A rising number of millennial parents are carefully planning holidays to offer children immersive education experiences. In this New Year special we recommend five learning holidays Holidays don’t have to be only about fun and frolic. They can combine enjoyable and educative activities to offer a wholesome experience for children. Lately, a rising number of millennial parents are carefully planning holidays to offer children immersive education experiences combined with opportunities to explore new cultures, local histories and cuisines and learning new skills. And what better way to start the New Year than planning an education holiday experience for your children. In this New Year special we recommend five immersive education holidays for children. From visiting a farm to learn about farming basics to visiting a museum displaying tactile art for people with special needs… a lot of purpose can be infused into holidays. FARM-TO-FORK EXPERIENCE Sited on the outskirts of Jodhpur (pop.1.4 million), Mharo Khet offers holiday experience that’s enjoyable and rejuvenating, and simultaneously educational in terms of children learning new age farming practices in rural India. Spread over 40 acres, Mharo Khet is a 40-year-old ancestral farm given a new lease of life two years ago by Vedika and Rajnush Agarwal, who decided to experiment with growing exotic vegetables and fruits in water-deficient Rajasthan. During their mission to transform this barren land into a green, tree-rich farm they experienced several setbacks — plants wilting in harsh sunlight and fruit orchards destroyed by animals and birds. The story of how they persisted and revived their farm is delightfully narrated by the couple when you tour this expansive farm on foot. Children visiting Mharo Khet will not just hear this trans[1]formative story but also experience farming practices firsthand, learn about the growth cycles of differing plants and vegetables, enjoy swing rides, play marbles or kanchas, and fly kites. They can relax on charpoys underneath tree canopies. There’s also a maze area that the couple has created with rows of sunflowers — its design a homage to the ball-in-the labyrinth-maze game of yesteryears. However the piece de resistance is the farm-to-fork dining experience. Visitors can select salad leaves among other foods from the meticulously maintained greenhouse, which houses over 80 varieties of produce, including exotic and native herbs, fruits, and vegetables, grown organically, without chemicals and pesticides. Even children who don’t like greens will be fascinated by this dining experience in which 90 percent of the fare is harvested fresh off the land. The seven-course lunch served underneath the shade of guava trees is a memorable experience. A visit to Mharo Khet is an immersive, education experience for adults and children who will enjoy climbing trees, tractors, Mharo Khet, Jodhpur 45 day-napping in the shade, listening to birdsong and the rustle of the leaves in the gentle breeze. Mharo Khet offers full-day and half-day tours. A visit to Mharo Khet can be combined with a trip to the historic city of Jodhpur which offers a wide range of hotel and residential options.…
