Starting a Home Stay/Resort in Coorg.. Suggestions and Help Welcome

[princezahed]

Originally Posted by maddy42

Hey prince i loved your idea. Will be competing with you soon thoughcheers:

Well so you got a homestay which is away from the city and you want some name. So let me suggest something with the local touch of coorg here.

Malenad- Land of the rain
Kaadmane- house in the forest
Pulimara- Well this is not exactly for a house but means a lime tree
Polle kere- Well this is a bank of a river.

Well i am running out of ideas so it would be nice if you give me some words in english and i will help you get a name for it.

About the jeep 1.6 is on the higher side for it. I had people askin 1.2 max for my 540 xd3p made in 96. So bargain for this deal.

@Zappo coorgi is an anglicised term and is not prefered being called kodava

Hey maddy thanks for the reply.Competition is always welcome.i think there is enough scope for all of us to co exist in this field.The mm540 comes with a trailer with its own separate RC book.we may get it for 1.25 though if he gives it.i think the name kaadmane already exists in chuikmanglur.i myself have no words coming to mind thats why i thought i would take help from tbhpians. Its a coffee estate on a slope with a stream flowing across.if that can help u get ideas then i would be happy

Originally Posted by iceman91

Hye,
Please check with the taxes and local rules.
I have a few homestay/resort owner friends and they are facing trouble with the law.
Since it is a resort it requires all licenses and permits as per a hotel.
else you have to stay at the property and let it out as a bed and breakfast. This way no licesinsing and taxing problems.
check with local owners, since 4 of my friends just got fined.

I will be staying at the property and managing it so i dont think it would fall under the category of a hotel/resort.however if needed i would go the legal way paying taxes( not nice to do illegal stuff especially when your entire family comprises of govt officials). It is not being opened as a resort.it will be a homestay with a little more sophistication than the other ones.

Originally Posted by NIP

name suggestions:

1. Mystic Valley
2. Coffee Creek
3. Misty Creek
4. Inn the Woods
5. Green Peace
6. Unwind Creek

Don't forget the discount if you choose one of my names

NIP i love the names you have given especially coffee creek and mystic valley.I hope no other place has been named so. discount for sure if its selected

[iceman91]

no worries mate. If need be message me as i can put you in touch with some owners in that area.

[gowda79]

The name should be of a local touch and catchy to the people, will suggest you some in my next reply.

If there are big trees in the estate putting up a tree house is not a bad idea, as some of them enjoy to stay in the tree house and enjoy the scenic view from the tree.

As you said there is a stream flowing in your estate, why don't you plan to make a artificial man made waterfalls.

[ravibhat]

Good idea as long as you could manage it to build it fast!

One important thing is make sure you check the law because homestay/resort are on rise so government is keeping eye on every such place.

for perfect home stay:

1. Homely atmoshpere like if family of the owner or associated to him stay there customers will feel much better about the place

2. Good Food is must

3. clean rooms/place

4. good bathroom/toilet

5. no need to give modern look but bring some tradition which would attract.

6. small play ground or lawn.

all the best,

Ravi.

[princezahed]

Originally Posted by iceman91

no worries mate. If need be message me as i can put you in touch with some owners in that area.

will do so thanks

Originally Posted by gowda79

The name should be of a local touch and catchy to the people, will suggest you some in my next reply.

If there are big trees in the estate putting up a tree house is not a bad idea, as some of them enjoy to stay in the tree house and enjoy the scenic view from the tree.

As you said there is a stream flowing in your estate, why don't you plan to make a artificial man made waterfalls.

i have thought of a tree house too but havent been able to find the perfect tree for it.may find it soon though.dont know about making an artificial waterfall for now though.dont have much info on how to go about it.

Originally Posted by ravibhat

Good idea as long as you could manage it to build it fast!

One important thing is make sure you check the law because homestay/resort are on rise so government is keeping eye on every such place.

for perfect home stay:

1. Homely atmoshpere like if family of the owner or associated to him stay there customers will feel much better about the place

2. Good Food is must

3. clean rooms/place

4. good bathroom/toilet

5. no need to give modern look but bring some tradition which would attract.

6. small play ground or lawn.

all the best,

Ravi.

the place will be registered with the kodagu homestay association.all points taken into mind.thanks ravi.

Regarding the pricing guys,what do you think would be an appropriate pricing strategy for the same?

[theMAG]

The 3 most appealing traits for a Coorg homestay are, in equal importance:

1. Economy: People prefer homestays over resorts due to this
2. Privacy: Has to be away/insulated from artificially-created noises, people etc
3. Unspoilt nature: It has to be in a setting where people can experience unspoilt nature. The assumption is that people who come would be from a city.

[princezahed]

Originally Posted by theMAG

The 3 most appealing traits for a Coorg homestay are, in equal importance:

1. Economy: People prefer homestays over resorts due to this
2. Privacy: Has to be away/insulated from artificially-created noises, people etc
3. Unspoilt nature: It has to be in a setting where people can experience unspoilt nature. The assumption is that people who come would be from a city.

Points taken into note.Thanks

1.I will keep the price as low as possible.What would be the ideal price that would be considered economical?
2.It is far away from artificial/city noise yet close to civilization.
3.I guarantee that nature in this case is unspoilt.it would be an ideal place to just relax.

What according to everyone would be economical in terms of pricing??

[Torque123]

Few names that i can suggest are :1) Serene Hills/mountain/valley 2) Misty Hills 3) Flora N Fauna 4) Milky Heights.

1.For me FOOD is the most important thing while travelling. Awesome non veg (Coorgi)food after a trek is something which cannot be compromised on.
2.Privacy is 2nd on my list.

Just my 2 cents.

[hondadude]

Originally Posted by princezahed

i thought it would be best to know from everyone what they expect from a homestay in terms of luxury,comfort,pricing,food etc.

In my opinion you are going about it in the wrong way. You should first ask yourself the question. What segment of people are you targeting this at ? Are you targeting couples, adventurous singles, families, groups ? Recall your MBA lessons and think about Positioning.

Once you know the people that you want to attract, you should ask feedback from them. Team-BHP is a community which is bound together by a shared passion in all of us, automobiles. Are you planning to start a home-stay that will appeal to automobile enthusiasts ?

Please don't misunderstand me. I am not trying to beat up on you. Since you want to run this as a business, I am requesting you to approach it like one.

[Zappo]

Since you asked for it here are some suggestions from my end,
* Coorg House
* Log Cabin
* Hill Shack
* Mystic Mountain
* Rainbow House
* Coffee Cottage
* Hyacinth
* Megh Malhar
* The Retreat

I think thats more than enough, right?

[phamilyman]

Hondadude,

Where else will he find a bunch of people with decent salaries in South India, who will fill up a questionnaire? Alot of us ARE his target market re. Tell me who he is missing.

Please understand that alot of us not withstanding autophilism, still travel with friends/family for quiet getaways. And we don't do like bikers in college would do - look for 300 bucks a night rooms. Typical triplogs in teambhp in that area speak of much more expensive acco, alot in homestays. So what's wrong. I think this is a fantastic way to go about it.

The real big thing next is to advertise it. Through his BHPian friends, he can again reach out to some decent IT/large firms and get posters put up/mailers sent out on intranet teambhp can help. I fail to see your point.

[NIP]

Originally Posted by princezahed

NIP i love the names you have given especially coffee creek and mystic valley.I hope no other place has been named so. discount for sure if its selected

i'm pretty sure no other places have these names, at least in coorg. the trick is not to have 'generic' names, so when someone mentions the name of the place, it should rattle around in their head for a bit. thats the first step towards good branding. and of course, it will help your future website crawl upwards in the search engine. good luck !

[hondadude]

Originally Posted by phamilyman

Hondadude,
Please understand that alot of us not withstanding autophilism, still travel with friends/family for quiet getaways. And we don't do like bikers in college would do - look for 300 bucks a night rooms. Typical triplogs in teambhp in that area speak of much more expensive acco, alot in homestays. So what's wrong. I think this is a fantastic way to go about it.

There is nothing wrong. It's just that the data may not be very useful. One has to prioritize among the suggestions as to what should be done first. That is where knowing your target segment helps. Of course if there is infinite money available, one can implement everything but that is not usually the case.

That' just my view ofcourse. Like I said before, I don't see anything wrong in asking for opinions from people. If the opinions were accompanied by data about members then it would be really useful.

[shankar.balan]

Add the following:
No Power / Electricity troubles
Hot and Cold Running Water.
First class bathrooms with clean fresh towels.
Big windows overlooking a good view and/or well tended garden.
First class catering.
Comfortable beds.
Good staff/ service.

A lot of the good aspects of places like Orange County/ Tata Coffee Plantation Trails Guest Houses etc should be taken into account if you are targeting quality/ comfort seeking premium customers.

People from cities may say they like to go on an adventure but the minute you take them to a place which doesnt have power, hot water, good food etc, they start getting edgy - so much for adventure. Today's idea of camping is "luxury camping"!

Originally Posted by theMAG

The 3 most appealing traits for a Coorg homestay are, in equal importance:

1. Economy: People prefer homestays over resorts due to this
2. Privacy: Has to be away/insulated from artificially-created noises, people etc
3. Unspoilt nature: It has to be in a setting where people can experience unspoilt nature. The assumption is that people who come would be from a city.

[shankar.balan]

Hi Prince!
Have you got the Bolero you wanted yet?
Glad to know you are planning this soon. Some points.

Kadamane is a plantation near Sakleshpur, owned by Parry Agro.
Kadu Mane is a small place near Eagleton Golf Resort.
While the generic meaning is House in the Forest etc, you might want to use a name that is unique/ not already in use.

Where is your place located exactly and what is the area called?

To appeal to a more cosmopolitan audience you may like to consider:
Pepper Vine Retreat.
Rainforest Retreat.
Fern Dell - Dell meaning "Hollow or Valley"

Coffee Creek was a lovely suggestion by our other colleague on TBHP!

You may also want to visit one of the Tata Coffee Plantation trails guest houses and take a few cues from them - those guest houses are absolutely lovely to stay at.

All the best and let us know when you are up and running!
Cheers

[quote=princezahed;923258] it.i think the name kaadmane already exists in chuikmanglur.i myself have no words coming to mind thats why i thought i would take help from tbhpians. Its a coffee estate on a slope with a stream flowing across.if that can help u get ideas then i would be happy