A weekend budget trip to the Queen of Hillstations (Mahabaleshwar)

Mahabaleshwar is a hill station in India's forested Western Ghats range, south of Mumbai, India. It features several elevated viewing points, such as Arthur’s Seat. West of here is centuries-old Pratapgad Fort, perched atop a mountain spur. East, Lingmala Waterfall tumbles off a sheer cliff. Colorful boats dot Venna Lake, while 5 rivers meet at Panch Ganga Temple to the north.

It is a very popular hill station as it is very close to both Mumbai and Pune and is hardly a 2-2.5 hours ride from Pune and around 3-4 from Mumbai. Panchgani is the sister town of Mahabaleshwar and on a lower altitude. The best time for a quick visit will no doubt be during the monsoons as the views will be spectacular and the cool breeze hitting your face is way too refreshing.

The thing about Mahabaleshwar is that it can be done in a day as well or by staying for a night or two and then heading back. Apart from the various viewpoints, the main attraction is the MaproGarden, it has it all, from a good restaurant selling good big pizzas, sandwiches, and milkshakes; to selling counters and tasting booths, it even has a chocolate factory.

Eco Tourism - The need of the hour in India

In the past few years, the travel and tourism industry has been on an exponential rise in India and abroad, primarily because of the vast knowledge sharing happening via social media like Facebook, Twitter. A lot of other factors like better transport connectivity, a rise in luxury budget hotels have also supported the growth of the travel and tourism industry.

A lot of Startups have come up and are offering various perks and discounts to the customer in the form of promotional e cash, flight miles, voucher coupons if the customer books through their website. This all provides a win-win situation for both the company and the customer, and the customer slowly gets bitten by the travel bug.

Once the customer comes out of his shell and starts travelling, he starts exploring the unexplored beauty of different places, becomes an extrovert and starts socializing with the localities and fellow travelers. This unleashes a wide range of possibilities to travel and explore without creating a hole in the pocket.

4 books by Indian Authors inspiring Adventure and Wanderlust

Being a bibliophile and a travel aficionado, I started searching frantically on Amazon for some quick reads by Indian Authors and I was more than delighted to go across the options. After going through all the options available on Amazon, I shortlisted these four titles. All these four titles are based on different themes and carry a unique message.

The best part, all these titles are under INR 200, so go ahead and experience these well written journeys as they are sure going to inspire the traveler hidden within you.

These books are perfect for fellow Wravelers – Wanderers and Travelers inspired by Wanderlust.

1.  When The Road Beckons – Ravi Manoram (INR 145)
2.  Born Again on the Mountain : A Story of Losing Everything and Finding It Back – Arunima Sinha (INR 176)
3.  Bucket List of a Traveloholic – Sarika Pandit (INR 163)
4.   Worth Every Gasp : A Lone Woman’s Journey in the Himalayas – Anamika Mukherjee (INR 81)