Travel

Sanjay Austa left his 15-year-long career as a journalist to escape city life in Delhi and revisit his roots in Himachal. Here, he built Meena Bagh Homes — sustainable homestays in Shimla and Ratari — in kath kuni style.

After 24 years in the Army, Colonel Mahendra Mohan Prakash Singh started Oasis India Camp to help tourists from across the world experience the magic of Jaisalmer’s desert, in a way that is both luxurious and replete with adventure.

Dr Saakshi Gulati and Dr Nikita Mathur, both dentists and avid travellers, started Travel with Kids (India) to encourage young mothers to fulfil their travel dreams with their children.

On realising that people are forgetting all about Northeast India's hidden crafts, Assam’s Julie Kagti founded ‘Curtain Call Adventures’ for travellers who want to immerse themselves in the region's culture.

With pet-friendly spaces, lawns that span miles, picturesque hiking spots and the warmth of the friendliest hosts, these 10 homestays will disappoint neither you, nor your pet.

Priya, Pravin, and their son Prathamesh Samanth run Maachli, an eco-friendly homestay inspired by a rural Konkan tradition, where you leave the hustle and worries of the city life at the door and enter a serene world of sustainability and tradition.

Aamir Khanyari took his ancestral land and turned it into My Kashmir Home, a beautiful homestay nestled amid Kashmir’s valleys, where you wake up to vast orchards, chirping birds, and traditional Kashmiri food.

After chef Noopur Chaughule’s parents decided to leave the city and settle in their ancestral hometown of Guhagar in Maharashtra, her visit home from Toronto became a turning point in her life. She started a venture called Ayra Farms, which offers stay, food, activities, and organic farming.

Engineer Insha Qazi returned to Kashmir from the UK to show tourists just how stunning and picturesque her homeland is. On an old land she built the Cheese Cottage, a homestay that is an ode to her love for the valley.

Have you eaten a traditional Kashmiri wazwan with its platter of meaty delicacies? At these homestays you'll be spoilt for choice when it comes to food.