The Masterlist For Where To Head During Long Weekends In 2020

Live the avian life. Let your paragliding dreams take flight. The Native Place at Kamshet has a very beginner-friendly paragliding course that nearly anyone can take. It’s a lovely little retreat, and a great place to spend 3-4 days.

Cost: INR 5500 a night for room stays, and INR 2000 for tent stays

Don’t Miss: Lake Vadavli, the flora and fauna all around, a star-studded night sky! 

April is a great time to experience the #MountainLife, close to home. Trekking can become a difficult ordeal if you’re not someone who loves the Great Outdoors. So if you’d like to indulge your inner adventure junkie AND your inner luxury lover at the same time. Rest up and relax at The Upper Deck resort, and visit the forts at Rajmachi while you’re here. We suggest trekking in the first half of the day, and then chill at the hotel by evening.

Cost: INR 5,000 to INR 7,800 a night

Don’t Miss: The two forts at Rajmachi (an amazing trek, yet easy trek), the views of the Valvan reservoir, and the nearby dams - Bhushi, Pawna, and Tungarli.

This is one of those bucket-list items for everyone who lives in Maharashtra, don’t you think? Since this is a yearly affair, make sure you account for it during the monsoon months... And finally see those damn fireflies at Bhandardhara. It's damn cool, because it's a night-time trek, and therefore, an experience like no other. Read about it here. There are many guided treks to Sandhan Valley, too, which you can tick off the list when you’re here! 

Don’t Miss: The Reverse waterfall, and the Sandhan Valley trek, for sure.

Truly a sight for sore eyes, Maharashtra’s very own Valley of Flowers is a 7 and a half hour drive away from the city, and a short trek up to the Kaas plateau. Completely worth the effort of travel and hiking up, Kaas plateau is home to over 300 types of flowering plants, shurbs and herbs. We promise, it’s magical.

Head to the Writer's Retreat to invest some time into fine-tuning your writing skills, or finish that short story you've been working on! The city is abound with inspiration, but sometimes, you've got to get away from it to collate your thoughts, and transform them into great prose. This Writer's Retreat at Chikhli (near Mahabaleshwar) is just where you need to be.

Don't Miss: The authentic Maharashtrian thali they serve up, the Alsation on the property - Chikki, and the neighbouring villages - Gulbanga, Bidar, etc.

The state is dotted with many wineries (especially near Nashik) where you can figure out exactly how wine is made, and finally get rid of your FOMO when you're scrolling through Sula pictures on your Instagram feed. LOL. Of course we've got a list of wineries you've got to visit - right here!
We think the end of the year is a lovely, lovely time to go here!

Don't Miss: Um, the wine? But also the experiences individual wineries offer - cycling through vineyards, food tastings, etc.

We'll admit, Juhu beach and Chowpatty are great, but we wouldn't dare to step foot into that water (sorry). So for a full-on swimming-in-the-sea, frolicking-on-the-beach sort of time, you've got to head to a virgin beach which is clean, tranquil and not crowded AF. Luckily, our coasts are full of beaches that are untouched. Here's a masterlist.

Make it a longer trip, and we think it's the best way to end the year. Isn't it?