The homestay sector, which along with Ayurveda and backwaters played a key role in putting Kerala on the 10 best global destinations list of Lonely Planet, is short of breath. Pre-COVID figures put the number of homestays in Kerala at over 1,500 and 500 of them are classified by tourism agencies based on the amenities they provide.

“Most homestays in locales like Wayanad and Idukki managed to weather the COVID-19-induced storm since their owners have at least 50 cents of cultivable land, where they grew vegetables, tapioca and other essentials. But homestays at heritage zones in West Kochi, on the Marari beach, and numerous other spots are severely affected since they are situated in three to five cents of land,” says M.P. Sivadattan, director, Kerala Homestay and Tourism Society (Kerala HATS).

Most of the homestay owners are elderly couples who invest their life savings in getting their house readied as good lodges for tourists. The nil foreign tourist inflow to the State now has hit them hard, but it is not just them who are left in a quandary. The maids and other staff for cleaning and cooking have found themselves out of work since March. Declaration of several containment zones in Fort Kochi and Mattanchery areas has made matters worse.

“Those who used to make a living out of the homestays such as autorickshaw and car drivers, stage artistes, make-up artists, and tour guides too are hit. Old homestays that were high in demand for shooting films do not have any takers now,” Mr Sivadattan says.

Making things further tight is that the homestays, though locked down, have to pay commercial tariff towards fixed charges of power, water, etc.

Paid quarantine

Some homestay owners have found a way to sustain in the crisis by trying to rent out their facility to returnees to Kerala who have to be on quarantine. But they are stopped by neighbours. “Sadly, people in quarantine are considered as COVID-19 carriers,” said a homestay owner.

Some respite

A few homestays have opened the gates for foreign tourists stranded here. Among them is a facility run by Ashley Edwin Philip and Sheeba Ashley in Fort Kochi. “The tourists there participated in cooking classes and spent time playing indoor games,” says Ms. Ashley.

A homestay owned by Dhanesh P.S. in Cherai came to the rescue of an elderly couple from the U.K. stranded in Kerala following the lockdown. The couple took to farming vegetables and plantain in the homestay compound during their month-long stay here.