Puducherry: Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Limited (MHRIL), India’s leading leisure hospitality provider offering quality family holidays and a subsidiary of Mahindra Holdings and Finance Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd., announced the launch of its ZEST flagship resort - ZEST Big Beach – the biggest resort in Puducherry. The company has invested Rs. 35 crores in the development of this property. Present on the occasion to inaugurate the resort were Union Minister for Tourism, Smt. Ambika Soni and Chief Minister of the Union Territory of Puducherry, Thiru N.Rangasamy.

MHRIL’s business model works along three vacation offerings - Club Mahindra, Club Mahindra Fundays and ZEST. The Big Beach resort has been developed as a ZEST signature property over 24 acres.

ZEST, as a brand was introduced by MHRIL in November 2006 after identifying an emerging trend amongst young urban families who sought a short holiday after several weeks of work. Therefore, ZEST offers such customers, short holiday breaks.

Keeping the customer needs in mind the ZEST brand has been devised to function as a hub-and-spoke business model according to which resorts are located at drive to distances from the periphery of a metropolis (where young professionals are employed). Presently, Zest offers the choice of Zest resorts at Ooty, Kodai, Yercaud and Puducherry and soon to be opened in Masinagudi (near Mudumalai reserve forest) for its members in Chennai and Bangalore.

Mr. Arun Nanda, Chairman, MHRIL said, 'As a dominant player in the leisure hospitality business, we offer a variety of holiday destinations to augment holidaying choices for our members. Zest encapsulates our aim of providing unique and innovative holiday experiences to our members. The Zest Big Beach Resort, Puducherry, makes short getaways a reality for young urban customers.'

Mr. Ramesh Ramanathan, Managing Director, MHRIL said, 'We have always prided ourselves on offering innovative holiday experiences to our members. Our ZEST signature Big Beach Resort is one such offering in this direction and is another feather in our cap. The Big Beach resort has 125 rooms spread over 24 acres along a pristine beach. ZEST resorts are designed to bring unique and differentiated holiday experiences to young urban families. Zest Big Beach, therefore, is cohesive with this philosophy.'

The Zest Big Beach Resort, a three-hour drive from Chennai, offers a splendid frontal view of the beach. It houses 125 rooms and offers amenities such as swimming pool, wellness centre, gymnasium, conference rooms, an outdoor bar cum lounge and a goan style beach shack restaurant. In keeping with the endeavour to be environmentally conscious, MHRIL has constructed the resort on less than 8% of the available 24 acres. In the balance areas, 6 acres have been dedicated to develop and recreate the highly endangered tropical deciduous evergreen forest ecosystem containing several unique species of flora and fauna.

Aimed at young metropolitan families between the ages of 26 – 39, the Zest membership is valid for a period of ten years, providing 6 nights per year. The average cost of a Zest membership is Rs 1/- lakh, and is decided based on the choice of holiday season. The seasons are Verve (peak and holiday), Buzz (regular holiday season) and Pep (quiet season). All rooms are designed to accommodate a family of two adults and two children. The resort architecture reflects contemporary and vernacular style, using minimalist design and natural finishes. The resort service design and ambience is warm and informal, making the resort hip and trendy.

About Mahindra Holidays & Resorts India Limited

Mahindra Holidays and Resorts India Limited (MHRIL), is a subsidiary of Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. one of the most respected industrial houses in India. MHRIL is a leading player in the leisure hospitality industry. MHRIL currently provides its 75,000 members a choice of 23 resorts in India and Thailand and in addition, through affiliations, provides access to over 4000 resorts, worldwide.