MesmerizinG MahabaleshwaR !!!

In the month of June I and my friends (Shrey, Kishan & Raj) decided to visit Mumbai, as we were having a vacation after our university exams. From Mumbai we planned to take a short trip to Mahabaleshwar. Mahabaleshwar is a popular hill station in Western India. For the people of Mumbai and Pune it is like an ultimate getaway destination from hectic city life, just like our Mount Abu. But trust me it is far better compared to Mount Abu.

How we reached:

There are many travel agencies in Mumbai which provide tour packages for Mahabaleshwar. We opted to take a complete package tour, which included to and fro travel in an AC bus, accommodation, food (breakfast, lunch, dinner) and sightseeing. It took 6 hrs by bus to reach Mahabaleshwar in a night journey. 

That's the first pic of our journey

Accommodation:

Next day we reached Mahabaleshwar around 6:30 in morning. The atmosphere was very pleasant and we felt like we were in heaven (fog played a big part in that). 

You can see the fog in background

There are a number of good hotels and resort available in Mahabaleshwar accommodating both budget and big wallet tourists. We stayed at hotel Rahi which was pre booked for us by our tour operator. The hotel was located on the main market road which later turned out to be a boon for us and also a main reason behind our frequent visits to the market in free time.

 Places to visit:

There are more than 30 points to visit and most of them are at hill place. You can hire a private vehicles or taxi from the market to visit these points .We were provided an Indigo car to take us to these points.
 

Pratapgarh Fort : On day one we visited Pratapgarh fort. We were lucky enough that the rains had stopped and atmosphere was very much clear. This fort is famous for its story of victory of  Shivaji Maharaja over Afzal Khan.The fort is smartly constructed and is worth visiting .Here are some of the pics that we clicked at the fort.

Group pic taken at the fort

Punishment point

The statue of Shivaji Maharaj at the summit of Pratapgarh fort

On our way back to hotel it started raining heavily and we saw many breathtaking views of the lush green valley. We could actually see the clouds moving in front of us as we were at a very high altitude. 

 Next day we covered following points:

Mahabaleshwar Temple:  This is a very ancient temple and is a land mark of Mahabaleshwar. In the same premises there are 3 temples of lord Shiva. Krishnai temple is the origin point of Krishna river. Photography is prohibited inside the temple.

Back side of the temple

Arthur seat point: This is a very famous point as it offers a complete panoramic view of canyons and cliffs. Here we weren’t so lucky to get the entire view of the valley as it was covered with fog. We waited for some time for the fog to clear up but hard luck. I convinced myself saying that it was like any other point, but deep down I knew that it was unique.

That's what I am talking about

Needle hole point: At this point one can see a natural rock formation with a hole in between, thus given the name needle hole. The rock also looks like an elephant’s trunk. Several movies have been filmed at this point.

It did appear like an elephant head.

Kate’s Point: This point is located at a walking distance from needle point and it offers splendid view of Krishna Valley and Dhom dam.

Krishna river from Kates point

 Mala factory: Mala company is famous throughout the world for its jam and syrups. Along with jam and syrup you can also get fudge, chikki, chocolates at this factory. Interested visitors can see the packing process of the products. Being a factory outlet they offer some discount on their products and also allow the visitors to taste syrups, chikki, fudge etc. before buying them.

Mapro Gardens: Just like Mala, Mapro is also a very well known company. Both companies offer almost same type of products. 

Keep your camera's ready for Mapro garden

Parsi point: The view from this point was very much similar to that from Kate’s point. There are few rides for kids and other road side stalls at this point. 

Panchgani table land is a very famous point about 20 kms away from Mahabaleshwar. Sadly the point is now closed for the tourist because of an unfortunate incident that took place a few months back. Apart from these points there are many other points which I hope to cover in my next visit to Mahabaleshwar.

Shopping: Mahabaleshwar is famous for its strawberries, jam, chikki and flavored syrups. There are many strawberry farms over here. Fresh strawberries are available throughout the year. Also at some of these farms they provide strawberry ice-cream with lots of actual strawberry and cream over it. Don’t miss that it’s something new.

Strawberry Farm

Strawberry Ice Cream

Best season to visit: The atmosphere is pleasant throughout the year. But the best time to visit this beautiful hill station is between October to mid June .Our driver told us that in monsoon the place is shut down due to heavy rains. So it is advisable to do some inquiry beforehand if you are planning to go during monsoon.

Overall, it was definitely an unforgettable experience with friends. Mahabaleshwar is a great destination to relax and detoxify yourself with its air, water and scenic views. The hills have a strange way of calling tourist back and Mahabaleshwar is one such place. 

 For more pics checkout this link: https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.4162183461505.2173116.1491645824&type=3&l=92962ff9f2