Grand Continent bets on spiritual travel boom

Chennai: India's spiritual tourism boom is increasingly steering hotel expansion, with mid-scale and budget operators targeting pilgrimage hubs that offer steady, year-round demand. The latest move comes from Grand Continent Hotels, headquartered in Bengaluru with its registered office in Chennai, which has opened a new property in Rameshwaram—a prominent pilgrimage destination—marking its 31st hotel. Located on Pamban Island, the new four-star property has 48 rooms and a vegetarian restaurant catering to Jain and Satvik dietary preferences of pilgrimage travellers. "South India continues to be a strong growth market for us, and we see sustained demand in destinations like Rameshwaram," said Ramesh Shiva, founder & managing director, Grand Continent Hotels.Grand Continent, which got listed on the NSE's SME platform last year, is also developing properties in Somnath, Varanasi and Ayodhya as it expands across high-demand micro-markets. It has 31 properties across 17+ cities with over 1,850 keys, and reported revenue of about Rs 75 crore in FY25 and Rs 57 crore in H1 FY26.