Tel. +44 (0)1273 600030 (UK)
This property is now closed
Hodka is one of 31 Indian villages hosting a new tourism experience, the endogenous tourism concept, and it is part of a project which seeks to promote local culture and craft based tourism for sustainable livelihoods and integrated rural development.
Endogenous or "transformative" tourism means travel not for pleasure alone, but also for broadening the traveller's horizon. It seeks to transform attitudes and mindsets, by promoting a mutual understanding between the local community and the visitors.
The resort is 100% owned by the local community. The resort is built, owned, and run by the people of Hodka with the support of a federation of local women's groups, Kutch Mahila Vikas Sangathan. It is jointly promoted by the Ministry of Tourism, Government and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).
The resort only employs people from the village who are trained and paid a salary. Profit is distributed among the community members and the community government committee for village improvements. The members of the community also benefit from visitors, by selling the crafts they produce.
An environmental project to replant 12 acres of land belonging to the resort with local varieties of trees, bushes and grasses over the next three years, is taking place. This year the first five acres will be planted. The land will remain accessible to the village community who will own and control it.
The region is famous for its grasslands, which have been severely affected by the spread of the weed prosopis juliflora. A proposal is being prepared to revive the grasslands around the village in about one hundred hectares.
This holiday is part of the responsibletravel.com and Conservation International Community Based Tourism Programme to support and promote community based tourism ventures that offer significant conservation and development benefits to local communities.
To see other community based tourism holidays and find out more about the programme click here.
Photo credits: Soumitra (Pottery), Gustasp Irani (Than Monastery), Pallon Darawala (Bathroom sink), Anuj Malhotra (Village scene)
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