Homestay business on pause as travellers stay put

A homestay is a haven that provides professional, yet homely hospitality that makes all the guests, travelling for business or leisure, feel safe and welcome. In other words, it provides hotel-like facilities in a home-like atmosphere. It is a place where friends are treated like family.

Homestays are suitable for young families, who often find the wide-open spaces and connect with the natural surroundings rejuvenating. As for the older visitor, it often evokes fond and old memories of a time gone by, of their grandparents’ homes in similar settings.

The homestays in the state of Karnataka are pioneers in providing alternate holiday accommodation in India. Whether it is Chikmagalur, Kodagu (Coorg), or Uttara Kannada, there are exceptional homestays that have been successfully hosting guests for many years now. This concept is gaining popularity among travelers who are constantly looking for experiential stay options.

However, after the pandemic, all homestays have been shut down for nearly three months. A few of them are situated in large coffee estates, where the owners run the venture to earn an additional income to supplement their earnings from the estates. A few homestays are standalone operations, where the owner depends solely on the income it generates. The owners of the latter are the worst-affected: with no income, they have retrenched their staff and closed down. Their future looks bleak and uncertain.

With the pandemic still raging in the country, and local, interstate and international movement restricted, one doesn’t expect the business to pick up anytime soon. Even if the government opens up the tourism sector, people would continue to harbor a sense of apprehension.

The focus of hospitality has shifted from luxury to hygiene and safety. The only way forward is to build confidence in the traveller with a promise to strictly follow the safety and hygiene standards.

Once the guests are permitted and feel safe to travel, they would definitely opt primarily for homestays since they are within the state and easily accessible to drive to. Most homestays are situated in lush green coffee estates, with limited room for guests and food that is almost always freshly cooked: there cannot be a better bespoke and safe stay option for guests looking to unwind.

Responsible tourism is the future of travel and as accommodation providers, we need to be sensitive to our surroundings. It is also easier to implement sustainable initiatives in a homestay.

(The writer runs a homestay in Kodagu)