CONTENTS C e r t i f i c a t e 3 D e c l a r a t i o n 5 List of figures and tables 8 1. Introduction 9 1.1 rationale of the study 9 1.2 aim 9 1.3 research questions 10 1.4 research objectives 10 1.5 methodology 10 1.6 scope and limitations 12 1.7 chapterisation scheme 13 2. Literature review 14 2.1 tourism – theorotical concepts 14 2.2 tourism scenario in india 21 2.3 good tourism practices around the globe 25 3. Review of tourism sustainability indicators 38 3.1 impacts of tourism development 38 3.2 importance of eco-labeling/rating and certification 40 3.3 indicators as assessment and auditing tool 42 3.4 comparative analysis of existing impact assessment toolkits 45 3.5 conclusions 48 4. Impact assessment toolkit 50 Score sheet and detail description of criterions 5. Toolkit application – assessment of sustainability in tourism 64 5.1 dharamshala tourist circuit profile 64 5.2 site selection criterias 73 5.3 findings from toolkit application 75 5.3 swot analysis 80 6. Recommendations 82 6.1 macro level recommendations 82 6.2 micro level recommendations 83 6.3 further scope of the study 85 Bibliography 86 Annexure 88