The last few months have been tough for all, but a few rose like heroes to make the battle a little easier. For this year’s edition of Travel + Leisure India & South Asia’s India’s Best Awards, #TnlSalutes those who did some truly heroic, exemplary as well as innovative work during such tough times. Here is the full list of winners who deserve a special salute, and as voted by YOU, our readers.
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THE BEST FRONTLINE SUPPORT/CSR
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The Radisson Hotel Group has been committed to support the society ever since its arrival in India in 1998. At the onset of the pandemic, the group activated corporate crisis response teams worldwide with strong processes, robust systems, and dedicated resources. Many of its employees across 96 operating hotels in India came together to support medical professionals, essential service workers, and underprivileged sections of the society with meals, medical equipment, and other essential supplies. The extended Radisson Hotel Group family (including hotel owners and their foundations and/or enterprises), has collectively served meals to around 4.5 million beneficiaries.
The Lalit Suri Hospitality Group
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The Lalit Suri Hospitality Group rose to the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic in more ways than one. The group supported the Delhi Government’s initiative of feeding the needy by donating over 500,000 kgs of ration (till date) to the Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board (DUSIB). Under the banner of Keshav Suri Foundation (KSF), the group also supplied ration to the marginalised transgender community through NGOs, and opened its hotels in Delhi and Mumbai as quarantine spaces for frontline warriors.
BEST SAFETY PROTOCOLS
WeAssure by ITC Hotels
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ITC Hotels takes the philosophy of Responsible Luxury seriously, and their latest WeAssure initiative has been a reflection of this ethos. This first-of-its-kind initiative has been designed in collaboration with medical professionals and disinfection experts in the wake of COVID-19. It involves elevated hygiene protocols, state-of-the-art technology, and the use of advanced disinfectants along with re-engineered processes that allow guests to enjoy their visit. It has been designed in collaboration with leading certification bodies, medical professionals, disinfection experts like DNV GL and Savlon.
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Accor—the hospitality group offering unique experiences in 52 hotels across 23 destinations in India and South Asia—has channelised all its resources to ensure highest standards of safety and hygiene across all properties. The brand’s ALLSAFE initiative, launched in association with Bureau Veritas–a recognised world leader in testing, inspection, and certification–covers areas such as enhanced cleaning protocols, food safety measures, staff training, new guest contact measures, as well as global medical support for all guests in a partnership with AXA, the leading health insurer.
BEST HYGIENIC HOTEL
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A preferred choice of stay for business and leisure travellers alike, Conrad Bengaluru has upped its game in the wake of COVID-19 by offering contactless luxury experiences. With initiatives such as Hilton CleanStay and Hilton EventReady, the hotel has enforced high standards of hygiene from check-in through check-out. Since its inception, Conrad Bengaluru has offered contactless digital check-in through the Hilton Honors app. All this coupled with the hotel’s ISO 22000:2018 Food Safety Management System and a dedicated Hygiene Manager make it a clear winner.
Grand Hyatt Mumbai Hotel & Residences
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Hyatt hotels around the world are committed to providing safe and clean environments for guests and colleagues. This city resort spread across 12 acres in the Santacruz/Kalina area of Mumbai is no different. To make your stay safe and stress-free, the hotel has developed safety protocols under the guidance of WHO, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and local government requirements. Furthermore, Hyatt’s Global Care & Cleanliness Commitment includes an international cleanliness and training accreditation process, a trained Hygiene & Wellbeing Leader, and a panel of medical and industry advisors.
BEST ONLINE EXPERIENCES
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Airbnb introduced Online Experiences in April 2020 as a new way for people to connect, travel virtually, and earn income during the COVID-19 crisis. With Turkish coffee fortune telling sessions, sketching classes, meditation with Buddhist monks, and cooking experiences, Airbnb brightened up days of isolation. Online Experiences have now become Airbnb’s fastest-growing product with more than 700 experiences and unprecedented access to hosts from more than 30 different countries. Well-known Indian personalities across fashion, fitness, and food industries also joined Airbnb as Online Experience hosts.
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To ensure customer engagement during COVID-19, some of Hilton’s properties took to virtual experiences. Dharana Eco Wellness Retreat, for instance, garnered great reviews for offering free online consultations during the lockdown. Made available in three categories—Preventive Medicine and Ayurveda, Spiritual Well Being, and Nutrition and Dietetics—the consultations led by in-house experts helped wellness enthusiasts stay fit. To ensure a safe stay, the brand has launched Hilton CleanStay–an industry-leading cleanliness standard– and EventReady with CleanStay–a global cleanliness and customer service programme specific to meetings and events.
BEST 5-STAR FOOD DELIVERY (IN INDIA)
Gourmet Couch by ITC Hotels
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Like many things, dining experiences too saw a shift in the post-pandemic world, and ITC Hotels met this change head-on. Gourmet Couch–the home delivery programme by ITC Hotels—brings some of the signature dishes from the group’s many restaurants, like Dal Bukhara, Murgh Makhni, Aspara Tempura Uramaki, and more to your homes, with the help of delivery partners as well as the brand’s eponymous app in major cities. These dishes can also be customised based on the guest’s dietary preferences.
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Hyatt Regency Delhi started home delivery across the national capital by the end of March 2020, when only a few luxury hotels had jumped on the bandwagon. Hyatt Regency Delhi Delivers, the hotel’s food ordering platform, features delicacies from the hotel’s award-winning restaurants including La Piazza, The China Kitchen, TK’s Oriental Grill, Cafe, and Sidewalk. The idea was to bring the luxury dining experience to homes during the lockdown. Together with contactless deliveries and online payments, the delivery menu, curated by Executive Chef Ivan Chieregatti, continues to please palates.
COVID HEROES
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Bollywood actor Sonu Sood emerged as a rising star this year for his contribution towards humanity. From offering rooms of his Juhu hotel to COVID-19 frontline workers to feeding almost 45,000 people daily with his initiative, Shakti Annadanam, to arranging inter-state buses and all the requisite government permissions to send migrant workers to their homes, Sood pulled off tasks he didn’t know he could. A believer of compassion and kindness, he says, “It is our duty, as responsible human beings, to extend a helping hand to those in need.”
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When COVID-19 cases first surged in India and importing testing kits was proving to be an expensive affair, Pune-based molecular diagnostics company Mylab Discovery Solutions Pvt Ltd came to the rescue. They started developing the first indigenous RT-PCR test kits near the end of March. In July, it became the first Indian company to receive commercial approval from ICMR for its antigen rapid testing kit. Managing Director, Hasmukh Rawal is happy about the recognition but adds, “This wouldn’t have been possible without support from authorities, countrymen, and organisations that helped raise donations.”
BEST USE OF TECHNOLOGY
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With a legacy of over 117 years, The Indian Hotels Company Limited (IHCL), decided to tackle the COVID-19 crisis with a strategy dominantly backed by technology. IHCL launched its own suite of contactless, technology-driven solutions for every guest touchpoint. Named I-Zest, these solutions use QR codes and digital interventions at check-in, dining, invoicing, and more to ensure zero contact. The brand also introduced touchless HR systems featuring facial recognition technology and thermal sensors for employees to mark their attendance and check temperatures.
BEST STATE – COVID 19 CRISIS MANAGEMENT
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From reporting the country’s first COVID-19 case to demonstrating an impressive recovery rate, Kerala set an example in early management of this unprecedented crisis. The government’s prompt response has been credited to its experience of handling the 2019 NIPAH outbreak in the state, and investments made in emergency preparedness during the Kerala floods of 2018. Active surveillance, setting up of district control rooms for monitoring, capacity-building of frontline health workers, strong community engagement, and addressing the psychosocial needs of the vulnerable population are some of the key strategic interventions of the state that are worthy of applause and emulation.
Bayar Jain
Senior Content Manager
Equipped with a degree in Sociology (Honours) from the University of Delhi and a postgraduate diploma in English Journalism and Mass Communication from Xavier Institute of Communications, Mumbai, Bayar enjoys sharing stories of people, places, and different cultures. When not typing her travel tales, you can catch the hobbyist photographer capturing the next frame, dabbling in arts and crafts, or gushing over puppies and kittens.