In India, extreme adventure tourism is picking up like never before. Travel+Leisure India & South Asia’s contributor catch up with travellers and stakeholders to understand this emerging industry.
A trend that is seeing a lot of interest in India and around the world is extreme tourism, a niche in the tourism industry involving travel to dangerous places or participation in dangerous events. Be it a trip to space or an expedition to the wreckage of the Titanic, adventurers are shelling out big bucks for that adrenaline rush.
Surge of Extreme Adventure Tourism in India
Beyond the Ordinary
While researching the trend of extreme adventure tourism, we came across an experience concept called The Edge of Space, certainly not for the faint-hearted. This entails flying to the edge of space in a MIG 29 fighter jet, undergoing 7G of G force and going up to a speed of Mach 1.7. Believe it or not, there is a travel company that offers this experience, at a hefty price tag of 20,000 euros (INR 18 lakh approx). Mit Bhatt, co-founder of experiential travel company The Grand Vacationist, says “We’ve had a customer do this experience. You need to fly to Russia to do it and you need a host of aviation and health clearances.”
Bhatt’s partner, Nishant Patel, also happens to be a world record holder for being the first person in the world to scuba cycle for 100 metres at a depth of 33 metres in six minutes 47 seconds. “As outrageous as it sounds, we’ve had customers ask us to help them set a record while they travel, and we can do that. We’ve even booked people into experiences where they walk on the wing of a World War II aircraft, while harnessed to it. Or HALO (high altitude, low opening) jumps from 30,000 ft, which entails a 75-second free fall before a parachute is deployed. This is usually done by armed forces, during war exercises, but some bold civilians do want to try it,” says Bhatt, who himself holds the record for the first Indian to fly highest and fastest to the edge of space.
A Grey Area
This writer catches up with Sajid Chougle, who is a professional BASE jumper, of which, he tells us, there are just about seven in India. A BASE jumper is, as Chougle describes, “skydiving on steroids, where you jump off B (building), A (antenna), S (span i.e. bridges), E (earth i.e mountains) with just one parachute, sometimes legally, sometimes illegally.” Chougle hints that while there is increased interest in this extreme activity, there is a secret members’ club, of sorts, where you learn with experts, under the radar. “BASE jumping, solo and tandem, is an emerging trend in Norway and US. In India, most people who have done it have had some background in the armed forces, as they had access to high-altitude jumps. The rest of us are civilians. BASE jumping typically happens after you do a lot of skydives.”
New Business Opportunities
The rise of extreme sports in India not only gives adventure travellers more options but also creates a demand for small businesses. “Besides travellers, a lot of adventure-driven Indians are choosing to work in this industry because they see clear-cut career progression either as instructors or business owners. Moreover, a lot of urban Indians are choosing to move to outdoorsy locations to work in adventure sports,” says Jehan Driver, founder of Quest Adventure Sports Academy. Based in Rameswaram, Tamil Nadu, Driver’s adventure sports training academy welcomes travellers, amateurs, experts, and aspiring instructors of all proficiency levels to enroll in courses. “We are the only ones in India training people at wing foiling, which is a relatively new sport. We have also seen a major comeback of windsurfing, given the new styles of equipment and, of course, kite surfing, which is pretty huge in India right now,” says Driver, who also adds that a basic initiation course would last 10 to 15 hours, at a cost of approximately INR 4,000 per hour, followed by higher levels. Quest Adventure is particularly popular with sports enthusiasts who want to train themselves professionally for national and international championships like paddle boarding, sailing, kite surfing, or windsurfing.
Destination Showcase
At the very core of any extreme or semi-extreme adventure activity is the idea of a destination showcase— to do something completely unusual and adventurous, while enjoying the natural beauty of a destination. We get chatting with Amit Kothari, founder of Goamit Holidays, where the idea is to merge adventure tourism with luxury. Kothari’s USP is to find the most offbeat, unexplored destinations in the country and then integrate some adventure element into an itinerary. “We’ve created a concept called the Padayatra, a new take on trekking. It is for those who are inclined toward the mountains. Travellers will walk from zone to zone, cook their own food, visit monasteries, and do everything on foot,” Kothari tells us. Similarly, he organises horseback itineraries from village to village in Rajasthan, or treks to the remotest parts of Ladakh like Puga Valley. Goamit also does five to six day moving camps, where luxury setups are transported along with the travellers, complemented by fine dining experiences, cultural immersions, and sports activities. He says that a six-day itinerary like this would cost approximately INR 60,000 per person.
Another extreme sport that is in focus, though it has been around for a while, is powered paragliding. This entails flying an ultralight motor in conjunction with a paraglider. On South Goa’s Colva beach, travel entrepreneur Ryan Pinto offers tourists a different way to experience Goa’s beaches. He founded his company Skywalker Adventures, three years ago, while he was a hobby practitioner of powered paragliding. “A lot of tourists would ask me for a flight as they wanted to see Goa’s beaches from a new perspective. That’s when I decided to do this professionally. Today, we see increased interest from young Indian professionals from cities like Mumbai, Pune, and Bengaluru, between the age groups of 20 and 45.”
In India, the idea of extreme adventure tourism, in its purest form, is resolutely in its nascent stage, but the next few years will see an explosion in this segment, in terms of consumers, service providers, and specialist-led businesses.
Related: Bookmark This: 15 Extreme Adventure Activities To Amp Up Your Adrenaline
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
— What is Extreme Adventure Tourism?
Extreme tourism is a niche in the tourism industry involving travelling to dangerous places (mountains, jungles, deserts, caves, canyons, etc.) or participating in dangerous events. Extreme tourism often overlaps with extreme sport.
— What are some examples of Extreme Adventure Tourism?
Extreme Adventure Tourism includes activities like bungee jumping, space expeditions, shipwreck explorations, storm chasing, and the like.
— What are the benefits of Extreme Adventure Tourism?
Some believe that extreme adventure tourism can help in increased physical fitness, mental health, self-confidence, and cultural awareness.
Written By
Riaan Jacob George
Riaan J. George is a luxury journalist and blogger based between Mumbai, India and Colombo, Sri Lanka. He is passionate about covering beats like luxury trends, grooming, men’s fashion, auto, hospitality and aviation.
