Vol. 5, Issue 2, Part C (2023)

Festival based tourism is growing rapidly in last few decades in India. Organizers of such events are facing increased competition from other entertainment and recreation options available in tourism. Hence, it is imperative for festival organizers to understand visitors’ experience to keep long-term relationship with visitors. The aim of present study is to explore the motivation to visit and perception about Gita Jayanti Festival of Kurukshetra. The study used primary data for accomplishment of objectives and hypothesis. The data was collected through convenient sampling technique from 100 respondents during Gita Jayanti Festival held in 2016. The collected data analyzed through suitable statistical tools. The result indicated different factors of motivation and perception among visitors about the festival. Moreover, a significant correlation was found between motivation factor and perception factors of Gita Jayanti festival. The study provide practical implication to manage the festival for different customer segments in order to improve the experience of visitors through better destination image.