Guys!, this was my first trip to Matheran, and with all the research available we had done the bookings with Neemrana group of hotels. The name of the place is "The Verandah in Forest", as the name says it was in middle of a dense cover of forest.
The way to reach: -
Personal car: -
From Mumbai take the road to karjat and then u would have to take a right turn at a cross road which has board marking directions to Neral. Neral is about 6 kms before matheran. You would reach a T-junction from where if you go left you would reach matheran(its a uphill drive), and if you take right you would reach Neral(a small town with lot of shops and quiet pretty small town). From this T-junction the uphill drive is amazingly preety. You would reach a place called "Dasturi Naka" thats the place where you have to leave your car and the walk to your booked place begins from here.
Here you would need to purchase ticket to enter matheran. Ticket costs INR 25/- . Its suggested to preserve this ticket as the back of the ticket carries the map to locate tourist spots in matheran.
Train: - Neral is very well connected by Local trains. Right outside the station is the taxi stand.The charges are INR 50/- per head. This taxi will directly take you till Dasturi Naka.
On the other side of this entry to matheran is a whole new world, full with scenic beauty and polution free. One can avail several service to be carried to the place of stay. There are carts, horses, etc which can be used as mode of transport to the place of stay.
Coming to the place were we stayed. Its an old fashioned bunglow, with awesome rooms and fantastic lobby. The place serves you good food and good drinks. The place gives you a feeling of being rich at quiet economic cost. The rooms are equipped with Queen size beds, a study table, a closet, decorative lamps and carpets. The caretakers are the most friendly people that one would come across. The Manager Mr. Surrender was always at our service with whatever avenues that he can get. The place also features a reading room with books for varied interests and a huge dining room that offers candle light dinner to its residents.
During the day we were served india bread and pulses with some seasonal vegetables and salads, while the dinner was continental 4 course meal. Very well designed and executed. The charges are quiet low reasonable.
The best part about the place was its serene beauty, and calm environment. The place also gives you old fashioned arm chairs to relax.
Overall amazing experience and highly recommended place for all.