In another impromptu drive over a weekend getaway from Mumbai, we traversed towards Nasik and the temple town of Shirdi. A leisurely pace we drove up and down the ghats on a rain drenched week end, enjoying the scenic beauty and the gentle misty rain, as we winded our way to get our blessings from Sai Ram.
First we had scooted the net, as we were driving, thanx to the emergence of smart phones and techno - savvy children who look for hotels as well as prices and if any deals are going on.Our daughter found Keys Temple Tree a beauty as we had already stayed in 3-4 other hotels on previous visits and this seemed to be a new addition on the scene in Shirdi, so we drove straight to this one.
The gate durban, promptly swung open the doors for our Aveo to snake our way in and up the little slope to the hotel parking. a smart security guard guided me to park well and the attendants were already in waiting to remove luggage from the car boot.
I strode in to see if I could manage a room and get a deal going, yes I managed some discount off the listed price and also 4 WIFIs in our room against the 1 they give, plus got the extra bed managed to be covered in the package for the couple, so our daughter could snuggle into the large sofa by the bay window and get a beauteous view of the Shirdi city and the 1000 room ashram(a landmark) too.
Ordered some snacks and soups from room service - prompt service, great taste and decent portions were makings of a pleasurable time ahead for our stay there.
We went for the temple darshan, and then walked our way to have an Italian dinner for a change and came back late to see the room neat and tidy kept ready for a good nights sleep.Next morning a sumptuous breakfast buffet with lovely variety of fruits, salads, breads, muffins; a lot of choice of hot dishes combos and some live counters for dosa / uttappam / parathas and smart dispensers for diet food, and beverages, made for an interesting start of the day.
Actually we gorged quite a lot and then drove out to our next destination - Corinthian Club, Pune. Will write about it too, await my friends, lemme take a deep breath and remember the wonderful time we spent, in the luxurious room, a huge king sized bed, with a near 8 inch mattress, glass wall cubicle bath, very romantic and the great wall mounted ultra slim TV with great picture quality, made viewing Kapils show even more life like!
The pool deck over looking their lobby, the lush green lawns and a kids play area make it for all the bearings of a family getaway.
All in all, a new hotel, young staff, but educated and disciplined, and well maintained property run very professionally, still exuding a lot of warmth and great character for becoming a successful business in a tough market like Shirdi:)
The listed tariff price for the room was Rs. 4500+ taxes for a couple/ night with breakfast.
We bargained and got at Rs 3500(incl of taxes) included the extra person/bed(our daughter is an adult now) and breakfast for all three of us. And then we got an upgrade to the next category room from the standard to the deluxe.Bass baat kaise krnee hai and how to make people fall for your deal is very important.
Please don’t complain if you don’t extract a similar deal. I will not throw a tantrum, if you manage to get a better one than this.