Mumbai: Mahindra Holidays and Resorts India Ltd (MHRIL) has launched a new holidaying concept called ‘Mahindra Homestays’. The concept is all about providing accommodation in a private home, run by the home owner. Mahindra Holidays would partner with the home owner across various locations and market them under an umbrella brand owned by MHRIL. To kick off its operation, MHRIL launched this program in Great Britain recently; a country known to have the largest share (20 per cent) of inbound travellers in India and having the highest per capita (average spend of GBP 2500) spenders as travellers worldwide.

MHRIL’s entry into this new market segment states the focus of the company in the industry through its continuous approach of customer centricity and market study.

Mr. Ramesh Ramanathan, managing director, MHRIL said, 'The company noticed that there has been a dramatic increase in inbound tourist arrivals especially from Europe and North America; travellers to India are likely to touch the 10 million mark by 2010. Moreover, with current shortage of hotel rooms in tourist destinations and presence of Homestays in the same destinations, it was imperative for us to grab the opportunity in this rising trend of authentic and responsible travel'.

To build and expand its Homestays network on the domestic front, the company plans to have its presence in Kerala, Rajasthan, Delhi and Spiti (Himachal Pradesh) initially.

There would be four types of homes as part of the network:-

• Heritage Homes: One can relive the British Raj era that signifies splendor and opulence of feudal homes.
• Plantation Homes: One can experience the countryside that India has to offer; it highlights India as a land of rich and vast agricultural heritage
• City Homes: These homes reflect the city’s pulsating lifestyle that is quite captivating and comparable to cities around the world.
• Rural Homes: Experience the rural India in order to know the pulse of the country.

All homes would be inspected and classified before its inclusion into the MHRIL’s network. These homes would guarantee of basic standard of amenities, service, hygiene and safety; they will be supported by regular audits that would ensure maintenance of quality standard.

In order to avail the experiences of these classic and yet novel Homestays, MHRIL will provide an online real time reservation system and a call centre facility that would help book these experiences. The online portal would also provide information on specific locations and its nearby tourist activities in order to have a fabulous vacation overall.

About Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Limited

Mahindra Holidays and Resorts India Limited (MHRIL), is a subsidiary of Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. one of the most respected industrial houses in India. MHRIL is a leading player in the leisure hospitality industry. It provides quality family holidays primarily through vacation ownership memberships. MHRIL’s flagship brand is Club Mahindra Holidays. MHRIL currently provides its 63,375 members a choice of 20 resorts in India and Thailand and in addition, through affiliations provides access to over 4000 resorts, worldwide.