According to Indian tradition, tourism was first conceived as Tirthatan then as Deshatan and finally as Paryatan with the purpose of encouraging intermingling of people belonging to different cultures and traditions. Tourism also helps people to acquaint themselves with eating habits of natives and understands the way of varied life of the host countrymen. During visits to Incredible India, foreign tourists celebrate Indian festivals apart from visiting monuments and other similar sites in the city.
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| A glimpse of the Incredibleness of Incredible India |
A tourist visits a country like India for various reasons. India is ‘all seasons’ tourist destination and the objective of travel has a wide range like:
- Visiting monuments and historical places (Like Taj Mahal)
- Business meeting
- Purpose of Faith tourism
- Medical treatment
- Yoga / spiritual retreat (in Rishikesh)
- Beaches (in Goa)
- Nature trails (in Andaman and Nicobar islands)
- Snow clad mountains of Himalayas
- Backwaters (of Kerala)
- White sands of Rann of Kutch
- Shopping and buying souvenirs
- Recreation
- Visiting friends and relatives
- Observing Indian traditions and customs on Indian festivals like Holi, Diwali etc
Today, the travelers discover everything online and chalk out a customized itinerary. Though the feedback and reviews available on the Internet are believed to be authentic, one cannot rule out the possibility of fudging data for vested interests. In hotels, the workers are professionals and will not be able to provide the traveler with detailed information due to the paucity of time and their defined scope of work.
Experience Incredible India in a BnB
When a tourist comes to India, he finds that commercial accommodation is quite expensive because there are various taxes and tariffs applicable in commercial hotels. These taxes even amount to 20 to 25% of the actual cost of the room while in other Asian countries including China, Thailand etc and in western countries, the total taxes are not more than 5% to 6%. Therefore, the accommodation in regular Indian/Delhi hotel is quite expensive while on the other hand, the accommodation with same facilities in BNB stays in India has difference of 25 to 30% rates per night if one stays in BNB stay and therefore, the tourist can save a lot of money from their accommodation. This money saved from accommodation budget can be spent by these tourists in purchasing souvenirs, booking a heritage walk or visiting other places.
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| A warm BnB in Jodhpur, Rajasthan |
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| A hospitable BnB in South Delhi |
Moreover, in the present scenario of rapid urbanization in India and the rising aspirations of Indian middle class, it is seen that both husband and wife are working and at times, they are working at odd hours. This has led to a gradual fading away of the joint family system in India and therefore, staying with family and friends is not practicable. On the other hand, in a BnB, the traveler is on his/her own. He/she can interact with the BnB host as much as he/she wants and can maintain his privacy. Furthermore, the guest can expect an optimum level of attention, emotional support, and bonding with the BnB host which makes it a win-win situation for the traveler as well as the BnB host.
I shall be posting multiple versions of Incredible India in my future and my findings and observations are elucidated in my recently published book titled, 'Indian BnBs: An emerging disruptor in the Hospitality sector'.
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| My book, 'Indian BnBs: An emerging disruptor in the Hospitality sector' |
If you wish to grab a copy, send a mail on ambuj@bnbnation.com
