Our story
Named after the sound of getting there.
Dug dug is the sound a motorcycle makes on a mountain road. DugDug began on one of those rides, and the name stayed. Whether you come by car, bike, train or bus, it’s the sound of the journey up.
However you come, here’s the way up →
How it started
I quit data science to ride.
I was a data scientist. Then I quit, got on my motorcycle and rode around the country with no plan, going wherever the energy took me and having an absolute ball with everyone I met on the way.
I knew nothing about architecture. What I noticed, again and again, were people living in the most beautiful, remote places who had to leave for the cities to make a living. DugDug started as an answer to that: give them a reason, and a way, to stay.
the first tent, 2020
What we believe
Built with the village, not just beside it.
Every DugDug place is a three-way exchange: the people who live there, the wild around them, and the travellers who come to stay. Each learns something from the other two.
Local artisans and builders shape each place, with local materials wherever we can, so it sits into the land rather than on top of it. Local produce fills the kitchen, and the money stays in the village.
Small by nature
A cottage or a campsite. Never a resort.
We keep every place small. Less building is less strain on the land, and fewer guests means everyone gets their quiet and their privacy.
What you do there is up to you. Most people come to slow right down, and leave with a clearer head. Simplicity and raw comfort; that’s the whole brief.
What we hold to
Four things every DugDug place is built on.
Built with the village
Every place is a three-way exchange between the people who live there, the wild around them and the travellers who come to stay. Local hands build it, local produce fills the kitchen, and the money stays in the village.
Small, safe and cosy
A cottage or a campsite, never a resort. Few enough guests that everyone gets their quiet, and small enough that we know who’s staying. Built for switching off: a digital detox if you want one, Wi-Fi if you need it.
Seclusion without roughing it
Simple, but never spartan. Real beds, hot water and a bathroom of your own, so being far from the crowds never means giving up comfort.
Quiet shouldn’t be far away
Peace, a view and real seclusion shouldn’t need a two-day journey. Every DugDug place is within six to eight hours of the city.
From me
A few things I’d rather you heard first.
Our places are small and a little out of the way. The last stretch of road is usually slow. There’s no shop, no bar, and not much to do after dark except sit by the fire.
At Bhimtal, the lake is a drive away, not a walk, and the Bell Tent takes five at a push; four is more comfortable. I’ll tell you things like that on the phone.
If any of it sounds like the wrong holiday, tell me and I’ll say so rather than take the booking. If it sounds like the right one, you’ll like it here.
— Anuj Dhankar, founder, who answers the phone
Where we’re going
Across the hills, one small place at a time.
Every DugDug place is a tie-up I make in person, with people I’ve met and land I’ve walked. Bhimtal is the first. Each one keeps the same promise: small, quiet, and built with the village.
— slow living, in a fast world
Book direct
Skip the booking sites.
If a small place sounds like your kind of quiet, the dates are a message away. Booking direct reaches me rather than an inbox.
50% advance confirms your booking · full refund up to 7 days out (14 for the whole camp)
