THE GREAT OUTDOORS Vol 2
marriott bonvoy luxury camping
marriott, hyderabad
MARRIOTT HYDERABAD as a premium star property takes pride in making pleasant promotions and events which stand testimony to their efforts to go ABOVE and BEYOND. "The Great Outdoors Volume 1.0" hosted last year was one of its kind event where people got to experience food in its natural wilderness amidst farms and gazing sun (Entire experience video below). I had to miss it last minute and so when they informed about vol 2.0 this year, I know I have to be part of it no matter what. The immense efforts they put into every minute detail started with the way the communicated from the start of this event planning and updates following it. Ms. do-it-all Suhasini kept updating us on a timely basis of the events - itinerary and everything that it was like a well-planned vacation. Finally, the D day came for us to all venture out for "THE GREAT OUTDOORS" with Marriott.
Just to brief you , before questions pop up like "is it a one-time event? Can we take part of such experiences?", Marriott Global has launched this amazing Loyalty program called "Marriott Bonvoy" in the tie-up with their 1600+ properties across the globe where you can travel, stay and dine to accumulate membership points and enjoy some amazing curated experiences. They also are now officially doing such customized venture trips including camping, hiking, trekking (based on customer choices) with a minimum requirement of 25+ as a group but vouch to make it 100% aligned in your terms of how you need our experience to be curated. Reach out to Ms. Suhasini for the same and believe me, with your plan in her hands, feel rest assured.
A select group of media journalists, food enthusiasts, fashion bloggers and of course Marriott's team gathered as per plan at Okra, Marriott on a bright sunny day (23 Feb 2019). Before we got the glimpse of what's planned and where is this mystical venue for camping, we were in for a delicious lunch at OKRA to keep us fueled for the journey and adventure ahead. As we wrapped up our sumptuous meal, we were given a survival kit followed by our host - guide - companion - savior - and what not Ms. Suhasini explained us about the survival kit, precautions, DOs and DONTs in camping but again the mystery prevailed over the venue. As we got into the coach to start the fun, again a touch of Marriott, in giving us branded water bottles to keep us hydrated and also to keep us engaged. Marriott's Team of Jomy, Suhasini and their hospitality staff team on-boarded and we officially set off for 2.5 hours journey. Again we were appraised of the travel time, what to expect and what not and it got the excitement to another level and what's in store for us.
Ahead we traveled amidst scorching sun, dehydrating ourselves, from the presence of civilization soon into open barren lands of farms and just open sky. As we entered into the foothills next to Ananthagiri hills, we saw then an array of white flag banners indicating "THE GREAT OUTDOORS" by Marriott directing to our campsite. We were in gaze to see from far the preps being done and how the spot is middle of the urban civilization but yet untouched and it's just you and open sky. As we got down tired, we were welcomed by Marriott team with fresh fruit cut skewers and wine to unwind ourselves and that set the tone of what to expect in this experience.
We were then escorted to our camp tents only to be surprised in the most unique way from Marriott. Each of us got our own named tents and as we opened up, it was an array of personalized touch of our picture in a photo frame, a cute plush toy, water bottles, and few more stuff. That's the amount of detailing Marriott puts in such a curated experience. With the cute surprise still sinking in me, we got to unload our packages and start to relax a bit in the main camping area where already hi-tea was in full swing. With Shiv Menon rending some summertime numbers, we went into to see many stalls put around to feed us. Jameson with its master Magician, Cillian Mulligan (Mallu Kallu on fire as we call him), a stall by Hill Cart Tales (premium tea brand), and a huge array of food options from Marriott themselves. My eyes were on everything but then we were appraised o the hike to do before sunset.
Sipping some amazing cocktails curated by my man, Cillian mainly the rockstar "Bacon Old-Fashioned" and "Jameson Ginger lime" and just unwinding, we also got to taste freshly made churros, salads and what not. Freshly made garlic bread and many more to gorge on but we were called upon by our commando (Suhasini again :P) for trekking brief and safety measures. Got introduced to the trekking team and the DOs and DONTs, I almost contemplated to stay back, get drunk and be the SAFER me but then I thought its 0.5 km & won't kill me and I get to live another day. God, I was proved wrong in the first 5 mins of the trek. With hike gears on, I started off like a kid going to park and after seeing the ascent, I felt OMG but then didn't give up. With age and breath catching up to me very soon, I hit my limits for a breath of air and halted calling "IM DONE". The every motivating trekking crew inspired us with their words and finally, I climbed my own Mount Everest only to gasp like a pig (literally) people could hear me gasping lol. We finally got to see why they forced to climb before sunset, as we saw the beautiful and ever mesmerizing sunset trying to get back to its SLEEP mode spreading a mix of darkness and blazing orange spread. We relaxed a bit, clicked pictures and then went to a nearby temple and started the descent. Here is where again we were in for a surprise.
