INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MULTIDISCIPLINARY EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH

ISSN:2277-7881; IMPACT FACTOR :6.514(2020); IC VALUE:5.16; ISI VALUE:2.286

Peer Reviewed and Refereed Journal: VOLUME:10, ISSUE:1(1), January :2021
Online Copy Available: www.ijmer.in

CULTURAL TOURISM

Dr. Vanaja Uday

Assistant Professor
Department of Dance, PS Telugu University, Hyderabad

Introduction

Cultural Tourism can be defined broadly as the commercialized manifestation of the human desiring to see how others live. It
is based on satisfying the demand of the curious tourist to see other people in their 'authentic’ environment and to view the physical
manifestations of their lives as expressed in arts and crafts, music, literature, dance, food and drink, play, handicrafts, language and
ritual.

Cultural Tourism is that form of tourism whose object is, among other aims, the discovery of monuments and sites, it exerts
on these last a very positive effect in so far as it contributes – to satisfy its own ends – to their maintenance and protection. Thus, form
of tourism justifies in fact the efforts which said maintenance and protection demand of the human community because of the socio-
cultural and economic benefits which they bestow on all the populations concerned.

Cultural tourism is arguably the oldest of the "new" tourism phenomena. People are traveling for what we now call cultural
tourism reasons since the days of the Unmans; it is just that they were never recognized as being a discrete group of travelers before.
Visiting historic sites, cultural landmarks, attending special events and festivals, or visiting museums have always been a part of the
total tourism experience. Indeed, all travel involves a cultural element. By its very nature, the art of traveling, removes tourists from
their home culture and places them temporarily in a different cultural environment, whether in an adjacent city or in a village halfway
around the world. But cultural tourism is seen as offering something more or different both to the tourist and the community that hosts
the tourist.

Cultural tourism began to be recognized as a distinct product category in the late 1970s when tourism marketers and tourism
researchers realized that some people traveled specifically to gain a deeper understanding of the cultural or heritage of a destination
Initially, it was regarded as a specialized, niche activity that was thought to be pursued by a small number of better educated, more
affluent tourists who were looking for something other than the standard sand, sun, and sea holiday. It is only since the fragmentation
of the mass market in the 1990's that cultural tourism has been recognized for what it is: a high-profile, mass-market activity.
Depending on the source and the destination, between 35 and 70 percent of international travelers are now considered cultural tourists
(Richards 1996c; Antolovic 1999). Based on these figures, as many as 240 million international journeys annually involve some
element of cultural tourism. Today, arguably, cultural tourism has superseded ecotourism as the trendy tourism buzzword. It is not-
surprising, then, that destinations are clamoring to get on the proverbial cultural tourism band wagon by promoting their cultural or
heritage assets for tourist consumption, often without due consideration of the impact that tourism may have on them.

What is cultural tourism? Seems a simple question actually very difficult to answer because there are almost as many
definitions or variations of definitions of cultural tourism as there are cultural tourists. The American chapter of ICOMOS, the
International Council on Monuments and Sites, observed that "cultural tourism as a name means many things too many people and
herein lays its strength and its weakness”.

The tourism literature identifies the range of cultural tourism activities as including the use of such heritage assets as
archaeological sites, museums, castles, palaces, historical buildings, famous buildings, ruins, art, sculpture, crafts, galleries, festivals,
events, music and dance, folk arts, theatre, ‘primitive cultures’ subcultures, ethnic communities, churches, cathedrals and other things
that represents people, and their cultures (Richards 1996a; Goodrich 1997; Miller 1997; Jamieson 1994). Likewise, the array of
cultural tourism products can include existing structures, modified facilities, and purpose-built attractions. The scale can vary from
one building, to a cluster of buildings, a streetscape, a precinct within a community, an entire city or town, a region, or arguably to
entire countries.

Cultural Tourism is a form of Tourism whose definition has under gone number of changes from time to time worldwide.
The following are the definitions:

Cultural Tourism is define "Travel for essentially cultural motivations, which may include travel for specific
overpasses, for example, to attend festivals or to visit a sites or moments, or may be more broadly motivated by the desire to
experience cultural diversity or to immerse oneself in the culture of a region.

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 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MULTIDISCIPLINARY EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
ISSN:2277-7881; IMPACT FACTOR :6.514(2020); IC VALUE:5.16; ISI VALUE:2.286
Peer Reviewed and Refereed Journal: VOLUME:10, ISSUE:1(1), January :2021
Online Copy Available: www.ijmer.in

Cultural Tourism "in recognized as a form of special interest tourism, where cultural forms the basis of either attracting
tourists or motivating people to travel, other place it in a tourism systems context, recognizing that it involves interrelation ships
between people, places, and cultural heritage or define it in the context of the temporary movement of people.

The World Tourism Organisation defines cultural tourism as ‘movement of persons essentially for cultural motivations such
as study tours, performing arts and cultural tours, travel to festivals and other events, visits to sites and monuments, study nature,
folklore or art, and pilgrimages.

Jafari Jafferpresents a more acceptable definition in his most famous work ‘culture is a social mechanism that shapes and
guides people’s thoughts values and beliefs and ultimately controls their behaviour. It is the collective programming of the mind
which distinguishes the members of one human group from another, the interactive aggregate of common characteristics that influence
a human group’s response to the environment.

Cultural Tourism can be defined broadly “It is based on satisfying the demand of the curios tourist to see another peoples in
their “authentic” environment and to views the physical manifestations of their lives as expressed in arts and crafts, music, literature,
dance, food and drink, handicrafts language and ritual”.

Tourism or Tourist culture is a vague concept that describes behaviour and institutions which can be observed at tourism
destinations but which are not straight forwardly parts of the cultures of either the host society or the visiting tourists.

The exact nature of these new tourist cultures becomes clearer if one uses an analogy with the already well explored variety
of tourist arts, which are one aspect of this culture. The hosts’ traditional cultural productions are often modified for touristic
consumption, typically for ethnic or cultural tourism.

As such, tourism is a powerful force in exposing and modifying local and traditional cultural for the ‘gaze’. It thrives on
forms of heritage such as archaeology, building and land scape restoration, and local festivals. But in ethnic and cultural tourism, it is
a conservative and hostage force which tends to freeze traditions in stereotypically recognizable forms.

Heritage is a broad concept and includes the natural as well as the cultural environment. It encompasses landscapes, historic
places, sites and built environments, as well as biodiversity, collections, past and continuing cultural practices of historic development,
forming the essence of diverse national, regional, indigenous and local identities and positive instrument for growth and change. The
particular heritage and collective memory of each locality or community is irreplaceable and an important foundation for
development, both now and into the future.

Cultural Heritage Tourism

Cultural heritage tourism is based on the mosaic of places, traditions, art celebrations and experiences that portray this nation
and its people, reflecting the diversity and character of the any region. Travelers who engage in cultural tourism activities visit the
following:
 Art galleries, theater and museum
 Historic sites and buildings
 Cultural events, festivals and fairs
 Ethnic communities and neighborhood and
 Architectural and archaeological treasures

Cultural Tourism is linked to heritage through a collection of contributions of a culture, people or community, displaying the
material evidence of its own identity through its cultural expressions. This link is a unique an exceptional and constitutes a
nonrenewable resource. Cultural heritage cannot become a consumer product nor can its relationship with the visitor be superficial. If
the tourist is able to identify with the heritage, he can appreciate its value and the importance of preserving it and thus become an ally
of museums.

It is not accidentally that Andhra Pradesh is the core of civilizations and the cradle of religions, a cradle for cultural tourism.
The cultural tourism grew in the state at outset of the pilgrims’ trips to the holy places like Tirupathi. The scripts of travelers and the
earlier pilgrims are a comprehensive evidence and a thorough reference depicting all sorts of activities, namely, spiritual, intellectual,
material, social and the traditions and customs in Andhra Pradesh in the past centuries. That implied that the motives of many pilgrims
were cultural.

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 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MULTIDISCIPLINARY EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
ISSN:2277-7881; IMPACT FACTOR :6.514(2020); IC VALUE:5.16; ISI VALUE:2.286
Peer Reviewed and Refereed Journal: VOLUME:10, ISSUE:1(1), January :2021
Online Copy Available: www.ijmer.in

Andhra Pradesh is still, up till now, the central focus of attraction for pilgrims and visitors. That proves what it contains of
religious places and archaeological sites were the destination of an intellectual who was eager to know history.

The religious tourismto the holy places has been known long ago. It reached its climax during the three last decades, due to the
remarkable surplus in the field of world tourism. Great part of it is classified, in the field of cultural tourism because tourist programs
which were prepared for those pilgrims, included, in addition to visiting holy places, a visit for various monuments and historical
features. Sometimes, the local community participated in cultural ceremonies in the religious feasts and seasons. It was an important
type of participation not only for its economic development but it also ensured an opportunity for the people to introduce a true
picture, for its history, civilization, society and heritage. In such programs, the tourist, not only prayed and worshiped, but he also
visited the religious sites, and the historical and monumental places, and took part in the various festivals as well.

Nowadays, the religious tourism has become a mixed tourism because it ensures visiting both religious place- and cultural
features. Several tour operators, which organize pilgrim trips to the holy places, incorporate in their programs, various cultural
activities. Various types of pilgrims come to Andhra Pradesh because the religious places, for these religions, are available throughout
the country. So, there should be appropriate programs for this cultural, religious and social diversity and provide services suitable for
all the ages or the nature of each group; the religious tourism has a collective quality and takes place in all seasons.

Components of The 'Cultural Tourism’

In order to study the cultural policy and its role in activating and developing society, overlapping elements ought to be
tailored, and to examine its possible development and conditions that should be provided so as to realize that, the elements are;
 Arts (performance and visual)
 Attractions
 Cycling/Walking trails/routes
 Events
 Festivals
 Folk events
 Musical heritage
 Heritage sites
 Heritage trails
 History
 Literature related sites/trails
 Markets/Craft Fairs
 Museums & Galleries (although tourism is not their primary raison d'etre)
 Sports (including extreme sports/activities)
 Venues & Theatres
 Walks (guided, or self-guided with a leaflet)

The core of cultural tourism is directly related with entertainment and thought, as watching of the new civilized,
heritage and historic features, museums, theatres, bookshops, the economic, social and scientific establishments, different markets and
such things self – amusement through new observations and the change of routine, man has been familiarized with in his original
homeland with a new climate, or extensive observation in the tourist areas, convey delight, happiness and relief to his soul and body,
besides mental and thinking refreshing.

Shapes of Cultural Tourism

Andhra Pradesh tourism must witness a conversion from the traditional type to a new-momentum where culture plays a
significant role because the cultural tourism is the ideal field in creating integrity between culture and development. So, that should be
accompanied with a change of the services offered to the tourist. In the past, interest was on the visit of the religious arches. Now, it is
time to highlight the specialties of heritage, culture and civilization which many cities and parts are characterized.

Through those specialties, tourist output may be promoted and developed. The cultural distinguished substance forwarded to
tourists, is only a developing means of the tourist sector which may realize a comprehensive growth for the country.

In order to achieve that, there ought to a set of available frameworks through which different cultural activities can be
introduced; that helps to encourage cultural tourism as:

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 INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF MULTIDISCIPLINARY EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
ISSN:2277-7881; IMPACT FACTOR :6.514(2020); IC VALUE:5.16; ISI VALUE:2.286
Peer Reviewed and Refereed Journal: VOLUME:10, ISSUE:1(1), January :2021
Online Copy Available: www.ijmer.in

Innovating Opportunities
Cultural tourism, today, is no longer confined to the concept of historical wealth, but new elements have been introduced
like, Innovative occasions, exploiting certain circumstances that realize the diversity of tourist output, to attract new categories of
tourists and visitors to share in the occasions. It is possible to create several local occasions as; Food, Music and Dance festival.

References
1. Bob Mc Kercher, Hillary Ducross, Cultural Tourism the Partnership between Tourism and Cultural Heritage Management., The
Howarth Hospitality Press, London, 2001, pp.4-5.
2. Antolovic, Jadran, "Immovable Cultural Monuments and Tourism", Cultural Tourism Session Notes XII Assembly, ICOMOS,
Mexico, 1999, pp. 103 – 118.
3. US ICOMOS., The ICOMOS International Committee on Cultural Tourism, US/ICOMOS Newsletter Number 6, Special Edition,
1996, p.50
4. Bob Mc Kercher and Hillary Ducross, The Fundamental Truths of Cultural Tourism., In Heung. V.C.S. Andhra Pradesh J. and
Wong. K.K.F (Ed). Tourism 2000, Asia Pacific’s Role in the New Millennium (pp.272-279). APTA. Hong Kong.
5. N.Leiper., The Frame work of Tourism: Towards a definition of Tourism, Tourist and the Tourism Industry., Annals of Tourism
Research, Vol,6, no.4, Oct-Dec.1979, pp.390-407.
6. S.P.Gupta, Krishna., Cultural Tourism In India, New Delhi, 2004, p.15
7. W.T.O. International Conference on Travel and Tourism Statistics, W.T.O, Madrid, 1991, p.21
8. Jafari, Jafer (Ed), Op.Cit.,1996, pp. 115-200.
9. L.H.Hughes., Redefining Cultural Tourism Research Notes and Reports, 1995, pp.7-9.
10. Romila Chawla (Ed)., Tourism: The Cultural Heritage, New Delhi, 2006, p.63
11. S.P.Gupta, Krishna Lal, Mahua Bhattacharya., Cultural Tourism In India, D.K.Print World (P) Ltd, New Delhi, 2002, p.50
12. Lavkush Misra., Religious Tourism in India, Mothi Publications, New Delhi, 2000, pp81-112
13. ICOMOS, Cultural Tourism Charter, ICOMOS, Paris, 1976, p.150
14. Andhra Pradesh Tourism Policy, Dept. of. Tourism, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad, 1998, p.3
15. K.K.Sharma., Tourism and Socio-Cultural Development, New Delhi, 2004, p.73
16. Dr. Deepak Raj Gupta, Ms.Poonam Sharma., Promotion of Cultural Heritage and Rural Tourism through Pilgrimage Tourism: A
case study, Ibid, Section V, 33, New Delhi, 2006, pp.13-20