Swati Seth left city life for the mountains of Naggar, started hosting women in her home because there was only one bathroom and she wasn’t comfortable sharing with men, and then heard the stories — so many women telling her this was the first time they had travelled alone, and they could only do it because this was a women-only space. So she made it a proper thing. Seeking Slow Farmstay was born. Ollie and Chutki were already there.
The story of Seeking Slow Farmstay begins with a bathroom and ends with a movement. Between those two points is the particular journey of a woman who followed her instincts so consistently and so completely that she eventually found herself running one of the most distinctive and purposeful homestays in the Indian Himalayas.
Swati Seth was never fascinated by cities. It was the mountains that always had her heart — the particular quality of life in the hills that cities approximate but cannot replicate, the slowness that altitude and forest and the rhythm of agricultural seasons impose on everything. She left city life and moved to the hills of the Kullu Valley, to the ancient hill town of Naggar, and she began hosting women in her previous house. The single bathroom made mixed hosting impractical. The women who came brought their stories.
Those stories changed everything. Guest after guest told Swati this was the first time they had travelled alone. They had been absorbed in responsibilities — families, careers, the accumulated weight of lives lived for other people — and their own lives had taken a backseat. They could only make this journey, they said, because this was a primarily-for-women space. It felt safe. It felt possible. It felt like something they could do.
Swati heard these stories and understood she had discovered a need that India’s hospitality landscape had not adequately addressed. She and her co-founder — working together on the vision — formalised the project. Seeking Slow Farmstay, on the hill above Village Nashala near Naggar, became a proper thing.
The Farmstay
Seeking Slow sits in Village Nashala, P.O. Larankello, Tehsil Naggar, Kullu district — tucked between the woods and the quiet of a Himachali village, at the altitude of the Kullu Valley where apple orchards line the slopes and the Beas river runs below. The property is primarily for women, though families with men are occasionally accommodated: the emphasis is on creating a space where women travelling alone, or in groups of women, feel genuinely safe and genuinely at home.
There are five guest rooms, accommodating up to nine guests at a time. The rooms are characterised by the same philosophy that governs the farmstay’s identity: every nook is a reminder that it isn’t too late. Guests curl up and read, admire the mountainscapes, chat with fellow women exchanging life experiences, or simply sit in the warmth of the two resident dogs.
The resident dogs — Ollie and Chutki — are the official mascots of the farmstay, and Swati says so with the laughter of someone who knows that the mascots often do more for new guests than anything else at the property. They are warm, present, and generously affectionate. Guests who arrive carrying the accumulated tension of complicated lives tend to lose it to the dogs before they have unpacked.
The Color Caravan and the Textile Life
Swati Seth is not only the co-founder of Seeking Slow. She is also the Founder and Creative Director of The Color Caravan — a slow clothing and textile brand rooted in indigenous crafts and communities, whose philosophy of slowness and rootedness in traditional practice is entirely of a piece with the farmstay’s identity.
At Seeking Slow, this connection is made practical. Guests can sign up for textile craft holidays: hands-on workshops with artisans, learning to spin wool yarn on a Bhageshwari Charka under the supervision of a master craftsman, understanding the indigenous textile traditions that The Color Caravan has been documenting and reviving. These workshops are not demonstrations for tourists. They are genuine learning experiences, connecting guests to the craftspeople of the Kullu Valley with the seriousness of a programme designed by someone who has devoted her career to this material.
What Happens at Seeking Slow
The experience at Seeking Slow is, by design, unstructured. Women can choose to find what works for them and plan their days accordingly. Many want to stay put at the farmstay entirely — reading, painting, playing with Ollie and Chutki, sitting with the mountain view, absorbing the slowness that the name promises. Others want the walks in the neighbouring villages, the hands-on workshops with artisans, the meal with a local family. Healing exercises in the forest are available depending on the season.
The landscape changes with the seasons and so does the lifestyle — summer brings the apple orchards to bloom and the forests to their densest green; autumn brings the harvest and the particular clarity of the Himalayan sky when the monsoon has cleared; winter brings snow and the interior warmth of a mountain home. Each season offers a different encounter with the same place, and return guests describe coming back for the specific experience of Seeking Slow in a season they haven’t yet known.
Naggar town is close for guests who want cafés, coffee, desserts, and the cultural life of one of the Kullu Valley’s most historically significant towns. The Nicholas Roerich Gallery — where the Russian artist’s extraordinary Himalayan paintings are housed in his former home — is one of the most genuinely moving cultural experiences available in Himachal Pradesh and is a short drive from the farmstay. Naggar Castle, the ancient seat of the Kullu royal family, is nearby.
Why It Stays With You
A guest who visited described it as an absolute gem for someone seeking a respite from the madness of work life. Another described finding themselves in a time warp — where living each moment and breathing its essence becomes paramount. A third described the experience of spinning wool yarn on a Bhageshwari Charka under a master craftsman’s guidance as one of the most meaningful hours of their Himalayan visit.
But the review that matters most is the one Swati heard over and over from her first guests: this was my first time travelling alone, and I could only do it because this was a women-only space. That is the review that made her build this properly. That is the reason Seeking Slow exists.
Ollie and Chutki are waiting. The mountains are there. It isn’t too late.
Plan Your Visit
Address: Village Nashala, P.O. Larankello, Near Maa Chamunda Temple, Tehsil Naggar, District Kullu, Himachal Pradesh — 175104 Instagram: @seekingslowfarmstay Booking: Via Instagram DM / Justdial / Direct inquiry through Linktree (linktr.ee/seekingslowfarmstay)
Co-founder and host: Swati Seth Other brand: The Color Caravan (slow fashion and textiles) — @thecolorcaravan Resident mascots: Ollie and Chutki (dogs — comfort animals and welcoming committee)
Who can stay: Primarily women travelling solo or in groups · Families with men also occasionally accommodated — inquire directly Rooms: 5 guest rooms · Maximum 9 guests Meals: Home-cooked, traditional Himachali food · Meals with local families available by arrangement Experiences: Textile craft holidays (wool-spinning on Bhageshwari Charka with master craftsman) · Walks in neighbouring villages · Healing exercises in the forest · Artisan workshops · Reading, painting, mountain-gazing · Naggar town day trips
Getting There — Bhuntar Airport (Kullu-Manali Airport): approximately 30 km from Naggar — around 1 hour by road. — From Manali Mall Road: approximately 22 km — around 40 minutes by road. — From Kullu: approximately 45 km — around 1.5 hours. — From Delhi: approximately 550 km — around 12 hours by road, or overnight Volvo bus to Manali (10–12 hours), then taxi to Naggar. — From Chandigarh: approximately 280 km — around 6 hours. — Village Nashala is a short distance outside Naggar town — coordinate final approach with Swati through Instagram after booking.
Nearby — Naggar Castle: 3 km · Nicholas Roerich Gallery: 3 km · Naggar town cafés and bakeries: 3 km · Tripura Sundari Temple: 4 km · Manali: 22 km · Bhuntar Airport: 30 km · Rohtang Pass: 70 km
Best Time to Visit: March to June for spring and the apple blossom · September to November for post-monsoon clarity and the harvest season · December to February for snow and the cosy interior of a mountain farmstay in winter · The farmstay’s textile workshops run year-round — coordinate workshop availability with Swati before booking if this is a primary reason for visiting
