UNIT 8

ADVENTURE TOURISM

Structure
8.0
8.1
8.2

Objectives
Introduction
Adventure Activities and Sports
8.2.1 Aerial Adventure
8.2.2 Water Adventure
8.2.3 Land Adventure
8.3 Market Research and Analysis
8.4 Designing A Product
8.5 Developing the Adventur e Product
8.6 Devising and Positioning the Adventure Product
8.7 Tourist Behaviour
8.8 Future Trends and Scope of Adventure Tourism
8.9 Case Studies
8.10 Let Us Sum Up
8.11 Clues to Answers

8.0 OBJECTIVES
After reading this Unit you will be able to:

define adventure tourism and explain its link to recreation,

decide upon the factors to consider while conducting market research for adventure tourism
products,

learn how to design and develop an adventure tourism product,

discuss the tourist behaviour during adventure tour and

explore the future scope of adventure tourism products.

8.1 INTRODUCTION
Adventure, outdoor recreation and sports are the most rapidly growing components of modern tourism.
Adventure tourism is mainly seen as thrilling activities tourism and activity based tourism, such as,
mountaineering, trekking, sailing, white water rafting, angling, ballooning, parachuting, and so on.
Adventure tourism is becoming quite a rage with the younger generation, who wants to venture into
and experience the unknown adventure world. Although lot many adventure activities and sports exist,
yet it is up to you, the tourism professionals to design and develop adventure products/services to suit
the need of the market and in some cases even create markets for the product that you have developed.
In this Unit, we will briefly discuss the various products which can be termed as adventure tourism
products within the tourism framework. You will also learn how a core adventure product can be
designed and developed to fulfil the criteria of adventure tours and also how various ancillary services
are added to make it a successful product. Finally, you will read about the scenario and future scope
of adventure tourism Globally and in India to project a picture of demand-supply gap.

8.2 ADVENTURE ACTIVITIES AND SPORTS

Adventure tourism is a form of travel in which the perception (and often the reality) of heightened
risk creates a special appeal to certain segments of the travel market (Tourism Principles,
Practices, Philosophies Charles R. Goeldner, J.R. Brent Ritchie and Robert W. McIntosh).
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Adventure tourism is a special form of tourism. According to John Canning, the fascination for the
word adventure is perhaps that most people think of it as a life being lived at a far greater intensity
than normal (John Canning). Adventure activities and sports are generally outdoor activities
involving risk and excitement and are taken in conjugation with nature. Moreover, the unpredictability
of nature adds to the thrill and unexpectancy of the adventure activities.
Link with Recreation
According to Charles R. Goeldner, J.R. Brent Ritchie and Robert W. McIntosh , Recreation is a
diverse industry. Ralph clearly sees recreations main purpose as one of recreating or revitalising
people so that they may efficiently return to their routine activities which are not recreational but
economically gainful work. Meyer and Brightbill define recreation as activity voluntarily engaged
in during ones leisure time and primarily motivated by the satisfaction or pleasure derived from it.
Recreational Industry centres on participation in sports, curative spas, sun bathing and social contacts
in a relaxed atmosphere. Generally, all adventure activities and sports are outdoor recreational
activities and herein lies the link of adventure tour with recreation.
Adventure tourism related products could be classified in to following broad categories:

8.2.1

Aerial Adventure

Aerial adventure became popular almost since the airplane was invented. The Federation
Aeronautique Internationale (FAI) which oversees all international aerial competition, was founded
in 1905, just two years after the Wright Brothers famous first flight.
The oldest form of aerial adventure is Ballooning. Balloons used for these activities are of two types
Hydrogen filled and Hot air balloon, which though heavier than Hydrogen is neither flammable nor
explosive. Balloons filled with Helium are also used. To promote this product Department of Tourism
conducts Ballooning Fairs at Delhi and Ahmedabad every year. Even today, a very small number of
people might have experienced the thrill, hence, opportunities to sell this tourism product are ample
and market is open.
Adventure seekers also go for Parachute Jumping and Sky Diving but both require the use of
aircraft and is a costly affair, moreover, proper training is required. Another aerial adventure, Paragliding is also done using light aircraft, but differs from parachute jumping since the shape of chute
used in this activity is almost flat and rectangular from above.
Parasailing though is a more recent development where the use of jeep or speedboat on water helps
in towing the parasailers and stopping of the machine results in parasailers descent.
Gliding or soaring is also popular though considering a bit risky. Hang-gliding is a variation of
gliding which has become very popular. It has full FAI status. Micro lighting, a different version of
gliding uses three wheels and an engine and hence the technicalities are a bit different.
Other than these Bungee Jumping can also be considered a form of aerial adventure. The most
important precaution before participating in any from aerial adventure, is to take into consideration
the weather observations and trainers experience as well as his training background of precaution are
not taken in this direction can prove to be very costly experience.

8.2.2

Water Adventure

Water/Aqua adventure can take place in beautiful waterfalls, heart-throbbing springs, glacial lakes
and splashing oceans.
Diving is the most common aqua sports snorkelling; scuba diving and tethered or surface supplied
diving are popular, especially to check out the beautiful Coral Reefs. Though now-a-days deep sea
diving is also gaining popularity.
White water rafting and Canoeing are very popular with the adventure seekers. Flat Water
adventure sports such as water skiing, wind surfing and surfing are so popular that they have annual
competitions.
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8.2.3

Land Adventure

Adventure on land can be a safari, which does not necessarily mean wild life excursion. Modern day
safari primarily has a tourist group travelling caravan style over a long specified distance. Safari could
be desert jeep safari or wild life excursion or travelling the amazon jungle where the element of
adventure exists. Motor rally also constitutes an adventure sports. It tests the endurance of man and
machine along with the navigation skills of a person.
Popular land base adventure revolves around mountain or concept of mountain such as wall climbing,
whic h also has international competitions. Trekking and camping is the most basic forum of
mountaineering. Mountaineering basically is tougher than trekking, as it requires specialised skills
which can only be acquired by training. For this mountaineering inst itute has been established by
Govt. of India to promote and provide trained trainers. Rock climbing is a part of mountaineering but
many a times it is performed as a separate sport. Latest fad is to go for mountain biking along with a
camping trip.
Skiing is a popular activity with both international and domestic tourists. In Asia, India was the first
country offering heli-skiing, a relatively new sport.
India as a country has a lot to offer to the adventure tourists. Professionalism on the part of tour
operators and government agencies, is required while designing and developing the correct mixture of
adventure tour product/service for tourists belonging to all classes and budgets.
So far the notion prevails that adventure tourism is a very costly affair and a budget class tourist
cannot afford it. This notion stands contradicting to the belief that youth is the target market segment
and youth is and will never be a high spender. If notion is correct then you cannot sell your product to
your target markets.

8.3

MARKET RESEARCH AND ANALYSIS

A product is designed keeping in mind the market you plan to cater. Therefore, the first step towards
product design necessarily is market research. So you know by now that modern day travellers are a
diverse group of people with varying needs. Tourism markets have people of different age group and
income, marital status, etc., who have different needs and thus they make up different markets.
Market research helps in segmenting these tourist markets and thus coming up with ideal tourist
product for one particular tourist market segment. For example, a trekking camp for families with
young kids can provide baby sitting facilities and other daytime activities for children of varying age
within the camp while their parents go on trekking to nearby areas.
As you know tourism industry primarily depends on two kind of market research in identifying and
describing the various market segment. The primary research is done by the travel industry itself.
For instance travel coach, tour operators, hotels, airlines and so on. The secondary research is
based on information received from other sources, such as, government agencies and so on.
Tourist portfolios or demographics, i.e., statistics and facts that describe a human population, help in
getting a clear picture of the market you are trying to target at. For example, research may help you to
know the adventure tourists of India better, say it might show that:

tourists from the age 16-40 partake adventure tours the most,

land based sports are very popular,

trekking is most popular among all, though those between the age of 14-18 and 40-45 like to go
on trekking max,

school and colleges go on special camping and other study trips,

white water rafting has caught the attention of all adventure seekers,

women adventure group is not venturing very much,

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urban people go in more for adventure tours,

college educated are more likely to go for adventure tours,

corporate houses are taking up adventure tours as incentive tours and team building exercise,

ski lovers are abundant, and

most international tourists coming over are from Germany, France, Austria, USA, Israel and so on.

Your market research should also look into the matter of selecting and checking out the destinations
where a particular adventure sports or activity has the potential to be developed. For example, the
following Table can be used as a checklist
Table 1: Attractions Checklist
Natural, Scenic, Environmental, Man-made Attractions,
Recreational Activities or Special Events
Fishing streams and lakes
Forests
Marinas
Mountains
Nature trails
Rivers
Ski slopes
Springs
Volcanoes
Waterfalls
Airports
Bridges
Campgrounds and trailer parks
Candles
Childrens parks
Covered bridges
Dams and power stations
Boat rides
Body surfing
Camping
Canoeing
Fishing
Fossil hunting
Hang gliding
Hiking
Horseback riding
Hunting
Ice skating
Mountain climbing
Nature trails
Racing and regattas
Rock hunting
Sailing
Scuba diving
Skeet shooting
Skiing
Swimming
Water skiing
Air shows
Excursions
Fishing
(Source: Tourism The International Business, by Robert Chistie Mill)

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Attraction currently
exists

Area has potential to

develop this attraction

Thus, market research helps in taking many vital decisions, such as, choice of product, place or
destination for providing the product/service and deciding upon the target market by market
segmentation.
As stated earlier, since tourism market consists of people of diverse needs, it is necessary to segment
them. Market segmentation is a process of dividing a market into distinct groups who have relatively
similar needs and deciding on how to develop separate marketing strategy for each one.
Based on the market research, we can segment the market in two ways. They are:
1) Consider the product you are designing and developing and accordingly define its target market.
For example, Trekking is a product for the market segment constituting
First time adventure seekers,
Schools and colleges on day trips and educational tours,
Senior citizens who want to go on adventure but cannot undertake the strenuous regime but
love nature walks,
Corporate house for its middle level and senior level managers with a minimum average age
between 35-40 years, and
Women adventure groups testing the adventure segment.
2) Selecting the target market and finding and designing product to suit its needs. For example,
Corporate houses holding incentive tours and team building exercises
Rafting is a product requiring team work and help in training exercise,
Mountaineering is another team building exercise, and
Ballooning can be used as an incentive tour product.
Thus, we can see that market may be segmented demographically, i.e., by marital status, family size
and constituents, educational background of members, number of children, income and so on;
geographically and psychographically or on the basis of behaviour such as how many are travelling,
how long the trip is for and so on.
Market analysis on the other hand provides an estimate of long term tourist flow to the destination or
in other words the long-term tourist flow to use the tourist product you have designed or selling. This
is done by examining the tourist resources of the area compared to those of the competition in light of
present and potential tourist demand (Tourism: The International Business, Robert Christie Mill).
Thus, market analysis stops you from developing a product which in future may just fade out with the
change in market trends to plan in advance the steps you would take if and when such a situation
arises.

8.4 DESIGNING A PRODUCT

We can approach the designing of a tourism product by distinguishing between the cores and
supporting attractions. According to Robert Christie Mill, an attraction can be something what local
people often regard as ordinary but will be of great interest to outsiders. A core attraction forms
the theme for the area the principle region why people would visit a locale. For example, Niagra
Falls or a way of life such as the Amish in Pennsylvania. The supporting attractions are built around
the core theme. In Niagara Falls, for example, the Maid of the Mist boat trip, which takes people to
within yards of the bottom of the falls, and the museum of daredevils who attempted to go over the
falls are examples of supporting attractions.
According to Philip Kotler, A product is anything that can be offered to a market for attention,
acquisition use or consumption that might satisfy a want or need. Market research tells you the
need or want of your target market. For example, the need or want is of a skiing. The five steps of
product levels mentioned by Kotler would be:
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LEVEL 1 CORE BENEFIT

SKIING

LEVEL 2 GENERIC PRODUCT

SKIING RESORT

LEVEL 3 EXPECTED PRODUCT

SKI SLOPES, SKI INSTRUCTOR,

ACCOMMODATION, FOOD

LEVEL 4 AUGMENTED PRODUCT

VARIETY OF SKI SLOPES (FOR BEGINNERS,

ADVANCED AND EXPERT SKIERS), GUIDANCE
FROM EXPERTS, ACCOMMODATION IN VARIOUS
TYPES OF LODGES, TWO GOURMET
RESTAURANT, A FAST FOOD JOINT

LEVEL 5 POTENTIAL PRODUCT

CHAIR LIFT, 3 FREE INSTRUCTION LESSONS FOR

BEGINNERS, SNOW MOBILE TOURS, EVENING
ENTERTAINMENT, ICE- SKATING RINK, etc.

This clearly illustrates the steps following which a tourism product is designed. A multidimensional
aspect of the snow resort is a modern trend. For example, the Vail Resorts has created Adventure
Ridge which is an example of this trend. This facility, located on the top of Vail mountain, offers
snow shoeing, tubing, ice skating, laser tag, snow mobile tours, and four dining experiences until
8.00 p.m. every night.
We can, however, take another example of, designing adventure product, i.e., surfing. So designing
the product/service revolves on the concept of core and supporting attraction.
LEVEL 1 CORE BENEFIT

SURFING

LEVEL 2 GENERIC PRODUCT

PACKAGE TO A BEACH RESORT

LEVEL 3 EXPECTED PRODUCT

SURF BOARD, FINE WEATHER,

ACCOMMODATION, FOOD AND WAVES

LEVEL 4 AUGMENTED PRODUCT

BEAUTIFUL DESTINATION SAY SURFING

PARADISE IN HAWAII, AUSTRALIA, OR NEAR
CORAL REEF, SURF BOARD ON HIRE, TOUR OF
CORAL REEF BY SNORKELING, SPEED BOAT,
WATER SKIING

LEVEL 5 POTENTIAL PRODUCT

EXTRA FACILITIES, PARA-SAILING, LIFEGUARD,

NIGHTLIFE, CASINO, etc.

Thus, designing and developing a tourism product basically requires you to decid e on a proper
product mix. The correct mix of core and supporting attracting will help you and only in penetrating
in your target market but it will also help in developing and achieving sustainability to your products.
In the end, you are able to gain a positive image and position in the market, rewarding good dividends
for your investments.

8.5 DEVELOPING THE ADVENTURE PRODUCT

Products are designed and developed according to the market needs and demands. For example, need
for basic skills in mountaineering or river rafting has facilitated the setting up of numerous training
camps on the sites where these activities take place for tourists of all classes and ages.
Development process begins with the analysis of four areas the market potential; planning and
engineering; socio -economic; and legal and business.
Once the preliminary work is done, i.e., ground work, such as, market research, target market
segmentation and market analysis a few decisions regarding the product needs to be considered, such as,

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whether a unique product be developed and a market may be created for it. For example, Bungee
Jumping is one adventure sports of recent times which has created a market for itself, although it
is very different from other adventure activities, i.e., a unique product,

whether the product would be from the existing product line but different from competitors. For
example, we can talk of wall climbing, a sport derived from mountaineering and rock climbing.
In India, Delhi boasts of the first wall prepared for wall climbing. The wall, JRD Tata Wall is at
IMF, Delhi and is of International Standards. The mechanism helps to give different angles thus
more challenge to the wall climbers. Thus the product wall climbing is a part of the product
line mountaineering. It is for the Urban people and the product has depth in the form of the
various angles of the wall which decides the amount of difficulty to be encountered in climbing
the wall. This has been marketed accordingly, i.e., to school and college students dur ing vacations
at very reasonable rates,

whether the product would be no different form existing ones but better in service providing. For
example,
providing skis at the resort for a price, the condition of skis are good and available 24 hrs a
day,
free instructions for the first time water-skiers/skier/sky diver, etc.,
providing first class safety equipments and information,
providing with T-shirts, along with equipments for the activity,
Casinos along with nightclubs,
First night free, and
No service, no payment concept and so on, and

whether to design a product commonly available, as the target market is set and it would be easy
to promote the product. For example, bringing a group from Chandigarh to Delhi for Bungee
jumping experience, going on a trek, and so on.

Product Mix in terms of all the product lines and items made available by an organisation is very
important.
While designing and developing your adventure product mix consider the following (Source: The Tourism
Development Handbook, by Kerry Godfrey and Jackie Clarke) :
1) Product Life Cycle: How will you develop the product from its initial growth period till maturity
and what steps you shall consider to maintain its maturity period for a longer period.
For example, take the case of River Rafting on the river Ganges, Rafting on the same stretch of
river for a similar time period will lead to stagnation of the product. So make a plan before hand:
1st year
nd

Provide product, i.e., rafting services on the Rishikesh stretch only.

2 year

Start moving upwards by choosing a few extra miles of river.

3rd and 4th year

Upward mobilisation.

5th year

A long rafting trip from Gangotri till Rishikesh.

The product scope increases with every year as and when the infrastructure is set-up. It enables
the tour-operator to provide more than one type of product/rafting scope. River rafting is a day
time activity but it leaves the evenings free. It would be interesting to expose your group to local
music, folklore along with bonfire and music. Introduction to different cuisine cooked over open
fire will also be a new experience. This type of product mix will ensure that your product does not
become outdated with time. It will ensure a constant interest from your regular groups who can
expect something extra and new from eac h trip.
2) The Product Portfolio: Simply stated, destinations should try to assess all the products that can
be offered in terms of relationship between revenue produced and resources absorbed.
For example, while packaging a special mountaineering trip take into consideration the other
products you can offer along with it. May be the mountaineering package can be prepared for
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segmented target market. Such as, trekking for the school kids, light mountaineering and camping
for collegiate and beginners, rock climbing and/or wall climbing for the experienced,
mountaineering for beginners and experienced and may be also hand gliding for the more
adventurous group. This enables you to expose all the adventure product of a hilly terrain like
Garhwal hills. Nature guides in the form of locals can add more colour to the adventure tour
package.
3) Relevant gaps in either the product lines and/or the product length and depth for a particular line.
Product line can be:
widened by adding a famous personality (real and mythical) line to the existing line,
lengthened by adding products to a existing line, e.g., along with surfing, water skiing, parasailing can be added, and
deepened by adding product items to existing products, e.g., increasing the number of peaks
accessib le to the public from 3 to 5 and so on.
4) Analysis of Tourist Satisfaction: After introducing each product check the scoring of attraction
by the tourist in terms of service wanted, service provided, key choice criteria, position against
competitors and so on.
5) Development of Product Differentiation: The product differentiation should be relevant to the
target and distinct from competitors. For example, the target market is college, students, educated
executives in the age group of 23-37 years who needs a ski resort. The competition is providing
ski resort with all basic amenities like accommodation, food, good slopes and also ski instructor
for beginners and chair lifts. You may decide to introduce a skiing resort with all the above
amenities but along with a night club too. This is so, as your market research showed the
need/want of a night life. Also to the product line, a snow mobile tour may be added to lengthen
the product line.
Similarly, a camel safari tour covering Rajasthan sectors, like, Jaipur, Jodhpur and Jaisalmer route.
You may introduce the city of Udaipur with its lake palace the safari and thus increasing the length of
the product line. Introducing a local guide with proper knowledge of the culture, tradition and folklore
of the regions can increase the depth of the tour. This will ensure that tourist are not only introduced
to the music and cuisine around bonfires at night but they also taste a bit of local culture, tradition and
folklore by someone who helps them to understand the music and lyrics along with the stories related
to the traditions. The new length and depth of product line fills in the gap in the product line of
competitors.

8.6

DEVISING AND POSITIONING THE ADVENTURE PRODUCT

Adventure tour is a specialist tour. The service provided by you must ensure the position of your
company, as mouth to mouth publicity is the best form of publicity one can get. The product devised
by you should be such that it fills the need/want of consumer. But a few issues need special
considerations:

proper infrastructure whether the destination you have in mind can actively support the special
needs of the adventure tours,

proper safety and medical assistance is provided. The risk factors needs to be nullified by safety
measures,

the tour activities are cleared by concerned authorities, like for ballooning and aerial sports,
clearance from Air Force is required while in India and so on, and

the position of the product in consideration of the market demand and competitors position.

Once you decide on promoting the adventure tourism product that you have designed you need to
keep in mind the following Nine Golden Principles of Customer Service for Catering or Selling
the Adventure Travel (Source: www.adventuresports.com/service/adventurebiz/service.html):
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1) Be a Good Listener: Most important, listen to your customers concerns and complaints, as well
as their praise. Discover what it is they want. Your guests are your best source of information in
assessing your services and performance. Well-written guests surveys are invaluable for getting
feedback, testimonials, and referrals. Help prospects qualify themselves before signing up. Make
sure they understand the rigors, responsibilities, and dangers, as well as the level of exertion,
entailed in the experiences you offer.
2) Exceed Expectations: Under-promise and over -deliver on a consistent basis with exceptional
service. This is what theyll remember and tell their friends about. It is amazing how small details
can make a big impression. You work hard and spend big money to get qualified prospects to call
your office or e-mail you. How professional, informative, and timely is your response? That first
contact can set the tone and significantly impact a purchasing decision.
3) Practice Safety: Clients want to know the destination and activities are safe. They will feel more
at ease during real or perceived risks if they have been educated about their new activities or
environments in advance. Unfortunately, if most human beings fears or worries are not
addressed, their minds will grow weeds, not flowers. Advise on plant, animal, and natural
resource cautions. Let them know that there is generally nothing to worry about if they respect the
environment and heed your advice. Brief guests on your safety procedures for any excursions
without staff away from home base.
4) Provide Great Food: Guests must eat well, never be hungry, and have adequate water and drinks.
Fresh food with ample portions served at a scheduled time can make any adventure more
memorable and satisfying. If meal service is going to be delayed, provide a little snack to tide
guests over.
5) Cater to Sleep Needs: Guests need and want comfortable and peaceful sleep. Make sure
ever yone is comfortable with his or her bedding. Cater to individual needs by offering single
accommodations. Charging an extra cost is okay. Provide easy access to bathrooms with safety
procedures for night-time use. Separate late evening social areas from sleep areas by distance
and/or trees or a hill. Hand out earplugs if necessary.
6) Think Comfort : Provide first world standards when possible. Bathroom breaks and bathing are
important on a regular basis. Give people every opportunity for comfort: hammocks, beach chairs,
portable toilets, whatever you can provide. Never go too long between bathroom breaks. Some
guests may have weak bladders and need more frequent breaks to feel comfortable and relaxed.
Make sure everyone has adequate water, as well as appropriate clothing and footwear.
7) Be Sensitive to Capabilities: Never exceed physical or mental capacities of guests. Always ask
the groups or individuals if they are comfortable with the activity and exertion level before and
during the activity. Be sensitive to the slowest as well as strongest in the group. Splitting the
group into two smaller groups is a good option. Rest as needed. A trip rating or difficulty system
would help as it allows guests and outfitters to jointly participate in selecting the most appropriate
trip.
8) Be Fun: Be friendly, helpful, courteous, and fun! Make sure your staff is there for the guests and
not for themselves. Good storytellers, jokesters, and musicians can distinguish your staff and
company from other companies. Be sensitive with humour and families with kids. If you cater to
kids, employ staff that loves kids. Guests sometimes need encouragement or guidance to try an
activity. You are the guide and activity director combined. Discuss activities or mini-classes in
advance so guests w ill know what is happening and when.
9) Provide Information: An informed guest is safer and more relaxed, and has more fun. Our guests
are educated and want to learn about their new environment. Assume that guests know little or
nothing about their surroundings. Look for opportunities to provide a minimum of three details
about each type of surrounding element during any outing. Be prepared to talk about the plants,
animals, birds, trees, rocks, geological formations, fish, marine mammals, and shells. Include
information about local culture, economy, and history, too. The more we can share, the more
value we are providing our guests.
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A few points need to be addressed while developing and positioning the adventure tour products in
India:

All the adventure tour activities are necessarily daytime activities and, therefore, always keep in
mind how the evenings are to be spent. This may be the unique experience of cooking over open
fire or nature watch in dark, or music or dance or folklore, etc.,

Specialists need to be around while on any adventure activity. For example, a group on trekking
trip needs to know about the high altitude sickness which is very common. An expert trekker will
immediately notice the symptom and provide for accordingly. High altitude sickness if not treated
on time can lead to death. The availability of an expert in case of emergencies is very important,

Medical assistance is a must. A tour company can edge out competitors by positioning itself as
the safest tour operator with on hand first-aid and experienced medical practitioner,

Safety precautions are a must. The elements of risk in adventure tour provides thrill but no tourist
would overlook the fact that a company is providing and maintaining international safety
standards while another is not, and

Involving the locals will help cut costs in hiring, transporting and locating outsiders. Also a local
would be well-versed than any outsider. For example, a plan is on for involving the locals of
Garhwal and Kumaon hills as specialist nature guides, a necessity in the India trekking circuits.
Also plans are on for roping in the fishermen of coastal regions as lifeguards, etc.

While positioning your product in the market the above points prove to be of great help. For example,
positioning yourself as the safest company, allowing one to experience the greatest risks and
adventure; local friendly tour company which can provide more in-depth tour experience; Experts
always on board for positioning as the experienced tour company and so on. The id ea is to create a
niche for yourself in the minds of your target market. But have a line of caution, whatever you project
try to exceed, i.e., what you have promised shall be delivered in its best form and to the highest
satisfaction of customers.

8.7 TOURIST BEHAVIOUR

Tourist behaviour depends upon the demographic, geographic and the behavioural aspect of tourist.
The tourist going in for Adventure tours in India are primarily the international tourist, mainly from
European countries like Germany, France and others. The domestic tourists are not very keen on
adventure tours, though trekking and camping have really picked up among school and college
students as educational tours. Much of the domestic tourists go in for pilgrimage or sight seeing tours
and so on. Many factors have hampered the growth of adventure tourism in India. A few of them are:

Risk Factor: Due to a lack of awareness, tourists have formed a connection between adventure
tours and great risk to life. A lack of promotion of adventure tours has created this misconception
of risks involved in adventure activities. May be because of this trekking and camping has really
picked up which are considered to have almost no risk factor.

Economic Viability: The economic constraints in the form of the price of equipments to be used,
travelling expenses along with the expense of undergoing the activities under the supervision of
an expert. For example, take the case of mountaineering, the equipments such as special ropes,
shoes, kaarabines, etc. are expensive and are available only at special or exclusive sports shops.
All these factors limit the adventure seekers exposure.

Accessibility: Adventure activities are basically outdoor activities which usually require a nature
base. Activities like wall climbing do not require travelling to different place but it requires
specially built mechanised wall. Although metros and large cities boasts of some all-the-year
adventure activities, but most of the adventure enthusiasts rarely have access to such activities
near their place of stay.

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Domestic tourists participating in adventure tours as you have already been told largely consists of
school and college students, groups of youths and corporate executives. It, therefore, becomes vital to
tap these targets markets by perhaps visiting the institutions or corporate offices and designing a
product to suit their needs. Like, discuss the vital points of the education trip of 14 years old students
group or discuss the activities that might increase the teams building confidence of a sales team and so
on. An important point of consideration is the tourist behaviour on these trips. For example, to a group
of trekking you should educate them to remember:

not to disturb the local peoples business,

not to make fun of the local customs and tradition,

walk and remain in a group and should not loose sight of the person in front of you,

important information should be passed to the nearest camp without delay,

littering should be discouraged, specially in and around the camp,

the camp site should be left cleaner than how one found it,

pits should be dug for garbage and so on and so forth.

The dos and donts of any adventure activity ensure that everything goes right and also assures the
participants of the minimum risks and maxim um thrill involved in it. It is your responsibility as tour
manager or supplier to develop proper co-ordination between the adventure seeker and local people
who can help in making it a more enjoyable experience.

8.8 FUTURE TRENDS AND SCOPE OF ADVENTURE TOURISM

According to William C. Gartner, with decreasing leisure time, those activities are likely to have
more participation which require little time commitment to learn their skills and can be package for
easy entry. This fact is going to set trend for future adventure activities. For example, Bungee jumping
as a product is very innovative, easy to learn and require little time to experience the thrill. Thus, a
product is designed and a target market is developed for it. The amount of time required to en joy this
thrill is very little and played a significant part in marketing the product.
It has been observed that temporary escape is often cited as a motive for choosing to engage in these
adventure-based activities, since most of these recreational activities require a natural resource base.
According to Brown , related to temporary escape are the motives of relaxation, solitude, challenge,
exercise and the desire to engage in these activities within an intimate or closed social group. The
recreational activities require speciality tours and markets. According to Charles R. Goeldner, J.R.
Brent Ritchie and Robert W. McIntosh, most leisure operators are also looking to capitalise on
these brand equity-based recreational activities and thus practice franchising at smaller scale, with
speciality recreation opportunity.
Means Turning Away From
Mass Markets

Mega attractions

And Turning Towards

Speciality Markets
Eco-tourism

Meeting everyones need

Exit scenario

Ego architecture

Any speciality you can think of

Adventure tourism
MICE

The scope of coming up with new product is no doubt quite vast but so is the scope of designing a
product based on an existing product. For example, the ski resorts though full during the winter
season are not used to capacity during the summer with no snow around. As a developer one invests a
lot of money into these resorts and not getting any returns for a few months can pinch the pocket and,
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thus, an activity was developed for the ski enthusiasts during the summer. Skate board like boards
with wheels are used to glide down the grass-filled slopes. These skate board summer skiing requires
well moved and even grass slopes so as to have a smooth sliding affect. This concept has already been
successfully used in the Alps and it is being considered for Indian Ski Resorts like one in Auli. Auli is
abundant with natural beauty, a product thus can be designed with summer skiing, nature walks,
trekking and camping. This will ensure tourist flow the year round which in turn will show a profit all
round the year.
Thus, adventure tourism needs a bit of imagination and innovativeness on your part as the tour
operator and organiser of adventure based activities. A lot can be achieved if you yourself are an
adventure enthusiast, then new areas and scope will come up more easily. Nowadays tours and
expeditions are planned for the poles. The Polar Regions are still very much unspoilt and
unventured and hold a lure for the person with the resilience to test himself or herself against these
extreme weather conditions. Only a person with resilience and money can manage to go on these
exclusive expedition to polar region or to outer space (see box).
A large target market segment is the vastly growing market segment, consisting of older generation.
Quite a few of them have taken no such great risk during their lifetime and would like to experiment
now. Or may be after a tired and exhausting life of working and worrying one would look forward to
some peace and space with exercise which may be trekking, jeep safaris and nature walk can provide.
What is required is to look for opportunities and options which would translate into profit and
satisfaction in the long run.
To some adventurous affluent tourists space has become the ultimate destination. In this direction
first space tourist has already visited space after a training session of six months in Russia. It is
believed that with the passage of time more and more tourists will be able to visit outer space and
expenditure will come down drastically from US$ 18 million to US$ 50,000 per visit.

8.9 CASE STUDIES

In this section of case study, we will first discuss about an adventure product and in the second part
we will discuss a target market for adventure tourism.
1) White Water Rafting
White water rafting is one of the water adventures, which has gained immense popularity globally.
The rivers used for white water rafting originate from glaciers of snow -capped mountains like
Himalayas. These rivers, before reaching the plains, crush on boulders and crash on caverns to make
swirls of white water. The river makes a lot of rapids en route to the plains which make them much
more exciting and appealing, thus, giving a chance for white water rafting.
Take the case of white water rafting in India. Many tour operators are promoting India as the ideal
destination for white water rafting due to the presence of the rivers originating from Himalayas. A lot
many product mixes are used for promoting rafting in India. The Himalayan rivers provide rapids of
many grades, ranging from I up to VI.
The rivers used for white water rafting are graded according to the degree of risk involved in
manoeuvring them. Amateurs usually have no problems upto grade III. Grade IV to VI offers
challenge even to professional rafters and almos t all the Himalayas rivers give this challenge. A few
Himalayan rivers and their grades are given below:

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Name

Grade

Alaknanda

III, IV

Beas

IV

Bhagirathi

IV

Chenab

II + IV

Ganga

III, IV

Indus

VI + III

Lidder (J&K)

III

Satluj

III, V

Sarel (UP)

III + V

Shangti

III, IV

Tista

IV

Tones

III, V

Zansher I

II

There are many rivers world wide which offer grade upto VIII and above.
While designing white water rafting as a product, even the type of raft used is a part of product mix.
For rafting, one requires rafts coated with PVC and are very strong for mighty rivers. There are
mainly three types of rafts used-mounted oars, padded and motor raft. The size of the raft varies along
with the number of persons in the trip. Thus, a single stretch of river can be covered a lot many times
using different rafts and in group or pairs.
Rafting is a day time activity and some entertainment for the evening is a must for making the product
attractive. A few ideas for designing a white water rafting product are given below:

a camp site can be fixed and regular trips from the site can be arranged. Good for beginners for
getting practice. Bonfire is a must. Food and beverage along with music and games,

rafting along a river and setting up a new camp each night after travelling a certain distance,

mix matching the various grades of a river to make the rafting both exciting and fun,

rafting can be put forward to the corporates as a team building exercise,

white water rafting along with camping and nature watch in the dark, and

mix matching different types of rafts with different grades of rivers can and are usually used.

The popularity of the white water rafting shows the tremendous that rafting has.
2) Adventure Tourism for Women
Recently, adventure tours for women are becomin g popular. The target market segment of course is
women adventure seekers. This target market was further segmented according to the age of the
travellers or the service provided by them. A previously unexplored market over the past few years it
has really caught the attention of the travel industry.
For example, Adventure Woman Inc. is in business since 1982, offering vacation exclusively for
active women over 30. It is the oldest and largest adventure travel company for women over 30.
Similarly, a lot many adventure sports companies have come up, many of these are managed by
women themselves, e.g., Mariah Wilderness Expeditions, Sheri Griffith Expeditions, etc.
Adventure sports/tourism require special garments, And a major market for women gear is being
maintained by women, such as, Gear head, McCabe Skirt, etc. The women adventure tours are
coming up and the market is further segmented according to age, tastes, and physical stamina and the
time at disposal. The market though explored globally, needs to be explored at home, i.e., India.
(Source: www.adventuresports.com/new/womendir.htm ).
Check Your Progress
1) Define adventure tourism. What are its types?
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.
.
2) How does market research help in designing and developing adventure sport products?
.
.
.
3) Design adventure sport product using your regional natural resources.
.
.
.

8.10 LET US SUM UP

In this Unit we have tried to establish the fact that adventure tourism in India is in its infancy stage.
You can take manifold strides in developing and designing products while using nature based
resources for adventure activities. Moreover, adventure needs to be advertised or promoted in India as
not a product for elite but as a product for all and which provides maximum recreation and enjoyment
within minimum leisure time at disposal. We have also discussed issues and priorities related to
developing adventure products for Indian markets while highlighting the future trends and challenges
for such a product operator. Tourists participating in these activities need to be analysed carefully and
efforts should be made by you in developing co-ordination between local people and tourists so that
the outcome can be a memorable experience.

8.11 CLUES TO ANSWER

Check Your Progress
1) Refer Secs.8.1 and 8.2.
2) Refer Sec. 8.3.
3) Refer Sec. 8.4.

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