So, here comes first long holiday of the year.
This time we planned for Nainital and Jim Corbett in Uttarakhand from 22nd till 29th March. As usual, we had a quiet a last minute plan, but somehow I managed to get the bookings..
We booked the flights through Indigo and travel package through Indian Voyage, a Delhi based tour company. I got the flights for 25k when I booked just 1 week prior to departure and travel package for 95k. Following is the itinerary and hotels given by Indian Voyage.
Lets check how the trip turns out..
Flight:
We boarded a 2am flight from Mumbai by Indigo airlines. We reached Delhi airport by 4:30 am. Then strated for Nainital with our driver Mr. Raju by 5 am. Since we started very early in morning, we skipped the long traffic at Delhi.
On the way, we halted at Shiva Dhaba by Mama Yadav which is about 80km from Delhi for breakfast. There are several other eating places around with the same name, however they say this one is original and serves tasty food. We had stuffed paneer and onion potato paratha and tea. Tea was awesome and refreshing. They served paratha with a big chunk of butter. It was yum too. The total bill was 160rs.
Hotel in Nainital:
We reached to our hotel via Ramnagar. The road to Nainital was through hills and twists and turns. It is very much necessary to have a skilled driver along. The way through the forest is scenic and one can spot monkeys on the way..
We reached our resort Seasons hotel and resort by Xperience by 11:30 am. They have a check in time of 1pm. We waited in the garden and reception area till our room was ready. This hotel is located on the mall road and just 5 minutes walk from Naina devi temple and boating points. Location is the USP for this hotel. Service is prompt. Staff is polite. However it is a 3 star hotel. Do not expect a luxury experience here. We had some struggle with bathroom tap and hand flush. Cleanliness is average. They provide dental and shaving kits, room slippers on request. No safe or hair dryer is provided.
Breakfast spread was limited and food taste was ok. Once during our stay we had cream of Mushroom soup and dal khichdi. The bill was 488rs. Taste of food was ok.
Though this resort is located bang on mall road, one has to walk on a very steep road to reach here.
Old age and cardiac patients may find difficult to walk uphill. But for families with children, it is good and economical option as all places like Naina temple, mall road, boating, rope way, restaurants are just a short walk away. We went almost everyday on mall road for a stroll and we could spend evenings by the lakeside.
Day 1:
Evening we went walking to Naina devi temple and for boating in naini lake.
Naina devi temple:
This temple is dedicated to Godess Sita. It took us roughly 15 minutes to explore around the temple.
Bhotia and Tibetan market are located around the temple.
Boating in naini lake:
There are about 9 points located around the lake from where you can start boat ride. Charges for boat ride are 210rs per boat, which is uniform on all the points. One boat can accomodate 4 adults. Ride is nice with beautiful view of valley and mountains and Nainital city and Nainital boat club. It takes around 45 minutes for one full ride. One can opt for paddle boat or rowing one.
Shopping on mall road:
One gets usual stuff like clothes, earrings, jewellery, toys, shawls, sweaters, overcoats etc. on mall road, Bhotia and Tibetan market. Woolen clothes and shawls range in cost from 50 rs to a few thousands. There are few shops selling candles here. You get candles on the roadside as well as in shops. The cost ranges from 10 to 500rs. I got some candles from Anil candles located at Capitol cinema complex and a few from Candle Bazaar at mall road. One can buy candles of various shapes like fruits, ice cream glass, log, beer glass, animals etc and also scented ones.
Apart from candles, one can buy Kumaoni products like chutneys, pickles, squashes etc from Anil Candles. I got Himalayan black beans called as ‘Kala Bhat’ from here for 115 rs per kg, jute jewellary sets for 100rs each.
Adjacent to Anil Candles, in the Capitol cinema complex is a shop ‘Fruitage’ that sells various local fruit products like squashes, jams, chutneys. I got Buransh flower squash for 100rs one bottle, apple chutney for 90rs. Other products that can be bought are strawberry, kiwi, plum squash, jam, chutneys etc.
On my way back from Ropeway, I found this man making beautiful artefacts out of pine fruits and flowers. Such ones were available for sale on mall road from 60 to a few thousand rupees depending on size and work.
Restaurants and eat out places in Nainital:
Some of the popular places in Nainital that we ventured out for the gluttons in us were:
Embassy:
We went on the first day to Embassy restaurant located on mall road. We had their special chicken in kasuri methi, chicken tikka and laccha paratha, dal khichdi. Bill was 998 rs. Food was tasty, though the khichdi was not much appreciated by our little one. One day 3 also we went here for a pizza treat. Chicken cheese pizza was for 200rs.
Machan:
This restaurant is also located on the mall road. They have Indian, Chinese and Continental menu. We had Chicken changezi, paratha and steam rice. Bill was 640rs. Food taste was awesome.
Mamu’s Naini sweet:
This sweetmart is located on Bara Bazaar, opposite to mall road and mallital. One has to walk till the far end of the road to reach. They serve the famous Bal Mithai. We got half kg for 200rs. Also, we had Dahi Jalebi here for 30rs a plate. Both the things were divine.
Sonam Fast food:
This joint is located at Tibetan market, just a short walk from Naina devi temple. They serve delicious Mutton momos and veg momos for 30rs for 4 and 60rs for 8. The outlet selling Mutton momos and veg momos are located opposite to each other. In my opinion, this is a must must try place if you are in Nainital.
Sakley’s:
This is a very old bakery located on mall road, just near to ropeway boarding point. They have bakery, Chinese, and continental menu. We had their famous chocolate truffle pastry for 95 rs. The pastry was divine and scrumptious.
Cake me away:
Bakery outlet located on the mall road. We had brownie here for 90rs.
Roadside food:
Apart from restaurants, there are many roadside food joints that sell hot chocolate, coffee, maggi, bun tikki, franky, popcorn etc. We had hot chocolate for 30rs, maggi for 30rs, popcorn for 20rs, chana chat for 20rs.
Pahadi lemon:
In Nainital, you will see this mango sized lemons that people use for making lemon juice, shikanji, with chana chat. We had lemon juice at Mukteshwar stall for 30rs a glass.
Day 2:
Eco Caves Park:
After the breakfast, we headed to Eco caves park. This is located on Kaladhungi road, about 20 minutes drive from our hotel. There are 5-6 caves named tiger, panther, flying fox etc here. One has to pass through narrow passage and turns to traverse the caves and the difficulty level increases with each successive cave. We could do only first 2 caves. They have lights and ropes inside for support. Caution is to be exercised for old age, asthmatic, claustrophobic people here. Entry ticket was 50 rs per adult. We spent about one hour here. The view from top of garden is panoramic. This is adeventurous and fun activity, but strenous at the same time. Comfortable, preferably sports shoe-wares, minimum baggage and plenty of water is a must have if you are visiting this place.
Nainital Zoo:
After caves we headed towards Nanital zoo. This zoo is located on high altitude. One has to go to mallital till the pick up point for shuttle to zoo. They have a shuttle which is a trax in which they stuff at least 10 people. The ticket is 50 rs per person to and fro. Shuttle drops you much before entry gate to zoo. One has to climb uphill on the slope to reach till the entry gate. They have made water stations and benches to take rest on the way. Entry ticket to the zoo is 100rs per person. Animal enclosures are located at various levels in the zoo. One can follow the path marked by yellow arrows on the floor in order to cover all the enclosures. There are various species of birds and animals here. Though, when we visited, tigers, leopard, bear preferred taking rest in their den, however, peacocks, deers and other birds did not disappoint us. It took us around 2 hours to see the entire zoo. One has to really climb up on hights to cover the zoo. Plenty of water, good shoes, sunscreen and hat is a must if visiting in summer.
We reached our hotel by 2pm and we were a lot tired after the above two activites. We had some rest till evening and then we headed to Sonam fast food to feast on yummy momos, followed by a boat ride and stroll on mall road.
Day 3
This was our excursion day.
Mukteshwar:
The breakfast was served by 8 am in the hotel, post breakfast we left by 9 am to drive to Mukteshwar. It took us about 2 hours to reach till Mukteshwar Mahadev temple. The road is through mountains and scenic.
The temple is located at some height from parking space. There are guides available here to take you to various points. However, it is not necessary as one can easily explore the things around by a short trek.
We reached till the temple. Small trek track for about 300 meters behind the temple takes you to ‘Chauli ki zali’ which is a cliff point with hole in the rock. Though the trek is adventurous and adrenaline pumping, the view of the cliff and Himalayan range from the edge of the cliff is mesmerizing.
There are a few stalls selling maggi, lemon juice, cold drinks there. Some sports like Zipline were also there.
While coming back down to parking place, we discovered that much simpler road goes from the entrance of the temple till Chauli ki zali. So next time travellers with weaker bones and stiff joints can climb down the temple and take straight and much simpler road from the entrance point to reach till Chauli ki zali.
We finished Mukteshwar sightseeing by 12:30pm. Since we had time in hand, we decided to cover our lake tour today itself.
We headed towards Bhimtal from Mukteshwar.
Bhalugarh waterfall:
On the way we saw a board ‘Bhalugarh waterfall’ and a few vehicles parked at the entrance. So out of curiosity, we got down to check what was there…
We got some fellow travellers as curious as us and we all started together to explore what’s there. Here also guides were available at the entrance which can be easily skipped and not necessary. The entry ticket was 10rs per person. They told is that it would be a 1.5km walk ahead till the waterfall. Very little we had an idea about the path ahead!
We reached till one point where we crossed the river and found a small waterfall. However, people returning back told us that there is a bigger and more beautiful waterfall ahead after some more walk. So we moved forward.
The road ahead was quiet uneven, with ups and down, twisted and curvy with no railings on sides. We somehow managed to traverse the road as our little one was most enthusiastic about seeing waterfall and was just not ready to come back! We crossed the river two times more and finally arrived at the main waterfall.
The place was heavenly, really beautiful and so so satisfying to the soul. There was not much rush around, we could peacefully absorb the pristine melody of shimmering water there. One can swim in this water with the life jackets.
On our way back we took a very short break the the sole shop selling water, chips, maggi etc on the way. After the rejuvenating and mesmerizing experince at the waterfall, the onward journey towards our car was effortless…
It took us around 2 hours to and fro for the trek.
If you want to experience trekking with scenic way through forest and witness amazing beauty of nature, this place is highly recommend provided you are strong enough to bear the slopes and slippery rocks!
Bhimtal:
By around 2:30 pm we started for Bhimtal.
Since it was quiet a sunny day, we decided just to take a few photos at Bhimtal and move ahead for the next destination. There are some watersports, horse riding and paragliding activities available at Bhimtal. Charges for boating here were 300 rs per ride.
On the way to Naukuchiatal, we saw a temple complex with huge Hanuman idol.
Naukuchiatal:
Next we arrived at Naukuchiatal. The lotus lake aka Kamaltal and Naukuchiatal are adjacent to each other. Kamaltal has a lot of lotuses with few geese around.
Naukuchiatal- nine cornered lake is a very beautiful lake. Here also one can enjoy water sports and boating in Shikara boat ride at the rate of 300 rs.
Sattal:
Then we headed towards Sattal which is a group of seven interconnected lakes.
All these lakes have boating and some food stalls around.
We were back to our resort at Nainital by 6:30 in evening.
Evening we went to Machan for dinner followed by pastry at Sakley’s.
Day 4
Since we had covered the lake tour earlier day, we had very few things to do today.
Ropeway and Snow view point:
After the breakfast, we headed towards Ropeway boarding point.
This was near to our hotel. So we went walking till there. The ropeway starts from 10am. In peak season, it is desirable to be there by 9:30am so that you are one of the firsts to catch the ropeway. It gets a lot crowded later in the waiting area. The ticket for to and fro journey was 230rs per person. Time allotted on the Snow view point is one hour. We boarded the ropeway by 10:15am. The time mentioned on our ticket for onward journey was 11:25am. The ropeway is on till 5pm in evening. So the tickets are issued till 4pm only.
The ride through ropeway is joyous and one gets a beautiful bird’s eye view of the mango shaped Naini lake and surrounding city. It takes you till the snow view point in 2.5 minutes.
On the top there are 3 points to be covered in an hour. Lake view point, Himalayan darshan point, temple.
Lake view point: the view of the lake is not complete due to trees, however on journey via ropeway one gets a panoramic view to click photo.
Himalayan view point: one can get amazing view of snow capped mountains from here. They have stationed binouculars here for 10rs per minute. They show you tiffin top, camel hump, a temple and Himalayan peaks. We could see all except Himalayas as the day was too cloudy to see the snow capped mountains clearly.
There is one temple there.
Apart from these view points, there is adventure park, paid games like bubble shooting, ring throwing etc and many food and shopoing stalls here. One can easily complete the sightseeing and have a cup of hot coffee in one hour.
Onward journey by ropeway is also equally beautiful.
Other way to reach till snow view point is by local taxi or a trek road.
Nainital boat club:
Nainital Boat club is located on the mall road. The entry fee for one day was 500 rs per couple. With the entry pass one has access to restaurant, bar overlooking beautiful naini lake, billiards, library and other facilities at the club. One can witness various movie scenes like from Koi Mil Gaya. The club facilities were available till 10pm.
We had planned to go to Tiffin top/ Dorothy’s seat and Naini peak, however our little one refused for a horseride so we dropped the plan and instead we went to spend some time around the Naini lake. Opposite to mall road Thandi sadak outlines the other boundary of the naini lake. There are a few temples on this road. One can board boating from Thandi sadak also.
After a refreshing siesta we had a warm cup of tea in the evening and we set out to take a walk with shopping followed by pizza in Embassy restaurant.
In the Capitol Cinema complex I saw this counter selling tickets for a 12D movie for 150 rs per person for 2 movies of 15 minutes duration. Shows run till 7 pm in evening.
Day 5
This was our last day at Nainital. After the breakfast, we checked out of the hotel and headed towards Jim Corbett.
On the way we had a plan to cover a few places.
Khurpatal lake view
First we went to Kurpatal lake view point. One can get a beautiful view of Khurpatal from hill. This is just a photo click stop and takes not more than 15 minutes. Khurpatal is said to change its colour of the water according to season.
Himalayan Botanical Garden:
Then we went to Himalayan Botanical Garden. Entry fee is 50 rs per person. This is also located at various levels on hill top and one has to follow directions and map to see various attractions there.
This may appeal a lot to those interested in botany and entomology. There is one insect/butterfly garden, various medicinal plants with brief information, fernery and orchidarium, domes and view point to cover. One has to cover the places by climbing uphill and on the stairs. View point is beautiful and gives an amazing view of the valley. It took us around 45 minutes to see the garden. There is one souvenir shop located near the entry point to buy souvenirs.
Woodland Waterfalls:
Next stop was Woodland waterfall. Entry fee is 50rs here. Since it is located on the way to Nainital, there were a lot of tourists flocking here and the place was quiet noisy. Also the waterfall is not as worth as we saw the one in Bhalugarh. One has to walk about 10 minutes uphill. The road is good. We spent around 30 minutes here. In my opinion, it can be easily skipped if you are visiting Corbett falls and Bhalugarh waterfalls.
At naini lake, near woodland waterfall amd few other places one can also get a photo clicked in Kumaoni dress by professional photographers for about 100rs.
On the way we saw one more Khurpatal lake view point.
Jim Corbett Museum:
After finishing the Nainital sightseeing we headed towards Chhoti Haldwani to visit Jim Corbett Museum.
This was earlier winter house of Mr. Corbett and his sister Maggi. Entry fee is 10rs per person. They have given pictorial information about life of Jim Corbett, his hunting and killings of Man Eaters of Kumaon and various books and development of Chhoti Haldwani as Corbett village. It took us around 30 minutes to see the museum. One souvenir shop selling keychains, magnets binoculars, books etc is there in the campus.
Corbett waterfalls:
Next we headed 4 km ahead to Corbett Waterfalls. One has to get entry ticket and pass for vehicle at the entrance. Entry fee was 50rs per person and car fees was 100rs. The entrance place has some boards giving information about flora and fauna of corbett forest. From entry point, one has to drive for about 2km to reach till parking lot.
From parking lot it is about 20 minute walk till the waterfall. They have made bridge over the river and the way to waterfall is beautiful and much simpler than at Bhalugarh. On the way they have made stairs in the huge tree fallen on the road. The waterfall is beautiful. Swimming in the waterfall is not allowed.
After finishing all sightseeing for the day, we reached to our resort Sitabani Jungle Resort and Spa by 3 pm.
Sitabani Jungle Resort and Spa:
This resort is located a little far from Ramnagar towards Sitabani and Corbett landscape area. It takes around 30-40 minutes by car from Ramnagar to reach till this resort. This is important to note as this is the time one would require to consider and leave early for safari to reach till safari gate. The resort is surrounded by forest and hills on other side. It is spread on huge area and the surroundings are picturesque, giving you a feeling of luxury amidst nature. We stayed in cottages around pool. There are club rooms available also. Resort is well equipped with amenities like swimming pool, spa, activity room with tennis, carom board, badminton rackets, chess, billiards etc.
The rooms have wooden walls and are spacious, clean. They have dental kit, shaving kit, emergency lamp, toiletries, tea coffee maker, fridge, safe in room. There is a nice sit out area outside the cottages and balcony on backside overlooking adjacent dense forest. One can hear sounds of peacock, langoors etc in night.
The campus is spread over a large area and is even suitable for conferences and functions. The lawn is well manicured and has many colourful flowers in the campus.
Food is excellent. For the first two nights of our stay, there was hardly any occupancy in the resort. They served us the food of our choice. One can try Kumaoni dishes, dal Makhni, Mutton Rogan josh here, they are too good. They have own bakery where fresh bread and cakes are baked as required. The bread, croissants and cakes were fresh and soft. For the last night, a corporate group of around 50 people joined for stay with us. We tried buffet food in that time which was also equally good. Chinese food could have been a bit better though.
The service is excellent here. The staff is extremely polite, cordial and pays personal attention to all the needs of the guests.
In all this is a very good resort giving you the experience of stay within the forest with all modern amenities and excellent hospitality.
Only effort that one has to take is the travel required till the safari gates to Ramnagar. The road is beautiful and one can spot deers, elephants , rabbits on the way. As of now, they do not have any shuttle service till Ramnagar. One may have to shell out extra amount if you want the Gypsy person to come for pick up till the resort. We had our driver Mr. Raju along to drop us till the safari gate/ pick up point.
Day 6
Canter Safari Dhikala:
Next day was early morning Canter safari from Dhikala zone. We started from our resort by 5am in morning and reached till Dhangari gate which is the starting point for Dhikala zone safari. Canter takes around 16 people in one safari. Dhikala zone is a beautiful forest area with highest number of tigers in Corbett. There is a museum dedicated to Sir Jim Corbett at the entrance of Dhikala zone. The canter safari was a little tiring for us as the road was quiet uneven, bumpy and lot of dust around. However we enjoyed seeing various birds and animals on the way. Safari started by 6:30 am in morning and we were back to the gate by 11:30am. In the middle of the forest, at Dhikala Forest Rest House they take a stop for about 20 minutes to use washroom or have a cup of tea and snacks from FRH canteen. We spotted Python, elephant, deers, peacock, fishing owl, jungle fowl, wild boar, pheasant and few of us could get glimpses of tiger from the bushes during the safari.
Though one can get a day safari for Dhikala zone, if you have time in hand, bookings of Dhikala zone FRH can be done 45 days in advance and at least one night stay there with 2 safaris with the hired gypsy is highly recommended.
Garjiya Mata Temple:
On our way back to the hotel, our driver took us to Garjiya mata temple. This is situated about 1km from Dhangari gate. The temple is overlooking Kosi river and situated on a small hill. There is Bhairav mandir below and one has to climb stairs to reach goddess temple. From the parking place, it is just 5 minutes walk on a bridge over the river.
The location is beautiful with river flowing around. There are many shops located around and a lot of people come here to pay homage to the goddess. We spent about half an hour here.
We came back to the resort by 1pm. We were quiet tired for the day. We spent the rest of the day in the resort relaxing and enjoying activities inside. Evening we went for the nature walk at 5:30 pm near the resort with hotel staff. The short walk through the forest and view of the valley was quiet relaxing.
Day 7
Jeep Safari Jhirna Zone:
Next day we had a morning safari at Jhirna zone. Again at 5 am our driver dropped us till Ramnagar. Mr Ansar (9927339352) was our gypsy driver. He took us till Dhela gate which is entry point for Jhirna and Dhela zones.
We were also accompanied by a guide who told us about the flora and fauna of the forest. Safari started by 6:30am in morning. At the gate one can get binoculars on rent for 100/200rs for the safari. Jeep safari is a lot better than Canter safari for – it is exclusively for your family, -if you get a good driver, he will drive at a descent speed, -view is much wider in the open jeep, -birds can be seen much better from jeep. We spotted jackals and a lot of species of birds apart from peacocks and deers. Gypsy safari is for 3 hours. We were back to the resort by the same jeep by 10:30am.
After breakfast and spending some time in the pool we had our lunch and we left for Sitabani Corbett landscape area safari at 2:30pm.
As per the itinerary given by Indian Voyage, we had Silent Valley tour scheduled for the day. However we discovered that one has to go till Marchurla which is about 2 hours drive from our resort and then about 2 km trek in forest to reach till the river bed to enjoy tea, lunch and snacks there. After the safari and in the heat we somehow were not ready to venture into such activities in afternoon however good were the reviews about the place!!
We requested Mr. Pradeep of Indian voyage to cancel the tour, which he promptly agreed considering the logistics involved and instead offered us safari to Corbett landscape area.
Corbett Landscape Sitabani safari:
Sitabani gate was near from our resort. As the myth goes, goddess sita is said to have spent some time here during her exile. The forest is very beautiful. It being afternoon, we did not have much luck with the animal sighting.
In the middle of the forest is an ancient temple dedicated to Godess Sita. A small stream of fresh water runs adjacent to the temple. The temple is serene and amidst the dense forest. Even though we did not see many animals, visit to the temple itself was very satisfying. One has to be cautious about the monkeys around the temple and be careful not to carry any eatables in hand.
On our way back we spotted a wild elephant and many peacocks dancing.
Evening we chose to relax in the resort as next day we had a long journey back home.
Day 8
After the breakfast we checked out of the resort by 9 am and left towards Delhi. We reached Delhi by 3:30pm. On the way Mr. Raju showed us glimpses of Delhi like Rajghat, India gate etc.
We boarded our flight to Mumbai by Indigo airlines at 5:30pm.
Tips
Since we had booked the trip quiet last minute and we had a toddler along we preferred booking though the agent. However some of the things I found on enquiring and through experience at these places may be useful for future trips.
Nainital:
One can opt for taxi from airport through various apps like MMT etc till Nainital and book sightseeing from local taxi there.
These local taxis charge from 600-1000rs for local sightseeing covering major attractions and around 1200-1500rs for excursions like lake tour, Mukteshwar, Ranikhet etc. There are plenty of taxi providers in Nainital, even the hotels can also arrange the same for you on arrival.
We did not cover Tiffin top/ Naina peak in our tour. One can reach till the top by trek for an hour or on horse. Charges for horse ride are about 1500rs.
Good sports shoes, sunscreen, water is must.
Motion sickness medicines are desirable to carry along.
Light woolen clothes would be required even in summers and in winters it is a must.
Most of the better rated hotels are located a little away from mall road and major sightseeing points, but they provide shuttle service till mall road.
Jim Corbett:
Best way to explore the forest would be staying at Forest Rest house.
One has to book a jeep that will drop till the FRH and take you for 2 safaris with one night stay. You can book 45 days in advance from corbett official site or through various agents. But the availability is less. Keep in mind to book via reliable agent only.
Majority of other resorts are located near Ramnagar around Kosi river.
Morning safari is best in summer. Afternoon may not yield any sightings and would be a bit uncomfortable due to heat.
A hat and sunscreen is must.
Corbett falls and Garjiya mata mandir can be included in itinerary if time permits.
Indian Voyage and Explore Corbett:
They prove true to the good reviews mentioned in various sites and provide good service. Drivers that they provided, Mr Raju Yadav and Mr Ansar were excellent and were genuinely interested in showing us places around.
Though we had some miscommunication with Mr. Madan at the time of morning safari from Dhikala zone when he had no idea about the dropping point and person coming for pick up, rest of the trip was smooth. Mr. Pradeep unhesitatingly changed the plan of silent valley and arranged for Sitabani safari for us.
Mr. Raju Yadav (+91 85058 48554 ) was one of the best drivers we have got for the trips ever. He may relaibly contacted directly for Delhi based tours.
Mr Ansar is a good jeep driver as well as guide for safari and has good knowledge about Corbett forest.
Expenses:
Totally we spent about 7.5 k for entry tickets, shopping, and for food other than mentioned in plan. 95k for Indian Voyage including transfers and safari and 25k for flights. Total cost was about 128k.
Hope you found the tips and description useful for your upcoming trip..
Happy travelling..
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