Discover The Joys Of Boating, Butterflies & Family Meals At Fredy’s Bungalow

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Away from Nainital’s crowds, Fredy’s Bungalow is a restored colonial bungalow housed on a sprawling forest estate. Apart from its hunting lodge kinda vibe, it’s a walk away from the lakes and offers the comfort and solitude every city-dwelling family needs.

Lake Or Break Decision

A short drive up a dirt track takes you to this gem that overlooks the valley and is surrounded by oak trees. It’s perfectly situated for early morning tea-time chats and evening forest walks. There’s also a stunning collection of butterflies {the other half’s housed in the Butterfly Museum} thanks to house owner Fredrick Smetacek Sr.’s love for these winged beauties as he spent his growing up years walking around the woods. He later moved to Czech Republic, leaving the house in the care of his son. And today, it’s a piece of heritage that’s seen a beautiful makeover at the hands of Itmenaan Lodges.

The property can take up to eight people in total. The four bedrooms are dreamy and cosy and the wooden veranda is for the times when booze takes over and family jokes begin doing the rounds and when the pesky sibling gets too irritating, it doubles up as a great hide out for some book time.

The Butterfly Stroke

The place takes pride in being cut off from civilisation so there’s fresh juice in the morning, yes, but no TV to plonk yourself in front of. It’s actually a good thing if you ask us because we’d rather have carom marathons or play badminton. This also means that there’s ample time to picnic by the lake {the staff is happy to pack a basket of goodies} and watch the sun go down. The library is always at your rescue and the butterfly frames are enticing.

The views around have a piece of our heart but it’s also the fact that Fredy’s adopts eco-friendly practices and uses no plastic. In keeping with the principles of sustainable development, they’ve ensured that the staff is mostly local and the foods are procured from the farms nearby.

See what we said about it being pretty and kind?