Zico and his sister Rubel often travel together. “We never leave them behind when we plan a holiday. Their favourite vacation was to Kerala,” says their beaming mother Ms Suhanisi Pandya. The only difference is Zico and Rubel are two white Labradors, beloved members of the Pandya family.

The once difficult prospect of taking pets on vacation has now become possible, thanks to the growing number of pet-friendly hotels and resorts across the country.

Resorts and hotels are now cashing in on this growing market segment.

According to Euromonitor International, the pet industry in India is worth Rs 450 crore and is growing at 10-15 per cent every year.

While resorts such as Mahindra Homestays have 50 per cent of their offerings for pets, bigger hospitality players such as the Indian Hotels group (the Taj group) too have entered this space with specialised packages and deals for pet vacations.

Special menu

Taj's Vivanta hotels are also pet-friendly. For the canine friends, the hotel gives a host of options in its special ‘Pet Menu'. They can also order pet food bowls, toys and leashes. The hotel concierge offers pet walking services in addition to information on pet saloons and grooming services.

“Some hotels have trainers who let you leave your pet with them while you get done with your sight seeing activities,” said Mr Dilip Vakil, a resident of Napean Sea Road, South Mumbai.

Taj's The Pierre Hotel in New York also has veterinarians, pet trainers, dog acupuncturists, groomers, dog sitters and dog walkers.

Mahindra Homestays has more than 100 “homes” that are pet-friendly. Most of these “homes” are located in popular holiday destinations such as Kerala, Rajasthan and Delhi. “Till now the options for pet vacations were limited. But over the last two years, this segment has grown significantly. We have seen a 20 per cent growth. Now, families treat their pets like family members and pamper them as much,” said Ms Vimla Dorairaju, Business Head, Mahindra Holidays.

Many of its holiday options are plantation homes that have an abundant space that makes vacationing with pets comfortable.

Interestingly, you don't have to fork out anything extra for a night's stay with your pet at Vivanta or Mahindra Homestays.

Web sites such as petsvacation.in coordinate with hotels and resorts in different cities to offer a plethora of options for pet holidays.

> niveditag@thehindu.co.in

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