Adventure sports, spirituality, a combination of luxurious and economical packages make this year’s Kumbh Mela more attractive. By Team Viva

A significant change in the pattern of travellers attending the Prayagraj Ardh Kumbh Mela 2019 has been witnessed by a travel organisation. There has been a change in the perspective of the attendees towards the holy mela. Visitors not only want to explore spiritual tourism but want to combine it with high-octane adventure sports, bringing in a new flavour to the mela.

These are some of the major reasons according to Thomas Cook (India) Ltd. (TCIL), why millions of travellers attend the mela:

World’s largest number of spiritual travellers

While majority of visitors commute by air, rail and road,  this year there is a considerable rise in the number of people travelling to the Kumbh Mela on foot. A number of them have also been flying to Lucknow, Kanpur and Varanasi and then driving two to three hours to Prayagraj where the Kumbh takes place. While the mela of 1903 witnessed a crowd of four lakh people, the one in 2013 saw the number surge to 12 crores, making it the world’s largest gathering of visitors. This year, the area of the Mela has been doubled to 3,200 hectares wherein the first Shahi Snan alone, has recorded the participation of 2.5 crore people.

According to CII, 2019’s budget allocation of Rs 4,200 crores is the steepest for the pilgrimage and the expected revenue for Uttar Pradesh is Rs 1.2 lakh crore.

Spiritual tourism fused with adventure sports

Due to its cultural significance, the Kumbh Mela was recognised as India’s Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity by UNESCO in 2017. Spiritual tourism has been on the rise in recent years. The surreal congregation of Naga Sadhus taking the Shahi Snan is a highly photographed event. This is coupled with the rise in the interest in adventure tourism, sports like parasailing, paramotoring, wall climbing, ball zorbing on land or the Yamuna river and hot air balloons have been introduced at the Mela grounds which has visitors queuing up.

Cities of Kumbh

The city of Prayagraj comes alive during the mela with sites like Alopi Devi Temple, Allahabad Fort and more receiving high traction. The world’s largest temporary city has been brightened up by around 40,000 LED lights and has adequate water provision as well as 250 km roads and 1.22 lakh toilets keeping in mind Swachh Kumbh, Surakshit Kumbh.

Over 4,000 tents have been set up in the city for the growing urban-rural and national-international crowd that offer budget friendly as well as glamping (luxurious) tents.

 An increase in working millennials from metro cities

Interestingly, this year the company received over 800 requests from people for its Kumbh Mela packages, of which a majority came from the working millennials of the metro cities of Mumbai, Bangalore, and Delhi. They have been opting for short, affordable and experiential packages, especially those offered to suit their travel schedules.

One can definitely conclude that there is a rising interest among millennials about the mela this year, as around 40 per cent of the packages offered, have been booked by them. This growing demand could be attributed to the social media, which has promoted the rich culture of the mela through vivid and visual imagery as well as the enticing packages that have been offered around the ongoing Kumbh Mela. Through these, they are able to explore the mela, take a holy dip at the Sangam, indulge in local sightseeing including forts, temples and museums and experience an adrenaline rush through some adventure sports.

Ease of attending and enhanced safety

Complemented by better infrastructure, greater connectivity and a surge in employment, short haul pilgrimages have seen a 40 per cent month-on-month growth. The remodelled infrastructure for this year’s Kumbh comprises upgradation of nine railway stations, two water vessels deployed by the IWAI, construction of a new airport terminal and the introduction of additional special flights and 800 special trains by Air India and the railway authorities respectively.

Moreover, for enhanced safety and security of visitors, IBM Intelligent Video Analytics have been used for railway station surveillance. ‘Epidemic intelligence officers’ have been deployed to predict and prevent possible outbreaks at the Kumbh Mela and an application developed by the Uttar Pradesh Police is available to help attendees navigate their way through the Prayagraj Ardh Kumbh Mela, 2019.

So this year has been about surrendering oneself to the spiritual fever of the Kumbh Mela without any tangible worries.