Overtourism has emerged as a rapidly spreading concept across tourist destinations worldwide. Pilgrim sites, such as Varanasi, Vaishno Devi, and Tirupati, have suffered from the continuous surge of visitors, especially during peak seasons or festivals, causing environmental degradation, choking crowd situations and a lower visitor experience, and decline the quality of life for the residents. This, along with poor infrastructural planning, causes a significant threat to sustainable development in the pilgrim sites. Carrying capacity assessment is an approach to deal with the impacts of overtourism and develop sustainable development plans for the tourist destinations. Carrying capacity, as UNWTO explains, is the maximum number of people that can be at a tourist destination at the same time without damaging the physical, economic, and sociocultural environment or decline in visitor satisfaction. Despite being relevant, urban design and tourism developments are two areas that have not been integrated as often as in a planning approach. Bridging this gap, this study attempts to develop urban design strategies to mitigate overtourism impacts in the pilgrimage sites of India, using carrying capacity as a tool. The study will be limited to physical–ecological and sociodemographic dimensions of carrying capacity. The research aims to identify parameters, sub parameters, and ultimately develop design strategies that can be implemented at any pilgrimage site. The strategies adopted can be further detailed to suit the characteristics of a particular pilgrimage site that require carrying capacity-based design solutions for the same.

Keywords: Carrying capacity, overtourism, pilgrim sites, sustainable development, urban design

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1. Bhushan R. Kalkaji temple mishap is the latest in a series of deathtraps for pilgrims. Hindustan Times. 2024. Available at https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/kalkaji-temple-mishap-is-the-latest-in-a-series-of-deathtraps-for-pilgrims-101706522943778.html
2. Barbhuiya MR. Overtourism in Indian cities: A case study of Nainital. Int J Tourism Cities. 2020;7(3):702–724. doi: 10.1108/ijtc-08-2019-0148.
3. Sharma R. Study of impact of over tourism on local society at pilgrimage destination with reference to Mathura and Vrindavan. Int J Mod Agric. 2020;9(3):410–418. doi: 10.17762/ijma.v9i3.165.
4. Anilkumar SB, Adinarayana P. Religious tourism in India: Issues and challenges. J Emerg Technol Innov Res (JETIR). 2019;6(2):539–550.
5. Sati VP. Carrying capacity analysis and destination development: A case study of Gangotri tourists/pilgrims’ circuit in the Himalaya. Asia Pac J Tourism Res. 2018;23(3):312–322. doi: 10.1080/10941665.2018.1433220.
6. O’Reilly AM. Tourism carrying capacity. Tourism Manag. 1986;7(4):254–258. doi: 10.1016/0261-5177(86)90035-X.
7. Cole DN, Stankey GH. Historical developments of limits of acceptable change: Conceptual clarifications and possible extensions. Rocky Mountain Research Station. 1997;371.
8. Jamieson W, Jamieson M. The complementary role of urban design and tourism planning in tourism destination management and development. J Hospitality Tourism. 2014;12(1):70–87.
9. Coccossis H, Mexa A, Collovini A. Defining, measuring and calculating carrying capacity in European destinations. European Commission; 2002.
10. Jangra R, Kaushik S. Assessment of physical carrying capacity for managing sustainability at religious tourist destinations. Int J Religious Tourism Pilgrimage. 2017;5(1):29–38. doi: 10.21427/D72X4N.
11. National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM). Carrying capacity of beaches of Goa – For providing shacks and other temporary seasonal structures in private areas. Ministry of Environment and Forest Change, Government of India; 2016.
12. Illiyas FT, Mani SK, Babu N. Carrying capacity assessment for religious crowd management – An application to Sabarimala mass gathering pilgrimage, India. Int J Religious Tourism Pilgrimage. 2020;8(8):8. doi: 10.21427/82RW-FX96.
13. Kadi S, Abdullah A, Bachok S, Baydoun Z, Bergout A. Analysis of the crowd management and pedestrian movement during Hajj pilgrimage on Mekkah. Planning Malaysia. 2024;22(5):448–466.
14. National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Managing crowd at events and venues of mass gathering: A guide for state government, local authorities, administrators and organizers. Government of India; 2014.
15. Wen L, Kenworthy J, Marinova D. Higher density environments and the critical role of city streets as public open spaces. Sustainability. 2020;12(21):8896. doi: 10.3390/su12218896.
16. Dash M, Devi R, Bhat AR, N SD, Kokeri KK, N SH. Influence of walkability parameters on people’s mobility in a pilgrimage town: A case study of Nanjungudi, India. J Asian Archit Build Eng. 2024;24(1):1–16. doi: 10.1080/13467581.2024.2402775.
17. Shinde P, Kashid MG. Explication for haphazard and uncontrolled development around the pilgrim centre—Mohta Devi and its impacts in its vicinity. Int J Eng Res Technol (IJERT). 2024;13(5). doi: 10.17577/IJERTV13IS050244.
18. Chandan S, Kumar A. Challenges for urban conservation of core area in pilgrim cities of India. J Urban Manag. 2019;8(3):472–484. doi: 10.1016/j.jum.2019.05.001.
19. Shinde KA. Planning for urbanization in religious tourism destinations: Insights from Shirdi, India. Plan Pract Res. 2016;32(2):1–20. doi: 10.1080/02697459.2016.1198197.

Overtourism has emerged as a rapidly spreading concept across tourist destinations worldwide. Pilgrim sites, such as Varanasi, Vaishno Devi, and Tirupati, have suffered from the continuous surge of visitors, especially during peak seasons or festivals, causing environmental degradation, choking crowd situations and a lower visitor experience, and decline the quality of life for the residents. This, along with poor infrastructural planning, causes a significant threat to sustainable development in the pilgrim sites. Carrying capacity assessment is an approach to deal with the impacts of overtourism and develop sustainable development plans for the tourist destinations. Carrying capacity, as UNWTO explains, is the maximum number of people that can be at a tourist destination at the same time without damaging the physical, economic, and sociocultural environment or decline in visitor satisfaction. Despite being relevant, urban design and tourism developments are two areas that have not been integrated as often as in a planning approach. Bridging this gap, this study attempts to develop urban design strategies to mitigate overtourism impacts in the pilgrimage sites of India, using carrying capacity as a tool. The study will be limited to physical–ecological and sociodemographic dimensions of carrying capacity. The research aims to identify parameters, sub parameters, and ultimately develop design strategies that can be implemented at any pilgrimage site. The strategies adopted can be further detailed to suit the characteristics of a particular pilgrimage site that require carrying capacity-based design solutions for the same.

Keywords: Carrying capacity, overtourism, pilgrim sites, sustainable development, urban design

🔒 This is a subscription article

Full text is available to subscribers and institutional members. Please choose an option below to access it.

1. Bhushan R. Kalkaji temple mishap is the latest in a series of deathtraps for pilgrims. Hindustan Times. 2024. Available at https://www.hindustantimes.com/india-news/kalkaji-temple-mishap-is-the-latest-in-a-series-of-deathtraps-for-pilgrims-101706522943778.html
2. Barbhuiya MR. Overtourism in Indian cities: A case study of Nainital. Int J Tourism Cities. 2020;7(3):702–724. doi: 10.1108/ijtc-08-2019-0148.
3. Sharma R. Study of impact of over tourism on local society at pilgrimage destination with reference to Mathura and Vrindavan. Int J Mod Agric. 2020;9(3):410–418. doi: 10.17762/ijma.v9i3.165.
4. Anilkumar SB, Adinarayana P. Religious tourism in India: Issues and challenges. J Emerg Technol Innov Res (JETIR). 2019;6(2):539–550.
5. Sati VP. Carrying capacity analysis and destination development: A case study of Gangotri tourists/pilgrims’ circuit in the Himalaya. Asia Pac J Tourism Res. 2018;23(3):312–322. doi: 10.1080/10941665.2018.1433220.
6. O’Reilly AM. Tourism carrying capacity. Tourism Manag. 1986;7(4):254–258. doi: 10.1016/0261-5177(86)90035-X.
7. Cole DN, Stankey GH. Historical developments of limits of acceptable change: Conceptual clarifications and possible extensions. Rocky Mountain Research Station. 1997;371.
8. Jamieson W, Jamieson M. The complementary role of urban design and tourism planning in tourism destination management and development. J Hospitality Tourism. 2014;12(1):70–87.
9. Coccossis H, Mexa A, Collovini A. Defining, measuring and calculating carrying capacity in European destinations. European Commission; 2002.
10. Jangra R, Kaushik S. Assessment of physical carrying capacity for managing sustainability at religious tourist destinations. Int J Religious Tourism Pilgrimage. 2017;5(1):29–38. doi: 10.21427/D72X4N.
11. National Centre for Sustainable Coastal Management (NCSCM). Carrying capacity of beaches of Goa – For providing shacks and other temporary seasonal structures in private areas. Ministry of Environment and Forest Change, Government of India; 2016.
12. Illiyas FT, Mani SK, Babu N. Carrying capacity assessment for religious crowd management – An application to Sabarimala mass gathering pilgrimage, India. Int J Religious Tourism Pilgrimage. 2020;8(8):8. doi: 10.21427/82RW-FX96.
13. Kadi S, Abdullah A, Bachok S, Baydoun Z, Bergout A. Analysis of the crowd management and pedestrian movement during Hajj pilgrimage on Mekkah. Planning Malaysia. 2024;22(5):448–466.
14. National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA). Managing crowd at events and venues of mass gathering: A guide for state government, local authorities, administrators and organizers. Government of India; 2014.
15. Wen L, Kenworthy J, Marinova D. Higher density environments and the critical role of city streets as public open spaces. Sustainability. 2020;12(21):8896. doi: 10.3390/su12218896.
16. Dash M, Devi R, Bhat AR, N SD, Kokeri KK, N SH. Influence of walkability parameters on people’s mobility in a pilgrimage town: A case study of Nanjungudi, India. J Asian Archit Build Eng. 2024;24(1):1–16. doi: 10.1080/13467581.2024.2402775.
17. Shinde P, Kashid MG. Explication for haphazard and uncontrolled development around the pilgrim centre—Mohta Devi and its impacts in its vicinity. Int J Eng Res Technol (IJERT). 2024;13(5). doi: 10.17577/IJERTV13IS050244.
18. Chandan S, Kumar A. Challenges for urban conservation of core area in pilgrim cities of India. J Urban Manag. 2019;8(3):472–484. doi: 10.1016/j.jum.2019.05.001.
19. Shinde KA. Planning for urbanization in religious tourism destinations: Insights from Shirdi, India. Plan Pract Res. 2016;32(2):1–20. doi: 10.1080/02697459.2016.1198197.