Title Odisha - Towards a new Disha in Tourism Author MRSS India Date October 2017 Copyright No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form by photo, photo- print, microfilm or any other means without written permission of FICCI and MRSS India Disclaimer The information and opinions contained in this document have been compiled or arrived at from sources believed to be reliable, but no representation or warranty expressed is made to their accuracy, completeness or correctness. This document is for information purpose only. The information contained in this document is published for the assistance of the recipient but is not to be relied upon as authoritative or taken in substitution for the exercise of judgment by any recipient. This document is not intended to be a substitute for professional, technical or legal advice. All opinions expressed in this document are subject to change without notice. Neither MRSS India and FICCI, nor other legal entities in the group to which they belong, accept any liability whatsoever for any direct or consequential loss however arising from any use of this document or its contents or otherwise arising inconnection herewith. Many of the conclusions and inferences are specific inferences made by MRSS India in their expert capacity specifically in tourism sector and does not have any correlation with financing related outlook that as a research organization may have. Contact Address FICCI Majestic Research Services and Headquarters Solutions Limited Rahul Chakravarty Chandramouli Guin Consultant,Tourism Head - Government Practice Federation House 1, Tansen Marg MRSS India Ltd. New Delhi - 110001 C-19, II & III Floor, D.D.A. Okhla Tel : +91-11-23311720-Direct/ Sheds, Behind Crowne Plaza, 23738760-70 (Ext.342) Okhla Phase I Fax : +91-11-23765333 New Delhi - 110020 Email : [email protected] Mob : +91-9810513326 For Further [email protected] [email protected] Information [email protected] [email protected] TABLE OF CONTENTS 1) Introduction 5 a) Prelude 5 b) Odisha as a tourism destination 6 2) Contribution of Tourism to the State GDP of Odisha 7 3) A snapshot of tourist visits to the State 7 b) Domestic Tourist Visits 10 i) Major source market of domestic tourists to Odisha:- 10 4) Seasonal Flow of Tourists in Odisha 11 5) Tourist Destinations in Odisha 12 a) Established locations 12 b) District wise Tourist visits 13 c) Major themes marketed by Odisha Tourism 14 d) Top focus areas for attracting Tourists 15 i) Golden Triangle 15 ii) Buddhist Circuit or the Diamond Triangle 16 iii) Temples & Monuments 17 iv) Music & Dance Festivals 17 e) Unexplored Destinations 18 f) Documented Unconventional experiences 19 6) Hospitality infrastructure in Odisha 19 a) Accommodation Units 19 b) Point to point connectivity 21 7) Revamping Odisha into New Disha – Initiatives taken 21 a) Tourist Flow 21 b) Government thrust to promote tourism in the state – Odisha Tourism Policy 2016 22 i) Key features of Odisha Tourism policy to promote private investment 23 c) Revamping Odisha into New Disha – Initiatives undertaken 24 i) Specific Tourism related initiatives 24 ii) Campaign in mainstream and social media 25 iii) Some key steps taken to bring inflow of tourists 26 8) Primary Survey of Tourists visiting Odisha 27 9) FICCI MRSS Ten Point Suggestions to boost tourism in the State 33 Bibliography 34 Executive Summary Odisha, the maritime state located in the eastern fringes of the country has been a root to the culture, heritage, ethnicity scenic beaches and industrial hubs of the country. The State has attracted tourist with its mysticism, virile culture and works of art and crafts since time immemorial. Off Late, Odisha has started being aggressive in attracting tourists to visit its abode by rapidly re-inventing and repackaging the type of product it has to offer the tourism world. What is incredible is the fact that a considerable part of Odisha is still unexplored and still being discovered. The USP of the State in terms of its tourism resource, which sets it apart from other states, can be very well understood from the figure below. This depicts the tourism offering of Odisha to the world. - s Bio MICE Fairs &Fairs Cultural Beaches Tourism Artifacts Heritage Festivals Diversity Religious Historical Historical Handicraft An analysis of Domestic as well as foreign tourists from around the world indicates that the state has an indelible footprint in the tourism map of the country as well as the world. Visitors from only a few domestic States/ UT’s refrain from visiting the 6 Odisha - Towards a new Disha in Tourism State, which otherwise is well on its way to lead the industrial revolution in the east with it’s focus on specific areas of Manufacturing, ESDM, IoT, Automation, Heavy Engineering etc. This will boost business tourism and in association with it bring along the subsets like, Leisure, Cruise (thanks to the large coastline) and other top revenue churners in the tourism domain. An analysis for foreign tourist visit shows that all continents with the exception of Western Europe has grown for the period under consideration. High growth rates can be observed for South Asia, Africa, Eastern Europe and South East Asia. Thanks to the Budhdhist resources that throng the state, the state will remain a top draw for the visitors from the South East and South Asian countries. Off late, a few new concepts of tourism has started making a headaway in the Odisha tourism horizon. The transformation story has been depicted in the diagram below Traditional Concepts Emerging Concepts Future Tourism of Tourism of Tourism Concepts • Monuments • Eco Tourism • Knowledge Tourism • Art & Craft • Adventure Tourism • Caravan tourism • Festival • Medical Tourism • Wellness Tourism • Tribal Heritage • MICE Tourism • Cruise Tourism • Beaches • Sand Art Tourism • Budhdhist Circuit • Dance & Music • Nature The State Government has an ambitious plan to grow tourists at the brisk pace of 15% for the next couple of years. It plans to overcome this ambitious target for the next few years with targeted intervention in the following areas as depicted in the figure below. The specific steps taken in transfrming Odisha to New Disha is as follows:- Odisha - Towards a new Disha in Tourism 7 Better Connectivity Targetted Upgraded Marketing & Infrastructur Promotion e 8 Pronged Ease of Strategy to Better Civic Doing increase Amenities Business tourist flow Quality Easy Land Power Availability Supply Beefed up safety & Security • Recasting and revamping the State Tourism Policy with emphasis on o To promote Sustainable & Green Tourism o To preserve, enrich and promote Odisha’s unique cultural heritage, natural recourses and environment with a view to achieve inclusive development o To address the regulatory & tourism promotion/ development functions in Private Public Partnership (PPP) mode at all levels in an effective and well-coordinated manner. o To promote Odisha as one stop destination o To promote circuit tourism in association with other State of Eastern Zone o To upgrade skill & professionalism amongst stakeholders o To promote digital tourism o To promote responsible tourism o To promote barrier-free tourism • Aggressive Outbound Marketing • Ensuring Tourist Safety & Security 8 Odisha - Towards a new Disha in Tourism • Training, IT Integration and Digital Literacy • Information Dissemination in digital channels • Identification of new theme based destinations • Campaign in mainstream and social media • Some key steps taken to bring inflow of tourists o Investor Friendly Tourism Policy o Dhauli Light and Sound Show o Signing of MoU’s – With Air Asia – With Aditya Birla Group o Sponsoring Sports Activities o Initiation of Odisha Water Sports Guidelines 2017 o Revised Guidelines for identification of new tourism centres of Odisha o Ensuring safety & security of tourists o Faster implementation of Shamuka beach project o Outdoor Branding of Odisha Tourism o Development of Coastal Circuit MRSS India has conducted survey of approx. 400 foreign tourists and 400 domestic tourists at major entry/ exit points as well as destinations. The key findings from the two groups are as depicted in the Table below:- Parameters Domestic Foreign Reasons for visit to the Cultural & Pilgrimage Cultural & Business State Information collection Word of Mouth/ Digital Modes India Tourism Offices/ State Tourism Offices/ Digital channels Perception Great historical significance Great historical and better value for money significance and famous against competition in the world Top areas to focus for the Accommodation seems to be Security concerns, Toilets, State Tourism Department the only blip Weather Odisha - Towards a new Disha in Tourism 9 Taking a peek at the various steps undertaken by the State Government, collated data as well as the State legacy FICCI – MRSS suggests the following steps for the resurgence of Odisha as a new tourism hotspot within the Indian union:- a) Showcase investors the value in investing in ODISHA – The investors have to be lured into Odisha by showcasing the rich cultural heritage and introducing new concepts conceived off/ implemented. b) Start an online newsletter especially for the investor / Tourist community – This is going to be thedocument that is going to lure investor community as well as the visitors. It would have snapshots of policy highlights, implementation steps in addition to the new investments made in certain fields. This can be introduced in a quarterly frequency and based