Gujarat emerges as top tourist destination 30% rise in tourist arrival during last two years For next quarter visitors can eye on Suputara Monsoon Festival (Aug 4 - Sept 1) & Tarnetar Fair (Sept 19-21)
‘Khushboo Gujarat Ki’ is spreading all over the world and the state is making inroads into the market for tourism industry in the country. Robust growth in tourist arrival – from 1.70 crore in 2009-10 to 2.23 crore in 2011-12.
While Gujarat Tourism is making all-out efforts to maintain the momentum this year toothrough promotion of its upcoming events such as ‘Saputara Monsoon Fest’, Taranetar Fair, Navratri Festival & Rann Utsav all over the country, expected to act as a major booster for tourism infrastructure development in the state in line with the impressive growth in number of tourist arrivals.
Saputara Monsoon Festival (4 August to 1 September, 2012)
At the Southern tip of Gujarat, folded into the densely wooded hills of the Sahayadris, lies the abode of serpents- Saputara. In the picturesque Dangs district, this is a hill station with a difference, where you can immerse yourself in a timeless land that is still pretty much the way God made it. After all legend has it that Lord Rama spent 11 years of his exile in these very forests. This picturesque hill station is perched on a plateau in the Dang forest area of the Sahyadri Range. At an altitude of about 1000 m. Saputara witnesses a uniform weather throughout the year. Saputara does not experience any extreme temperature variations and is an ideal getaway for the sun-scorched souls of the plains.
The monsoon rains add to the magic of Saputara. Gujarat Tourism plans to showcase this getaway monsoon destination to the nearby cities like Nagpur, Pune, Mumbai, Nasik in Maharashtra. Maharashtra is seen as the right target segment for this picturesque destination. Pune was the first in the series of cities in which Gujarat Tourism organized a road show to highlight this destination. Over the next 15 days, similar road shows will be held in other cities of Maharashtra.
The Saputara Monsoon Festival will be a month long event where variety of activities/attractions will be on offer for the tourists. Some of the events to be held as a part of the festival include water sports, adventurous activities, laser show, photography exhibition, heritage walk, cultural evenings, food festival, contests, etc. The idea is to keep the tourists engaged for the entire month through one activity or another in the best manner possible.
The Tarnetar Fair (19 to 21 September,2012)
Tarnetar Fair is one of the most happening events in Gujarat and is held at the Temple of Shiva or Trinetreshwar (three-eyed god), popularly known as Tarnetar. Popular belief associates the village with the Swayamwar (marriage) of Draupadi after Arjun performed the Mastsyavedh, an unparalleled feat of archery. Villagers from all over the state, dressed in their brilliant traditional costumes and exquisite jewellery, flock to Tarnetar. A veritable feast for the eyes is the Rasada, the captivating folk dance performed by hundreds of women moving gracefully in a single circle, dancing gaily to the accompaniment of four drums and jodjapava (double flutes).
Folk music and folk dances like Hudo, Ras and Garba played by the Kodi and Maldhari dancers is the major Attraction of the fair. Village folks dressed in their typical, embroidered garments, perfectly dance to the tune of the drumbeats, which further raises the spirit of the religious fair. The TarnetarMela covers a large part of the Tarnetar village with a huge number of stalls put up selling beautiful local handicrafts unavailable elsewhere along with ethnic jewellerys, statues of deities and traditional mirror work attires.
