Priyanka Tiwari
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Suspense crime, Digital Desk : Maha Kumbh Mela and Char Dham Yatra are events that are having a profound impact on India’s spiritual tourism and as a result, it is projected to grow significantly in the year 2025. Other supporting evidence include travel platforms like OYO, ixigo, and 'MakeMyTrip' who reported enormous year on year engagements and bookings showcasing the regions growing cultural and economic importance.
A Global Tourism Center Stage Event: Maha Kumbh 2025
As claimed by the Chief minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, 'the Maha Kumbh Mela’ attracted region defining 662 million visits which had an astounding effect on the economy of the state that focuses around tourism and hospitality.
Q4 FY25 make my trip earned 147 percent profit compared to last year.
ixigo bus bookings boomed to an astounding 20x, while flight reservations increased 5.4x alongside 4x growth for train bookings.
He went further to add that their concentrated strategy on alternates accommodations and TENT bookings propelled them ahead of peers dwarming the competition in these high seasons.
The Want of Gen Z and Solo Travelers
Another crucial finding from ixigo’s Q4 report was the change in the profile of tourists interested in spiritual travel in light of the recent shifts:", which was astonishing to see for me personally, refers too under 30 visitors making up over fifty percent. Also noting solo train travelers surpassed half the Prayagraj train bookings.
As I see it, the perception on religious tourism is now transformed and said to obsolete with young independent travelers was deeply resonant, noted Aloke Bajpai, CEO of ixigo.
OYO's Expansion in Pilgrimage Cities
Founder of OYO Ritesh Agarwal stated that 20% of the company’s revenue comes from spiritual locations. During the Maha Kumbh OYO alone hosted over 500K guests in Prayagraj.
OYO’s plans are aggressive.
Targeting 500 new hotels in pilgrimage centers such as:
Varanasi (100 hotels),
Prayagraj, Haridwar and Puri (50 hotels each)
Ayodhya (planned 150 hotels)
OYO has also observed a 39% YoY increase in Ayodhya search traffic for New Year 2025 signifying its rising prominence.
Char Dham Yatra 2025 Breaks Records
The Char Dham Yatra underpins the current attention. Starting on the 30th of April 2025, this Yatra has:
32 lakh registrations
12.8 lakh completed visits
Single day record footfall of 67172 pilgrims on 23rd May.
Spiritual Tourism: A Long-Term Growth Engine
“As per KPMG’s report, spiritual tourism contributes to 60% of domestic tourism. In the report,” the Ministry of Tourism states, “It can create 140 million jobs by 2030.”
Experts like Magow and Bajpai anticipate this is a multi-year structural theme arguing that spiritual travel has shifted from a niche focus to a primary driver of India’s tourism industry.”
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