BW Hotelier recently spoke to Anirudh Lakhotia, Director, Ivory Destinations Pvt. Ltd who spoke about the recent trends, and discussed the increasing challenges in Jim Corbett in details.

LAUNCHED IN 2012, The Golden Tusk in Ramnagar, Uttarakhand are attracting many tourists by offering local experiences. One of the unique features that the resort boasts of, is their water dining where meal is served while sitting in a dining setup with knee deep water. BW Hotelier recently spoke to Anirudh Lakhotia, Director, Ivory Destinations Pvt. Ltd who spoke about the recent trends, and discussed the increasing challenges in Jim Corbett in details. Excerpts:

Brief us about the story of the establishment?

Our group has been involved in the Hospitality industry for more than four decades. Our vision of Wildlife tourism was clear even in the 70s when we started a Hotel in Ramnagar (Corbett City) by the name of Hotel Tiger, but being a city hotel, it was eventually reduced to a humble facility with little scope of expansion which left a lot to be desired. The Golden Tusk happened in 2010 with the idea of creating a place where we would like to take our loved ones for a holiday. A place which remains true to its roots by offering local experiences to its guests but not compromising on the comforts. It took us about two years from the date of commencing the construction to launch the Resort in 2012. Right Team was very important to achieve the ambience that we wished to offer our guests. After an intense recruitment exercise, we handpicked every team member (an exercise that continues to date). The Resort, since then, has been able to live upto its vision of a family retreat.

Jim Corbett now being a highly clustered market, how do you face the challenges?

In our opinion, the increasing number of players in the market have bought challenges on two fronts majorly - Economic & Ecological. The economic dynamics of our market is evolving by the day. Although the demand has been increasing over the years, the supply of inventory still outnumbers the demand, thus posing a sustainability challenge amongst the players which in turn is leading to Price wars, Staff attrition, and operational vulnerabilities. It does keep us on our toes. On the ecological front, it is imperative that we understand & respect the fact that Corbett is an ecologically sensitive area and it becomes essential that we operate responsibly & ensure minimal footprint on the ecosystem. With the increasing number of service providers, it does become challenging to bring everyone under a common responsible tourism philosophy.   

What are your unique offerings?

The Golden Tusk thrives on many unique offerings that set it apart from the other Resorts in its area. One of the most unique features that we offer our guests is a Water Dining. A very romantic & personal experience where you are served a meal while you are sitting at your dining setup with knee deep water. When staying in Corbett, a memorable wildlife experience is crucial - Our unique wildlife safari packages where guests can book a safari with a wildlife photographer & a naturalist, enhancing the wildlife experience manifold. Unique countryside experiences like Dairy farm visits, Mango & Litchi Orchard picnic packages are again unique to The Golden Tusk. An in-house adventure activities area means that our guests don't have to step out of the resort to indulge in activities like flying fox, wall climbing etc. which are usually outside the resorts. We are the only resort in Corbett that offers two swimming pools for its guests. A feature that allows our guests to even book one of the pools & have their privacy.

Brief us about your clientele?

About 80 percent of our guests are family holiday travellers ranging in group size from 1 to 4 rooms. These are guests who are travelling in a group of family, with kids, elders or friends. Solitude, Rejuvenation, Family-time, Adventure are some of the things that guests staying with us are looking for. Many of our guests visit us as frequently as once every four to six months. Some have visited us over 30 times in a short span of six years of our operation. It is owing to the right blend of ambience, facilities & the hospitality of our team that they have been gracing us with their frequent visits.    

Are you taking any environment-friendly approach?

We understand our responsibility towards the environment & try to address it with utmost sincerity. As a part of our commitment to Eco-friendly operations, we're also independently certified to international standards as an accommodation provider, covering our work practices, nature education, and support for local communities, enterprise and culture, wildlife and habitat.

Brief us about the recent trends you are witnessing among the travellers

Travel now is turning from being a luxury to being a way of life. The frequency of the number of holidays one takes in a particular time has dramatically increased over years. The traveller is now also better researched and prefers to be better informed about the various facilities/ services that one can avail. The service providers have to constantly enhance their sensitivity towards the changing face of the traveller to serve & surpass to their needs & desires.