The Gods love ‘Gen Z’, and vice-versa. Here’s why…

Bengaluru: Religious tourism is among the hottest selling ideas, reveals a recent conference.

Speaking on the second day of the 55th Annual Convention of Federation of Hotels and Restaurants Association of India (FHRAI), K. Lakshminarayanan, Tourism Minister, Puducherry, said the union territory saw about 19 lakh tourists in the year 2024, adding that the Tourism and Hospitality sector had contributed about ₹ 25,000 crore to the state’s economy.

He also reiterated that a lot of infrastructure was being developed by the Puducherry government to boost tourism.

Dr. Rajendra, Director of Tourism, Karnataka, said the state had over 25,000 historical and heritage sites, four UNESCO sites and 800 notified sites to visit.

“The potential of the sector is huge. The Tourism Policy unveiled earlier this year by the Government of Karnataka emphasises a strong public-private partnership to drive the state’s economy and employment,” he added.  

On the occasion, Ganesh Pai of ISKCON, Bengaluru, said religious tourism is now all about inclusivity. Earlier, only the elderly used to visit religious places, but now travel portals have found that 90 percent of places searched for, for tourism purposes, relates to religious places. And this is done by Gen Z. They are looking for adventure in addition to soul-uplift, he added. 

Dr. Jazzy Nepram, Director of CHI The Spa and Health Club, Shangri-La, said if the wellness sector needed to be diverse, it needs to train people and skill them. To increase revenues, property owners can take the help of skilled wellness professionals who are individual practitioners, and collaborate to offer spas.

Dr. Bhupesh Kumar, Principal, Institute of Hotel Management, Catering Technology and Applied Nutrition, Ranchi, said Gen Z will drive the hospitality sector in future. Tourism employers need to be more polished and skilled to cater to this upmarket and suave generation.