Year: 2025 | Month: December | Volume: 12 | Issue: 12 | Pages: 20-32
DOI: https://doi.org/10.52403/ijrr.20251203
Experiential Tourism in a Handloom Cluster: A Braun and Clarke Thematic Analysis of Pochampally, Telangana
Deepak Kholiya1, Puneet Mehta2, Akhilesh3, Jagadeesh Chandran4, Faslu Rahman5
1,2,4,5Research Scholar at The Department of Tourism Studies, Central University of Kerala
3Research Scholar at the Department of Hospitality & Tourism Management at Assam University, Silchar.
Corresponding Author: Deepak Kholiya
ABSTRACT
Experiential tourism (ET) has emerged as a noticeable trend in current travel. Highlighting immersive, authentic, and emotionally meaningful meetings. Despite this rising trend, little research has studied travellers experiences in handloom clusters such as Pochampally, a renowned Ikat weaving cluster in Telangana, India. The author explores the experiential dimensions of tourism in Pochampally. Seven in-depth interviews were conducted with visitors, data was analyzed using Braun and Clarke’s thematic analysis in MAXQDA software. Six ET themes appeared: (1) cultural authenticity, (2) emotional experience, (3) experiential learning, (4) socio-economic awareness, (5) behavioural intentions, and (6) sustainability future. Tourists sensed greatly engaging experiences stemming from artisan interactions and live weaving demonstrations. Cognition of artisans’ challenges motivated empathetic and helping behaviours. The findings suggest that ET in Pochampally supports Tourists satisfaction while supporting to the protection of weaving heritage. The study adds to craft-based tourism literature and underscores the need for targeted policy support for sustainable development.
Keywords: Experiential Tourism, Craft tourism, Authentic experience, Pochampally
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