Addressing the audience at the Grand Gala in Goa Mac Deep Kalra, President and Founder of Make My Trip said, The pandemic has been a huge test for the entire travel and tourism industry. But it was these homestays that were the biggest beacon to recover from that exhaustion. Today, homestays have become the preferred choice of most people. Many people prefer to stay in a different home environment when they move out of their home for various reasons. We express our respect and appreciation to homestay owners for their determination and perseverance in helping Indians travel hassle-free, along with professionals, during the pandemic and beyond. It is because of the thousands of coordinators that these homestay programs have become such an important segment. We look forward to the new opportunities that the future brings,” he said.
To celebrate these winners, Rajesh Magov, Co-Founder and Group CEO, Make My Trip Saying, “We consider these India’s Favorite Homestay Awards by MakeMyTrip to recognize and encourage emerging homestay owners for their contributions to India’s tourism and hospitality industry. Many homestays in India today reflect our culture, history and the various values of our country. In fact, every homestay has a unique story behind it!. We have immense faith in this division which is a huge force. We therefore look forward to investing and working closely with each of the homestay owners and integrators to bring this segment forward,” he noted.
The process of selecting the winners was carried out over two months based on a panel of experts and user voting. Based on that the winners are selected. Rani Mahal has won the Users’ Favorite Homestay of the Year award. Similarly, Itsy Bitsy and Ventura Fernhill won the Outstanding Homestay of the Year award and ama Stays & Trails Villa Siolim won the Best Homestay Villa of the Year award. In addition, Riverland Homestay won Work-Friendly Homestay of the Year, Zostel Chitkul as Hostel of the Year, StayVista at Villa 123 as Kid-Friendly Homestay of the Year and SaffronStays Sundoner as Party-Perfect Homestay of the Year. Sundowner), and The Manor Serviced Apartment has also been selected as the Best Serviced Apartment of the Year.
Also four awards have been given for outstanding causes including environment. Among them, Meena Bagh Ratnari won the award under the Eco-Friendly Homestay of the Year category, ama Stays & Trails Ambika Vilas in Thiruvananthapuram won the Traditional Homestay of the Year, Chhotaram Prajapats Homestay won the Rural Homestay of the Year and Sausakath Homestay ( Souzagad Homestay) also won the Pet Friendly Homestay of the Year award. Additionally, awards were also given to individuals based on their contributions towards the development of the homestay segment. Praduman Negi of Escape Adventure Camps thus received a special award recommended by the jury for providing the best homestay choices even in the most remote areas of the country. And Parul Sharma of Dilsharit Green received a special award and recognition for consistently providing exemplary customer services and experiences to customers.
A large panel of judges to select these awards included industry luminaries such as writer, editor & infrastructure designer Twinkle Khanna. Celebrity Chef Hemant Oberoi, Architect & Designer Pinakin Patel, Vinod Judshi, Former Secretary, Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, Dilip Puri, Founder & CEO, Indian School of Hospitality and Kamal Kant Pant, Principal & Secretary, Institute of Hotel Management were present.
Disclaimer : This article has been prepared by Times Internet’s Spotlight team on behalf of MakeMyTrip.