Regional Planning Lab : Heritage and Tourism

Shah Manali Nimesh

4047

Vadodara is the cultural capital of Gujarat and the present day grandeur is being owed to Maharaja Sayaji Rao Gaekwad-III who was a patron of art. In spite of this it has not been the focus of promotion activities and comparatively there is less awareness than other places in Gujarat. Also the regions surrounding Vadodara have many important religious structures, recreational sites and UNESCO monuments.
Therefore it was important to study the heritage and tourism of the region as well as bring out strategies that will help in lifting the tourist economy.

Report Content

Four major aspects were studied which are tourist places, circuits, inflow and emplyement

The tourist places are categorized as heritage, religious, recreational and ecological. Business and events also generate tourism

The study region is also home to UNESCO heritage sites

Three major tourist circuits pass through the region

Each district has a particular theme on the basis of the tourist places. Also there are various initiatives taken by government to promote heritage and tourism

The inter-dependency of various talukas for the purpose of tourism is mapped here

Vadodara has the highest number of tourists for the purpose of tourism. Districts like anand, kheda, panchmahal has more of religious tourism

Various factors like increasing trends in tourist inflow, employement, initiatives suggest strong opportunity for tourism

Three main strategies to address the existing issues as well as to uplift the tourism industry are given.

An example of how various strategies can be implemented are shown