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It is becoming fashionable to ditch the ‘usual’ and go in search of the ‘exotic’
52 ‘exotic’. At the same time, there are many who genuinely believe that offbeat experiences enrich them culturally, emotionally and spiritually. For them, chance encounters with strangers lead to conversations about local history, traditions and food. Such an exchange of notes gives each an insight into the life of the other, leading to a deeper understanding of the world and of life itself. Trekking along forest trails gives them a chance to study wildlife and soak in the natural sounds of the forest. White water rafting and paragliding are opportunities to test the limits of their physical fitness and courage. It is to cater to the specialised needs of such people that Yogi Shah and his wife Suchna set up The Backpacker Co. “With an interesting set of itineraries, our company is all about local experiences, travel hacks and tips you will not find in a guide book,” informs Yogi Shah. October 2015 | www.spiceroutemag.com
Local experiences are something WOW’s clients swear by too. Some of the popular trips are trekking in the Valley of Flowers, a Scotch trail in Scotland, a gourmet food and wine journey in Portugal and diving in the Red Sea.
LOCAL FLAVOUR
The urge to go ‘local’ is also the reason why many people are choosing homestays and small guest houses over glitzy hotels.
This way, they get to spend a few days with a local family, eat home-cooked food and learn about the native way of life. Arcopol Choudhury, Editor at HarperCollins, says “Hotel rooms seem very artificial. If you’re really keen to soak in the experience of a different land, the people and the culture there, it helps to stay with locals.” Interestingly, a number of young Indians, including women, are choosing to travel solo. Yogi Shah says that several women sign up with his company for solo trips to Western Europe, Croatia and Scandinavia. Themed tours too are finding a lot of takers and tour companies are only too willing to oblige. Pub crawl in Dublin, Cycling tour of Kochi, A food trail in Turkey... the list is endless! And so, a large number of Indians, especially the youth, are collectively tossing out the earlier notions about travel and embracing a whole new outlook. Indeed, travel has never been so exciting before!