There was a time, not too long ago, when I would be surprised to hear anyone say I’d end up where I am today, fondly hosting and entertaining families, friends, experienced, solo and women travellers, businessmen, school students, naturalists and many more, at my home once called Dabbi House now reckoned as Deodar Cottage.
While living in Shimla, I… err forgot to introduce myself. Hi, I am Atul Mehta your host.
While living and working in Shimla, I had ended up travelling the length and breadth of Himachal Pradesh only to realize the lodging facilities in most places were either too expensive or just too shabby to put up in. As I visited different places I realized, if you want to explore a place in its true sense, then staying with a local family in their house, eating what they eat and experiencing their way of life is the best ways to do it. This rekindled me to build a place where travellers could feel at home despite being away from home and enjoy laid back village life like a native.
It took me a series of serious thoughts, contemplation and heated conversations with family to give up a lucrative six-figure salary to transform my family home, built with much love and effort by my parents Bindu and Ramesh Mehta, into a homestay where travellers could relax, feel at home, rejuvenate and enjoy life to the fullest.
With passionately cooked savoury delicacies by my mother, engrossing stories about apple production and life experiences from my father, decor sense of my wife Anchal, enthusiasm and cuteness of my twin-kids Adhiraj and Adhshri and love and friendliness of my pet-friend Elsa, Deodar Cottage is now a home away from home for endless beautiful guests we have hosted and made memories with.
One of the favourite things about hosting guest in our homestay, beyond our love for travel and travellers, is we get to see how everyone enjoys the space we’ve created. It’s very rewarding to hear guests say they made so many memories at Deodar Cottage…just special moments that were made much more special by choosing our house over a hotel.
We have been constantly upgrading facilities at home to make it a darling for travellers from across the world. With a sophisticated blend of Himachali and modern deco styles we are trying hard to tailor-make our home for a generation of travellers whose tastes are formed by Instagram and Airbnb, and yet remain at root value to cater to the lifestyle of avid travellers who wander the land in search of all things wow.
Next time you are planning a trip to Shimla, venture out a little further into Kotgarh – the apple country of India – and visit us for a memorable stay at Deodar Cottage. We would love to host you, rest assured you will have an incredible time and you’ll wish you had more days to be here. Thank you.