Whistling Pine Trees And Unexplored Mountain Trails At Rakkh Resort

Rakkh Resort isn’t quaint or out-of-the-way; it stands tall and proud in the Himachali village of Ghamrota and gives jaded hill station goers a refresher on what it means to travel well.

The drive to Rakkh isn’t short or easy – your derriere will definitely feel it. You then need to walk up, oh close to a zillion stairs to get to your cottage and wash off the long drive. When you finally check in {we admonished ourselves for not taking our work outs seriously}, it’s all worth it.

The hill cottages are done up in lovely shades of blue and green, with French windows that open up to gorgeous views of the Dhauladhar mountain ranges and a sit-out area. But don’t stay indoors. Rakkh was built with a singular objective – to showcase a relatively untouched and unexplored Himachal Pradesh.

Do as the Himachalis do. On day one, start slow with an easy, afternoon walk into Rakh village and come back to the resort in time for drinks and lots of stories.

Depending on how fit you feel, you could also tread down bike and hike trails at 6am— we found ourselves pedalling away on mountain bikes through winding roads that were littered with pine cones. The view from the top made the early morning wake up call completely worth it.

If you’re just in the mood to explore, the super-friendly and knowledgeable staff at Rakkh will point you in the right direction, and you can set off on your own or take a romantic walk with your SO.

We set aside a full day for paragliding at Bir Billing. Once you’ve come back down to earth and at the resort, the deep-tissue massage and sauna at their spa, Baanka, was exactly what we needed. We ran out of vacation days, but were keen on trying out their Balinese massage as well.

Ask Gwen, the marketing head at Rakkh, to arrange a trip to Bajinath temple and Andretta pottery village. A train ride away, we recommend it for the photo opportunities, three-hour pottery workshop, and steaming cups of tea. A full-day excursion, we suggest you plan ahead for this.

Don’t forget to try the local thali meal that was cooked with completely unfamiliar ingredients, but tasted just like home. A sky full of stars, conversations about sustainable living, great company and a full tummy– we definitely saved the best for last.

#LBBTip: Rakkh is located at a convenient distance from McLeodganj, so maybe plan a day trip for some amazing Tibetan food. Connectivity is limited, so you’ll have to save all your pictures and post them to Instagram on your way back.

Where: Rakkh Resort, Ghamrota Village, Post Office Ballah Tehsil Palampur, District Kangra, Himachal Pradesh

How To Get There: Drive down from Delhi, the journey takes eight hours {approx.}