This morning, I took part in a panel discussion on media and tourism at Mysore Travel Mart-2026, organised by the Mysore Travels Association.
GRS Fantasy Park was the principal sponsor and NOT the Karnataka Tourism Department. The Department sponsored nothing.
That absence said a great deal. It seems the task of promoting Mysuru appears to have been left largely to local travel agents, hoteliers and entrepreneurs. The Government, which should be leading this effort, seems content to watch from the sidelines.
One is left wondering whether Karnataka’s policymakers are serious about making Mysuru a global tourism destination.
For decades, Mysuru wore the crown of a ‘royal city’. Later, it came to be known as a ‘heritage city’. Today, there is a real danger that it may become something far less distinguished: A transit city, a place tourists pass through, rather than stay in.
Increasingly, visitors use Mysuru as a brief stop between Bengaluru, Kodagu, Bandipur, Kabini and Wayanad.
They see the Palace, take a few photographs and move on. The city is becoming a waypoint rather than a destination.
Part of the problem is that many of Mysuru’s marquee attractions are losing their pull. The Palace remains magnificent, but it no longer carries the international aura it once did.
The Brindavan Gardens have visibly declined. Museums are poorly curated and inadequately marketed.
Dasara, instead of evolving into a globally recognised cultural festival, increasingly feels like a local jathra rather than a festival of international standard.
As a result, the tourist profile has changed. The high-spending international visitor who once stayed several nights in Mysuru is becoming increasingly rare.
Yet even as core attractions struggle, successive Governments continue to announce questionable projects.
We have had plans for a robotic park, an aquarium now abandoned, a giant wheel atop Chamundi Hill and other projects that are headline-friendly but with little long-term value.
A few years ago, more than Rs. 20 lakh was spent on a so-called ‘heritage photo museum’ inside Town Hall. Within days of its inauguration, it shut down. Later it became an Aadhaar centre and eventually closed altogether.
Similarly, among the most misguided proposals was a park filled with replicas of tourist attractions from across Karnataka, supposedly to showcase the State’s cultural and tourism wealth.
The idea was baffling then and remains baffling even now, 10 years later.
Why spend public money telling tourists about Karnataka after they have already arrived in Karnataka? Promotion should happen before the journey, when travellers are deciding where to go and not after they have already entered the State.
This park project was expected to cost around Rs. 6 crore while generating revenue through an entry fee of just Rs. 10.
Imagine if even a fraction of that money had been spent on serious international tourism promotion instead.
I saw the contrast clearly at the World Travel Market in London some years ago.
Karnataka’s pavilion was modest and forgettable. The main attraction was a Yakshagana performer. Kerala and Rajasthan, by contrast, showed what serious tourism marketing looks like.
Kerala’s stall used immersive hospitality experiences to command attention. They even placed a life-size houseboat in the middle of their pavilion. Rajasthan’s stall, on the other hand, resembled a miniature palace and was staffed by representatives actively engaging international travel operators.
Both were vibrant, memorable and crowded but Karnataka’s stall was quiet.
Attracting high-value tourists is not just about having attractions, it is about packaging, promotion and presentation.
Closer home, Mysuru’s challenge is compounded by a culture of endless projects and perpetual ‘development’.
Instead of chasing gimmicky projects with an eye on kickbacks, why not invest in making Dasara truly world-class? Why not improve museums and build spaces that encourage tourists to stay longer?
Every additional day a tourist spends in Mysuru means more business for hotels, restaurants, transport operators, guides and local shops.
Mysuru’s tourism problem is not a lack of history, culture or beauty. Few Indian cities possess what it already has. The problem is complacency.
For too long, we have assumed tourists will keep coming simply because Mysuru has a Palace, a glorious past and a famous festival.
Tourism no longer works that way. Destinations across India and the world compete aggressively for visitors, investment and attention. Mysuru must do the same. To do that…
The city needs cleaner streets, greener public spaces, restored heritage structures, better museums, stronger international marketing and a tourism strategy that goes beyond announcing headline-grabbing but unviable projects.
Most of all, it needs political will and administrative vision, both currently in short supply.
If we continue on this path, Mysuru will be admired more in memory than experienced in reality: A grand old destination reduced to a brief stopover on the way elsewhere and that would be a tragedy.
e-mail: vikram@starofmysore.com
This post was published on June 6, 2026 7:30 pm