Explorer Priyanka Jena shares her ‘Praana Experience’
Travelling with pets is one of the most rewarding aspects of being a pet parent. It is not as much of a hassle as most people think it to be. It is quite surprising to see how intuitive animals are and understand how travel can be a huge bonding exercise. The main thing is to be well prepared. Know your route, pit stops and pre book your stays. This way you can just focus on the journey rather than the stress of finding pet friendly stays. Always remember to carry weather friendly items for your furry babies depending on the type of terrain you are visiting. Pack things like rain jackets, extra towels, sheets, first aid kids, along with their favorite treats and plenty of food. The main thing is to start travelling with pets from a young age so that they are used to the motion and they start to associate it with a positive experience.
Today you can experience a varied number of adventures in India with your furry best friend. From treks in snow to kayaking to paragliding, pet parents in India have so many options. It is also great to see many pet friendly resorts and homestays crop up. We have travelled with our pets across the length and breadth of India. Our older dogs Frodo and Cruise have been to 23 Indian states and covered everything from snow to deserts to oceans and rain forests. And we always had an absolute blast doing this with them and the joy is unparalleled.
When Tanveer and I decided to leave the city (Mumbai) to move to a simpler and more natural life to a small fishing village in Karnataka, we wanted to build the perfect home for us and our furry babies. To sustain our off the grid life style we decided to open doors to guests and other pet parents. And from here started the biggest project of our lives to build from scratch the perfect pet friendly coastal homestay- Praana Experience. The name means life experience. Praana is truly a soulful place. It is blessed by natural beauty as it has a pristine beach in the front and beautiful forested lands in the back. We get numerous types of wild birds and other smaller wild life. We live here with our many pets and also look after a lot of community animals. It is our small piece of paradise that we loving sharing with other likeminded nature loving people.
We took notes from the many stays we had been to- things to avoid and things to add. For one, ours is a truly pet friendly place because dogs can be completely off leash here. They are not restricted anywhere in the property. We have a fully gated 2 acre space touching a beautiful private beach where dogs / humans can swim, surf and have a great beach holiday.
Praana was designed by us keeping in mind what kind of places we personally like to stay in and hence cleanliness is given top priority and even with being completely pet friendly we can proudly say our rooms and common spaces are spotlessly clean. If you are a nature and animal lover, Praana is for you. It is a place to come be a part of nature and experience soulful living.
The Frodo Foundation.
I, along with my husband and business partner Tanveer Taj had started Wheels and Tails: a platform used to showcase our adventure pet travels with their pet dogs Cruise & Frodo. The Foundation was formed in the memory of our beloved Frodo, 8 year old golden retriever who passed away sadly in 2020. The income generated from pet stay charges go to this foundation for the welfare of village animals. We have fully vaccinated over 100 dogs in the area; spayed and neutered about 20 cats and dogs and continue to help in the treatment of various injury cases. Frodo Foundation is for helping the community animals – treatments, vaccinations, neutering and adoptions.
