Having built a portfolio of 35 hotels in cities of religious significance and with more hotels in the pipeline, Tata Group’s Indian Hotel Company Ltd. (IHCL), which runs Taj hotels, among other brands, has identified spiritual tourism as a thrust area to grow its business.

Since spiritual tourism in India accounts for 60% of the total domestic tourism, IHCL has set up hotels at key locations like Tirupati, Varanasi, Amritsar, Madurai and Rishikesh, to name a few.

With this, Taj Hotels is well-positioned to capture the demand at these key spiritual destinations, executives said.

IHCL, with all its brands, is a dominant player in many other cities of spiritual significance including Nashik, Ajmer, Katra, and Dwarka with a footprint of 35 hotels with over 4,000 rooms.

“Religious tourism is often considered the oldest form of tourism, dating thousands of years back. Today, with better infrastructure support, this segment is growing rapidly. Being pioneers in tourism, we are is committed to growing and strengthening footprint in this sector which is growing exponentially,” said Puneet Chhatwal, MD & CEO, IHCL.

“Religious and spiritual tourism within domestic tourism is a largely untapped market. IHCL currently has a portfolio of 35 hotels across locations with religious and spiritual significance. Our pipeline includes hotels in Dharamshala, Haridwar, Katra, Mecca, to name a few,” he added.

Recently, IHCL signed up for Vivanta Dharamshala, a 100-room hotel offering panoramic views of the Dhauladhar mountains in the Himalayas. It is a short distance away from McLeodganj, famous the world over as a hub of Tibetan Buddhism and home to the Dalai Lama. It is a greenfield project slated to open in 2023.

For the comfort of its guests, IHCL is assisting tourists with pre-bookings for darshan/aarti and providing guides for hassle free visit to the religious shrines

IHCL was also behind the famous Ganga Arti that takes place in Varanasi.

As per IHCL’s research, destinations like Varanasi, Ajmer, Amritsar, Goa and Kerala are visited more by domestic travellers while international travellers are inclined towards Amritsar, Nashik and Madurai, more from a cultural exploration perspective.

“Religious and spiritual tourism within domestic tourism is a largely untapped market. IHCL is committed to filling the gap in this sector which is growing exponentially. The opportunities across market segments and price points are immense,” the company said.

Meanwhile, Taj Hotels has launched ‘Divinity Trails at the Taj’ across key destinations in India.

Renu Basu, senior vice-president – Global Sales and Marketing, IHCL, said, “Divinity Trails at the Taj is our way to encourage travelers to explore self-fulfilling and spiritual experiences while enjoying a luxurious break.”

Among the key Divinity Trails destinations are Taj Tirupati, Taj Rishikesh Resort & SpaTaj Swarna, Amritsar and Taj Nadesar Palace or Taj Ganges, Varanasi.