Feeling of 'Homeliness' No Matter Where You Travel Date:   Monday , April 11, 2016 Headquartered in Bengaluru, FunStay is one of the fastest growing homestay portals in India in terms of number of property listings. It enhances the users\' travel experience by enabling them to book homestays at many locations and also offering information about the host\'s hospitality, culture and local knowledge Tourism is one of the most flourishing industries in India owing to the rich cultural heritage and mesmerizing landscape of the country. Whether it is a historical trip or romantic getaway, Indian locales provide the best destinations to people from around the world. In their attempts to increase business to the nation, the Government of India has looked to pay specific attention to some industries, out of which tourism tops the list. This is evident from the recent statement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi\'s, \'terrorism divides, tourism unites\' emphasizing on the importance of tourism industry for the country\'s and world\'s economical and cultural development. Tourism & Homestays Accommodation is an invincible part of planning a trip. No tourist\'s visit can be complete and pleasurable unless the accommodation is comfortable and of the visitor\'s choice. There are a plethora of options available to a tourist as far accommodation is concerned. One of the most trending and preferred accommodations available to a tourist now a days in India is homestays and bed & breakfast accommodations. The Central Government and state Government has taken few major steps to promote homestays by making it tax-free. Homestays and Bed & Breakfast accommodations are profitable options for both the guests and hosts. While the guests get to live with the locals of the place and get a hang of the local culture, the hosts get an opportunity to earn extra money by setting up a part of their homes as homestays. As a result, such accommodations provide good business opportunities to the hosts, in addition to enhancing tourists\' experience, which helps in creating a good global reputation of the country, attracting more tourists and increasing business. In order to trigger the rise of such small businesses and improve the standard of facilities provided to tourists, the local government has set up favorable policies of starting homestays and bed & breakfast accommodations in several cities and places of interest. Some of these initiatives are named after the popular tourism program, \'Incredible India\'. The fundamental idea behind this different initiative is to provide international and local tourists a clean, hygienic and affordable accommodation. Besides this, the concept of homestays fits perfectly into the basic Indian culture and imbibes the values and traditions of the country impeccably. In addition, tourists gain a once-in-a lifetime-experience of \'living like a local\'. They get to live at a family home, eat the local food and experience local culture, festivals and events. Homes that are approved for usage as homestays or bed and breakfast accommodations can earn a decent amount of money from this business. This is a profitable small-scale business for homeowners providing them a lucrative self-employment opportunity. Moreover, such accommodations can be established in urban as well as rural settings. In fact, offbeat stays in rural settings are rather interesting accommodation options for tourists who don\'t just want to visit a place, but wish to experience it. Business tourism, medical tourism and rural tourism have been marked as key development areas. In addition, as part of the Incredible India program, \'A Slice of India\' was introduced to promote the country as a filming destination to filmmakers from around the world. In order to cater to tourists who are on a spiritual trip to India, several special excursion programs and yoga and Ayurveda workshops are organized. The Government is also paying due attention to skill development, which is crucial for the growth of the hospitality industry. Some of the running plans and schemes entail assistance to students studying hotel management and hospitality in institutions and aid to institutions for improving the quality of education imparted to their students. Setting up of accommodations in urban and rural setting is sure to generate business opportunities. However, it also generates employment opportunities for locals of the area. Generating employment has been the focus of most government initiatives of recent times as promises are being made to offer a grand comeback to the people of the country. Although, most initiatives focus on generating jobs in the organized sector, rural settings have also got their due attention. Moreover, the schemes and assistance in this direction are financial in nature. In addition to increasing tourist traffic to the place, they also focus on the social and economic development of the locals of the place. Therefore, these set ups don\'t just build businesses, but they create money for the local people to earn and use. In a way, these initiatives also connect the innermost parts of the country to the rest of the world, making them visible entities on the world map. It also allows them to connect with people across the world, increasing their audience and targeted customer base. All in all, these initiatives have infused life into the rural development plans that had lost patronage in the recent past owing to the urban-centric approach that most policy makers preferred to adopt. However, as people are becoming more aware about the cultural heritage of the country, there is a massive shift in mindset. As a result, people want to make all efforts to preserve their heritage and culture. Surprisingly, this behavior is commoner in the younger generation as they are exploring their roots and discovering their history. This counter-urbanization is the reason why rural tourism has become a hot cake lately. The biggest advantage that India has over any other country in the world is the diversity of cultures and elements that it houses. Diversity is India\'s most beautiful asset and triggers inquisitiveness in tourists from within and outside India. Culture, dialect and food change from one region to another. In fact, you can find a myriad of cultures in the same state. Moreover, there is nothing truer and closer to the local culture than a homestay or bed & breakfast accommodation. Therefore, these accommodations provide the right environment, facilities and aura for a pleasurable and satisfying journey of India.