Strategic Initiative: Wildlife Portfolio Expansion

Sterling Holiday Resorts Limited (SHRL), a wholly owned subsidiary of Thomas Cook (India) Limited, has announced the opening of Sterling Vanyatara Tadoba in Maharashtra's Chimur region. This represents a strategic expansion of SHRL's wildlife resort portfolio across India's leading wildlife destinations.

Resort Details and Features

Property Description: Sterling Vanyatara Tadoba is an intimate 18-key wilderness retreat purposely designed for personal, quiet stays connected to its natural setting.

Accommodation Types:

  • Indulge Rooms with Sit-out: Elegant furnishing with seamless connection to the outdoors
  • Forest Villas: Open to private lawns with greater seclusion
  • Two-Bedroom Villas: Generous shared and private spaces with private lawn

Amenities: Swimming pool, spa, and outdoor areas for downtime between excursions

Safari Access: The resort provides access to five safari gates of the Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve: Alizanza, Madnapur, Shirkheda, Belara, and Shedegaon (subject to permits)

Cultural and Culinary Experiences

Weekly Evening Rituals:

  • Visual storytelling sessions with Naturalists
  • Cultural performances by Gond tribe artists
  • Saoji cuisine showcase by rural folks

Dining Experience:

  • The Jungle Table restaurant features bold, fiery flavors of Vidarbha's traditional Saoji cuisine
  • Menu inspired by popular street food of Nagpur and Shedgaon
  • Includes Zunka Bhakar with Thecha and Pitla from Gond tribe hamlets
  • Offers Indian and international favorites
  • Extended dining experiences include post-safari high teas and private dinners beneath the stars

Strategic Context and Management Commentary

Portfolio Strategy: SHRL is building wilderness travel as a distinct leisure category, with presence across many of India's leading wildlife destinations including Pench and Tipeshwar.

Management Vision: Vikram Lalvani, Managing Director & CEO of SHRL, stated: "India's forests offer far more than wildlife sightings. Each has its own landscape, ecology, culture and cuisine—and therefore a different reason to travel. At Sterling, we see wildlife and nature-led holidays as an increasingly important part of our hospitality portfolio."

Circuit Development: The addition of Tadoba enables creation of a Pench–Tadoba–Tipeshwar forest circuit, allowing travelers to experience three distinct wilderness landscapes as part of one larger journey.

Partnership Model: The resort operates in partnership with Ashok L Bhaiyya and Gaurav Bhaiyya, who cited Sterling's understanding of Indian leisure travel and ability to build richer journeys around wildlife destinations as key factors in their partnership decision.

Corporate Background

Sterling Holiday Resorts Limited operates a portfolio across more than 70 unique destinations with over 4000 keys operational. The company is a 100% independently managed subsidiary of Thomas Cook (India) Limited and part of Fairfax Financial Holdings Limited.