh visitors' intentions. 86% and 65% of local and foreign visitors visited these destinations for spiritual reasons. The research showed that many visitors visited the attractions for different reasons. Only 25% of foreign visitors visited Haridwar and Rishikesh for spiritual activities. 82% of domestic visitors visited these destinations for multi-objective tours, while 13% traveled for spiritual reasons. Leisure and holidaying, as well as adventure and wildlife, draw people to its natural splendor (Table 2).

Table 2 Purposes Of The Tourists Visiting Haridwar And Rishikesh
Purpose(s) of Visit	Domestic (%)	International (%)
Spiritual	86	65
Leisure & Holidaying	62.8	0.83
Business	16.4	0.83
Adventure and Wild Life	22.1	35
Visiting Friends and Relatives	16.8	0
Health care	11.4	0
Others	29.6	51.67

Table 3 shows foreign and domestic tourist visitation to the two spiritual destinations. Over 42% of respondents had visited Haridwar and Rishikesh more than three times. 21% of international visitors visited more than three times. Table 3 shows that 100% of tourists were satisfied with these two spiritual places. Most travelers wanted to see Arti/Darshan in these two areas. Arti's religious fervor enthralled foreign and domestic travelers. The majority of visitors were domestic (100%) and foreign (71%). 100% of travelers, Table 3, wanted to encourage their friends to visit these places. Most visitors criticized the hygiene of these two world-famous spiritual monuments. Most domestic visitors believed the local government did little in this area Tables 3 & 4.

Table 3 Frequency Of Visit And Overall Experience Of The Respondents
Visits		Tourists
		Domestic (%)	International (%)
Frequency of Visit	First	16.5	64.2
	Second	23.2	7.5
	Third	17.8	7.5
	More	42.5	20.8
Overall Experience	Satisfaction	100	100
	Intention to visit again	100	71
	Motivating others	100	100

Table 4 Government's Effort In Keeping Spiritual Places Attractive
Tourist	Very Good	Good	Average	Bad	Very Bad
Domestic	50	68	123	39	0
International	43	69	8	0	0

Domestic and foreign travelers were polled to assess tour package efficiency for these two destinations. Table 5 summarizes viewpoints. Surprisingly, few travelers chose commercial trip packages, preferring to build their own. Table 6 lists three possible reasons for disliking trip packages. As seen in Table 6, poor marketing, insecurity, and unprofessionalism are the key factors that might sway tourists. Today, individuals prioritize safety and quality/professional services before riches.

Table 5 Tourists’ Preference For Tour Packages
Tourists	Use of Tour Packages
	Yes (%)	No (%)
Domestic	0	100
International	0	100

Table 6 Reasons For Not Preferring Tour Packages
Category	Reasons
1. Information based	Insufficient alternative information No contact details
2. Organization based	Unprofessional tour operators Ignoring visitor needs Unplanned tourist motivation
3. Security based	Tour operators are unprepared. Tour operators not instilling faith in tour completion Tourists fear being deceived.

Since spiritual tourists don't like package tours, it was necessary to find out how they travel. International (79%) and domestic (32%) visitors preferred taxis to Haridwar and Rishikesh's limited air connections. International travelers use railways, while domestic tourists use roads (30%), trains (21%), and their cars (17%). Due to the restricted rail network, many neighboring visitors go by bus, which is the next economic means of transport for low-income tourists. Affluent visitors, on the other hand, go in their vehicles, giving them flexibility in time, neighboring sight viewing, and shopping for spirituality-related things and unusual gifts.

Table 7 ranks tourist travel information providers based on data. International travelers use the internet first, while domestic tourists already know the trip information. Travel guide books and tourist information centers, rated second and fourth by overseas spiritual visitors, may supply enough information for domestic tourists ranked fifth and seventh. Domestic visitors rate the internet in fourth position due to the limited availability of internet services among regular people in India but soon online will become the most popular source of information for domestic tourists.

Table 7 Ranking Of The Sources For Obtaining Travel Information
Domestic Tourists		International Tourists
Sources of Information	Rank	Sources of Information	Rank
Already known	1	Internet	1
Friends / Relatives	2	Travel guide book	2
Media	3	Media	3
Internet	4	Government tourist information center	4
Travel guide book	5	Shrine brochures/leaflets	5
Travel agents	6	Travel agents
Shrine brochures/leaflets	7	Friends / Relatives
Government tourist information center		Already known

Over 40% of overseas visitors stay more than three nights, whereas local tourists choose a shorter stay. Due to their motorable distance from New Delhi, both areas provide superior housing, cuisine, and other logistics for travelers. According to Table 8, 12.5% of foreign and 50% of local visitors do not utilize rented lodging in spiritual areas. For domestic travelers, many stay with family or friends, or at Yogashramas, spiritual institutions that provide free lodging.

Table 8 Requirements Of Hired Accommodation For The Spiritual Tourists
Tourists	Hired Accommodation
	Yes	No
International	87.5	12.5
Domestic	50	50

Better e-communication might lessen visitor accommodation concerns. Domestic spiritual visitors choose hotels 76.4% to 23%, although overseas travelers prefer Dharamsalas too. International hotel guests may choose adjacent major cities with international amenities. The hospitality at these two venues was generally good. The findings support the state's religious "Atithi deva bhava" worldview.

Spiritual travelers have goals when they travel. Questions were asked to determine travelers' motivations. Table 9 presents the findings. Meditation is the main draw for foreign travelers, although many attend to satiate their curiosity. 71% of foreign visitors visit these destinations as a side trip. Domestic visitors often come for darshan or special pooja. Domestic travelers also meet their spiritual gurus. Domestic travelers arrange specific prayers via shrine connections. Table 10 shows that no overseas travelers pre-booked spiritual prayers.

Table 9 Purpose Of Tourists’ Visit To A Spiritual Destination
Tourist	Purpose of visiting a Shrine/Centre
	Darshan	Special Puja	Meditation	Satisfying curiosity	Meeting spiritual guru	Others
						Total	(%)
International	0	0	77	34	18	85	70.8
Domestic	239	41	0	25	77	38	13.6

Table 10 Different Means Adopted By The Tourists For Booking Special Prayer
Tourist	Means of booking for special prayer
	Internet	Letters	FAX	Phone	Personal contact	Did not book in advance	Not applicable
Domestic	0	0	0	28	62	14	176
International	0	0	0	0	0	0	120

Tourists must be well-informed about their destinations. Based on the information, various local concerns such as visit timings, special session bookings, entry bookings, and logistical bookings must be prepared in advance.

Economic Impact of Spiritual Tourism

According to the Uttarakhand Tourism Development Board, 58.2% of foreign visitors visited for sightseeing, 21.9% for health/yoga, and 19.4% for pilgrimage/religious purposes. 44.2% of domestic visitors visited for pilgrimage/religious purposes and 43.6% for holiday/sightseeing. Domestic spiritual tourists are more popular due to Indians' spiritual beliefs. The state's 2017 foreign and domestic tourism. Notably, 21% of foreign travelers and 2% of local tourists were spiritual tourists in 2017. Tables 11 and 12 show the profiles of visitors visiting Haridwar and Rishikesh from 2016 to 2020.

Table 11  Profile Of Tourists Visiting Haridwar During 2016 – 2020
Year	Domestic	International	Total
2016	98,00,770	11,774	98,12,544
2017	1,12,04,275	15,609	1,12,19,884
2018	1,13,56,250	17,854	1,13,74,104
2019	1,20,49,450	19,967	1,20,69,417
2020	1,88,37,125	29,555	1,88,66,680

Table 12 Total Number Of Tourists Visiting Rishikesh During The Years 2016 – 2020
Year	Domestic	International	Total
2016	329,392	5,912	3,35,304
2017	558,062	5,109	5,63,171
2018	551,495	5,052	5,56,547
2019	581,869	4,550	5,86,419
2020	1,093,164	5,548	10,98,712

State’s Earnings

To determine the state's spiritual tourism revenue, their expenditures were sought. It shows that 50% of foreign and 35% of local visitors spend more than five thousand rupees in a spiritual area in a day.

The Uttarakhand Tourism Development Master Plan 2017–2022 predicts local and international tourism. This analysis estimates that 42.24 million domestic tourists would visit Uttarakhand in 2012, 2017, and 2022, while 0.227 million, 0.399 million, and 0.703 million overseas tourists will arrive.

Employment through Spiritual Tourism

Tourism generates direct and indirect jobs. Employment creation in a state with limited small and heavy industry expansion has a major economic effect. Most of the state's spiritual destinations have unorganized tourism operators chain-linking them and supplying a big pool of manpower. These include local transportation providers like auto rickshaws, horses, and donkeys, people involved in different spiritual activities, tiny tea/refreshment shops, vendors who sell spiritual goods, tourist guides, and indirect services like laundries, hair styling, etc. Thus, spiritual activity centers are creating jobs that rely only on spiritual tourism.

Hypotheses Testing

For research aims, hypotheses are created. The procedure collects data and systematically tests theories to make conclusions. Statistical tests support findings. Confirmatory data analysis tests hypotheses.

Testing of the Hypothesis, H₁

The hypothesis is stated as:

Null Hypothesis (H₀): In the state of Uttarakhand, standard marketing techniques are currently used to promote spiritual tourism.

Alternate Hypothesis (H_a): To promote spiritual tourism, no established marketing strategy is currently used in the state of Uttarakhand Tables 13-17.

Table 13 Smirnov - Kolmogorov Calculations Under Test About Typical Marketing Techniques In The State Of Uttarakhand
Mode	Observed number of proportion	Observed proportion	Observed cumulative proportion (fc)	Null proportion	Null cumulative proportion (f0)	fc – f0
Websites	94	0.235	0.235	0.1667	0.1667	0.0683
Travel Guide book	43	0.1075	0.3425	0.1667	0.3333	0.0092
Government Tourist info center	86	0.215	0.5575	0.1667	0.5000	0.0575
Internet/ E- mail	46	0.115	0.6725	0.1667	0.6667	0.0058
Personal contact	32	0.08	0.7525	0.1667	0.8333	-0.081
Media	99	0.2475	1	0.1667	1.0000	0

Table 14 Smirnov - Kolmogorov Test Calculations For The Number Of Visitors To A Holy Site In The State Of Uttarakhand
Mode	The observed number of proportion	Observed proportion	Observed cumulative proportion (fc)	Null proportion	Null cumulative proportion (f0)	fc – f0
Have a Darshan	156/400	0.39	0.39	0.1667	0.1667	0.2233
Offer special prayer/puja	47/400	0.1175	0.5075	0.1667	0.3333	0.1742
Take part in meditation	91/400	0.2275	0.735	0.1667	0.5000	0.2350
Satisfy curosity	45/400	0.1125	0.8475	0.1667	0.6667	0.1808
Meet spiritual guru	31/400	0.0775	0.925	0.1667	0.8333	0.0917
Some other reason	30/400	0.075	1	0.1667	1.0000	0.0000

Table 15 Smirnov - Kolmogorov Test Calculations Regarding Tourists' Evaluations Of The Road Infrastructure In Spiritual Locations In The State Of Uttarakhand
Mode	The observed number of proportion	Observed proportion	Observed cumulative proportion (fc)	Null proportion	Null cumulative proportion (f0)	fc – f0
Very Good	76	0.19	0.19	0.2	0.2	-0.01
Good	105	0.2625	0.4525	0.2	0.4	0.0525
Average	136	0.34	0.7925	0.2	0.6	0.1925
Bad	50	0.125	0.9175	0.2	0.8	0.1175
Very Bad	33	0.0825	1	0.2	1	0

Table 16  Smirnov - Kolmogorov Test Calculations For How The Media Affects The Number Of Spiritual Tourists Who Visit Specific Locations In The State Of Uttarakhand
Initiative	The observed number of proportion	Observed proportion	Observed cumulative proportion (fc)	Null proportion	Null cumulative proportion (f0)	fc – f0
Self	134/400	0.335	0.335	0.2	0.2	0.135
Family members/ relatives	116/400	0.29	0.625	0.2	0.4	0.225
Friends/ colleagues	33/400	0.0825	0.7075	0.2	0.6	0.1075
Spiritual leaders	17/400	0.0425	0.75	0.2	0.8	-0.05
Media	100/400	0.25	1	0.2	1	0

Table 17 Smirnov - Kolmogorov Test Calculations Regarding The Government's Role In Creating And Implementing Marketing Plans For The Spiritually Significant Locations In The State Of Uttarakhand
Initiative	The observed proportion	Observed proportion	Observed cumulative proportion (fc)	Null proportion	Null cumulative proportion (f0)	fc – f0
Government	155/400	0.3875	0.3875	0.2	0.2	0.1875
NGOs	108/400	0.27	0.6575	0.2	0.4	0.2575
Local Committee	56/400	0.14	0.7975	0.2	0.6	0.1975
Private sponsors	33/400	0.0825	0.88	0.2	0.8	0.08
Others	48/400	0.12	1	0.2	1	0.0

Here, the sample count, which includes both domestic and spiritual samples, n = 400 Now, D is calculated as,

D = max│f_c – f₀│

Here, the calculated value of D = 0.081

Decision Rule:

Level of significance = 5% Critical value of D, = 0.068, for, n = 400

The null hypothesis is rejected because the estimated value of D exceeds the critical value. As a result, Uttarakhand does not use any established marketing strategies to encourage spiritual travel there.

Testing of the Hypothesis, H₂

The hypothesis is stated as:

Null Hypothesis (H₀): The number of visitors to a spiritual location is independent of how spiritual it is thought to be.

Alternate Hypothesis (H_a): The number of visitors to a spiritual location depends on how spiritual it is thought to be.

Here, the sample count, which includes both domestic and spiritual samples, n = 400 Now, D is calculated as,

Here, the calculated value of D = 0.2350

Decision Rule

Level of significance = 5%

A critical value of D, for, n = 400

The null hypothesis is rejected because the estimated value of D exceeds the critical value. As a result, the quantity of visitors drawn to a spiritual location relies on how spiritual it is thought to be.

Testing of the Hypothesis, H₃

The hypothesis is stated as:

Null Hypothesis (H₀): Potential tourists are not discouraged from visiting the destinations that interest them by infrastructure.

Alternate Hypothesis (H_a): Potential tourists are prevented from visiting the destinations of their choice because of inadequate infrastructure.

Here, the sample count, which includes both domestic and spiritual samples = 400 Now, D is calculated as, D = max│f_c – f₀│

Here, the calculated value of D = 0.1925

Decision Rule:

Level of significance = 5% Critical value of D, for, n = 400

The null hypothesis is rejected because the estimated value of D exceeds the critical value. As a result, it suggests that important infrastructure factors affect the number of tourists who visit spiritual sites.

Testing of the Hypothesis, H₄

The hypothesis is stated as:

Null Hypothesis (H₀): The media does not influence drawing in spiritual tourists.

Alternate Hypothesis (H_a): The most important factor in luring spiritual tourists is the media.

Here, the sample count, which includes both domestic and spiritual samples = 400 Now, D is calculated as, D = max│f_c – f₀│

Here, the calculated value of D = 0.225

Decision Rule:

Level of significance = 5% Critical value of D, for, n = 400

The null hypothesis is rejected because the estimated value of D exceeds the critical value. Therefore, it suggests that the media is the most important factor in luring spiritual travelers.

Testing of the Hypothesis, H₅

The hypothesis is stated as:

Null Hypothesis (H₀): The government doesn't have to develop and carry out marketing plans for spiritual locations.

Alternate Hypothesis (H_a): Government agencies are crucial in developing and carrying out marketing plans for sites of religious significance.

Here, the sample count, which includes both domestic and spiritual samples = 400 Now, D is calculated as, D = max│f_c – f₀│

Here, the calculated value of D = 0.2575

Decision Rule

Level of significance = 5%

A critical value of D,for, n = 400

The null hypothesis is rejected because the estimated value of D exceeds the critical value. Because of this, the government is crucial in developing and carrying out marketing plans for the holy locations.

Discussion

This study found numerous intriguing results. The study included original data from the state's two top spiritual centers. Primary data tested theories. Tourists responded to surveys categorically. Language barriers caused minor misunderstandings. The survey tools were in English, but the survey locations spoke Hindi. Data collecting might finish the survey.

The managed document also urged authorities/agencies to share roles and responsibilities. It was fascinating to see that the government no longer handles all tourist information and infrastructure maintenance. People anticipate improved services and professional attitudes in administering spiritual spaces, where non-governmental organizations/agencies might deliver their services, as professionalism grows in many areas of life. According to hypothesis No.5, the government should develop and deploy spiritual tourist marketing techniques.

Other noteworthy findings from the study may aid marketing strategy development. Most spiritual visitors from adjacent cities and states drive to spiritual sites. While travelers' financial health is improving, the state is losing money in the lodging industry and package trip systems are not rising.

Hotel/restaurant/travel guide data was also gathered. Travel guides depend on overseas travelers for their income, which was lower than planned. Despite low demand for luxury services, hotels/restaurants do well. Intriguingly, hotels/restaurants conduct their promotions, yet they may be used as part of a state-wide spiritual tourism marketing campaign. The study also found that local food may be used to attract tourists, contrary to popular assumption.

Another intriguing conclusion of the survey is that 13% of domestic and 25% of international visitors visit the state only for spiritual reasons. This data doesn't match the state's spiritual reputation. Thus, the state might advertise its spiritual sites, infrastructure, and other characteristics to attract more spiritual visitors.

Conclusion

The tourism sector, which is sometimes called "the smokeless industry," has been rapidly expanding and prospering as a result of its well-established infrastructure. In recent years, the multiple ramifications of tourism, especially on the economy of a state or country, have been better understood. These days, the globalization of the economy is the larger framework for tourism and its concomitant economic repercussions. But infrastructure gaps are still a major stumbling block for the tourist industry in India. In addition, ecotourism development should be actively pursued. Current marketing strategies for spiritual attractions in the state are analyzed, as are the potential effects of tourism and, more specifically, spiritual tourism, on the state's economy. Taking into account the study's limitations, the present research focuses on the most crucial parts, primarily the marketing's promotional features. Because tourism, infrastructure, and the economy are all intertwined and interdependent, we must investigate the interplay between them.

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Received: 15-Apr-2023, Manuscript No. AMSJ-23-13485; Editor assigned: 17-Apr-2023, PreQC No. AMSJ-23-13485(PQ); Reviewed: 24-May-2023, QC No. AMSJ-23-13485; Revised: 28-Jun-2023, Manuscript No. AMSJ-23-13485(R); Published: 24-Jul-2023