RURAL TOURISM DEVELOPMENT AND PROMOTION IN POTENTIAL VILLAGES OF TAMILNADU

India is an Agricultural Country and the majority of people are living in villages and dependent mostly on agricultural income. Agriculture sometimes fails due to natural calamities and no sufficient rains etc. Our Father of Nation Mahatma Gandhi said, “The Soul of India lies in villages!” Tourism has been a dynamic industry growing continuously and providing employment opportunities for many. Rural tourism has become a part of Alternative tourism now. Eventhough various types of tourism are being promoted in India, still rural tourism has not been explored fully, especially in Tamilnadu with so many villages, agriculture with ancient cultural values, festivals and traditions provide unique tourism products for the offer to the tourists. This study aims to bring out the potential tourism products of our villages in Tamilnadu so that tour operators and tourism departments can promote rural tourism to foreign and domestic tourists from the Northern part. The study brings out the important villages in Tamilnadu with Unique tourism offerings that need to be properly promoted by tourism stakeholders and DMO`s. Rural tourism can provide additional income for the villagers, proving employment for the youth by training them and improve the overall economy of the villages. The study makes some suggestions to the tourism department for the promotion of rural tourism in Tamilnadu. Sometimes many villagers are suffering without any income and they can do many things related to tourism promotion and offerings like rural handicrafts, toys, etc. The study is based on secondary data and a structured interview with identified people in villages and also tour operators.