Tourism has sustained continuous growth and is one of the largest industries today. Presently, there is a vast choice for tourists to select a destination. Religion is the oldest and most prominent stimulus for travel among believers/worshipers. Pilgrimage holds a sacred significance in each religion. Even though pilgrimage tourism has significant potential for revenue generation, foreign exchange earnings, and job creation, being inconsiderate, the tourism bodies have not yet taken significant measures to understand the needs/requirements of the pilgrims. This chapter systematically investigated the grey areas where tourists encounter challenges associated with the physical infrastructure of the sacred sites. The chapter holds significance to highlight the areas of improvement for the development of religious sites and destinations. The problems identified were categorized into two categories: on-site/on institution premises and at the destination level. The findings indicate a dearth of interpretive and reflexive approaches to address the needs and requirements of the pilgrims.
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The notion of pilgrimage as a field of research is distinct from a research faction that scarcely existed before the 1990s (Collins-Kreiner, 2020). Simply put, a pilgrimage is a voyage to a site of religious importance (Ganai, 2017), especially for religious reasons (Morinis, 1992). Greenia (2018) advocates pilgrimage as a transformational and enlightening journey to a physical site to gain access to energies beyond the human sphere for salvation, or simply enlightenment. Pilgrims are in search of “a moment when they experience something out of the ordinary that marks a transition from the mundane secular world of their everyday existence to a special and sacred state.” (Collins-Kreiner, 2020). A pilgrimage is an ancient form of travel and a key predecessor to contemporary tourism. Pilgrimages have always been an essential component of religious adherents' spiritual discipline, and travel inspired by belief predates the origins of what we now call "tourism." (Rifai, 2016). Ghansiyal (2019) establishes pilgrimage as the earliest form of tourism, a metamorphic journey for pilgrims during which new insights are imparted, a deeper understanding is achieved, blessings are obtained, and life is seen differently after the voyage. Travel for religious reasons has been common since ancient times, and pilgrimages have always been the primary motivation for the majority of domestic tourists in India (Raj, 2018). Pilgrimages are the one common physical element that every religion prescribes in its religious texts. Pilgrimages have been cited by socio-cultural theorists as a way to bring together a diverse population with different histories, cultures, and social standing, and are a direct depiction of religion’s significance in emotionally and physically stimulating people to travel (Karnan & Pargunan, 2014). Pilgrimage as a mode of travel allows people to visit sacred sites and is a feature shared by almost all societies (Awasthi, 2021; Stoddard, 1997). Pilgrimage is one of the most popular tourist activities among believers, and the number of pilgrims from various religions has been steadily increasing in the early twenty-first century. Reciting some of the earliest folklore, going on a pilgrimage can wash away one's sins and set one free (Raj, 2018) which is one of the primary motivations behind undertaking pilgrimages. Pilgrimages have reportedly expanded dramatically in recent decades as a result of improved accessibility and transportation facilities (Awasthi, 2021). Ganai (2017) states that pilgrimages are one-of-a-kind and irreplaceable tourism gems.
Pilgrimage tourism is defined as tourism solely or mostly motivated by religious grounds (Vijayanand, 2013), drawing devotees, pilgrims, and visitors from around the world (Ganai, 2017). According to Raj (2018), pilgrimage tourism synthesises modern and ancient cultures. “Pilgrimage tourism has become a most common form of tourism in present-day India” (Karnan & Pargunan, 2014). ‘Religious tourism and pilgrimage are beneficial to the pilgrims, the area of pilgrimage and the country in several ways.’ (Mwebaza et al., 2018). Pilgrimage tourism provides enormous prospects for generating revenue, foreign exchange earnings, and job creation (Mwebaza et al., 2018; Vijayanand, 2013) and is a source of economic diversification in the country (Karnan & Pargunan, 2014).
India has had interaction with all of the world's main religions, and pilgrimage tourism is quite popular in India due to its secular background (Taxak & Kumar, 2017). India is home and birthplace of many religions, and “has a huge number of pilgrimage sites, and people visit these sites to gain virtue" (Tomer, 2011). From Hinduism's holy and divine shrines such as the Shaktipeethas, Jyotirlingas, Dhams, and Maths to the sacred sites of Buddha India is home to all such important heavenly places, and pilgrimage tourism in India receives special attention due to its output delivery in the form of employment, national integration, and forex earnings (Hole & Snehal, 2019).
The development of pilgrimage tourism in India is only focused on some of the major pilgrimage sites, Ganai (2017) and Karnan & Pargunan (2014) propose that development should not only be restricted to these renowned sites but needs to be spread to other destinations too. Acknowledging the potential of pilgrimage tourism, the government, both local and central and destination management organizations have begun the development of major pilgrimage centres (Ganai, 2017).