Meghalaya has been declared as one of India’s few year-round destinations for tourists by the National Institution for Transforming India (NITI) Aayog. The April 2026 Report of NITI Aayog ‘Divya Bharat’: A Window To The Soul Of India, identified Meghalaya as a destination with a clear off-season. Looking at this tourism growth, Meghalaya is planning to launch 3000 more new homestays by the year 2028 under the government’s new mission for tourism. Keep reading to know more about it.
Meghalaya Government To Launch 3000 New Homestays By 2028
As the number of tourists is gradually increasing, Meghalaya is set to strengthen its tourism infrastructure. The footfall of tourists in the state was 1.2 million in 2018, and has now reached 1.6 million this year. This is a steady increase in the tourist arrivals in the state, which clearly reflects the growing interest of people in exploring India’s Northeast region.
While Meghalaya was named as one of the country’s few year-round tourism destinations by NITI Aayog, Shillong was termed as India’s most-searched travel destination in Skyscanner’s 2025 report. All these led to the state setting a target of attracting about 2.1 million visitors annually by 2028.
In 2023, the Meghalaya government had launched the Meghalaya Homestay Tourism Scheme, emerging with the Prime Minister’s Employment Generation Programme (PMEGP). It was launched after identifying a shortage of accommodations as an important gap in its tourism infrastructure. After this, in September 2025, the government launched the Chief Minister’s Meghalaya Homestay Mission. This mission targets about 3000 homestays by 2028 with 15,000 direct and indirect jobs.
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More About The Meghalaya Homestay Mission Scheme
Under this scheme, the new homestays will get subsidies of up 70%. These subsidies are capped at INR 7 lakh. The existing homestay operators can easily claim a property upgrade and improvements incentive of up to INR 2 lakh.
About 80 applications have been approved across 10 districts under the early uptake of the new scheme. There has been a good number of participants from across the state.
The initiative is also closely connected to the state’s preparations for the upcoming National Games. The 39th edition of the National Games will be held in Meghalaya in 2027. This mission is closely tied to the Games as the state is currently planning to accommodate all the participants. This will be done through community-based lodging and not through the traditional Games Villages.
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Summing Up
Meghalaya is looking at strengthening its tourism infrastructure by bridging the gap in the shortage of accommodation in the state. Instead of taking a hotel-heavy approach, Meghalaya is looking at new homestays to support local households as well as tourism. The Meghalaya Homestay Mission is looking at launching 3000 homestays in the state by 2030.
