Have been toying with the idea of going to Naukuchiatal ever since a friend showed me a few pics. Naukuchiatal is around 4300mts above sea level and ia a beautiful lake on the lap of the Kumaon Himalayas. The Aug 15 weekend being a long one, I decided to take my in-laws and go to this place.
Did some research on the net and the best SEOd resort seems to be the Lake Resort. Did some more snooping on MS and other review sites and decided to take this up. the booking was a breeze through arounddelhi.com. The drive was ok but I think it is a better idea to go upto Kathgodam by train and then take a cab.
The roads in UP are real bad. Lake Resort - the so called’resort’ is just like any other medium sized hotel, except for the fact that the place is beautiful. the rooms are spacious, with clean loos. The gas-geysers in the loo are good because the water can get quite cold. The food at the resort is passable. What the staff lacks in training, they make up with their pleasant behaviour. So do not expect star rated Yes Sir people. Boating on the lake can be arranged by the hotel at decent rates(cheaper if taken from the Naukuchiatal market). One warning, they have hidden some charges like the 150 bucks they make you pay for a game of pool. Be sure to ask up-front about the charges for ALL services.
Could not do paragliding since the season was not right. If you are thinking of Naukuchiatal - you can try Lake Resort. At 6.5grands for 2D-3N stay per couple on the MAP(Modified American Plan - 2 teas, bfast and one major meal per day included), the rates are decent.