Paper short abstract:

Mawlynnong, a village in the Khasi Hills of Meghalaya, India is slowly becoming a popular tourist destination due to its location as well as of the distinction of being the cleanest village in India. This paper will explore the role of tourism and tourists in this village and in the lives of the villagers.

Paper long abstract:

Mawlynnong has the distinction of being recognised as the cleanest village in India by the Discover India magazine in 2005. Since then the village has seen a gradual increase in the number of tourists, specially domestic tourists travelling to explore the destination. One of the reasons for the growing popularity of this rural tourism destination could be the indigenous Khasi tribe that forms the village population. This tribe follows a matrilineal society, wherein the family is trace by the surname of the wife and the property of the family is passed on to the youngest daughter of the family; a concept, domestic tourists are not very familiar with.

The increasing and continuous interaction between the locals and the tourists are influencing the behavior of both the guests and the hosts. This paper will bring out the changes in the attitude and customs of the local population in the last decade, since tourists and travel industry discovered Mawlynnong, as well as explore the influence of the visit to Mawlynnong on the guests.