Located in Gujarat state very close to the border of Maharashtra, Saputara is a really quite place - a hill station in making.
It is approx. 250km drive from Mumbai via Nashik and the road is really good these days (pre-monsoon). From Nashik it takes another 1-2 hours as the road narrows and passes through small villages.
I travelled with my family in April’03 and it was a humid summer in Mumbai. We wanted a short trip at cool place to relax and a friend suggested Saputara. I had never been there before.
Saputara is 3500 feet (870 meters) above sea level on Sahyadri mountain range. Most of the people know this place for the ropeway. After the fatal accident of a similar ropeway at Pavagadh in Gujarat, the ropeway at Saputara is also closed.
We drove in A/C Fiat Palio and due to the truckers’ strike in Maharashtra, the roads were really empty. We had booked 3 nights package with Chitrakoot hotel, they have a booking office in Mumbai. Due to severe electricity problems none of the hotels here have A/C rooms. Being summer and the school exams were still going on, it was an off-season.
Hotel Chitrakoot is located on a hill and has good garden for kids to play. The restaurant serves pure veg food and the food is very homely. The package included stay, breakfast, lunch, evening tea and dinner. Sight seeing is on your own.
As we had our own car, it was very convenient for us to move around. However, Saputara is not so big to move in a car. You could easily walk around to see most of the spots here.
Spots to be seen
Saputara Lake - for boating.
Museum
Artist Village
Honey bee centre
Step Garden
Rose Garden
Nageshwar Mahadev Mandir
Sunset Point
Table top point - grand view
Sunrise Point - we did not see this
Echo Point - we had a lot of fun finding the right spot.
If you have a car, check these also
Botanical Garden - 50km from Saputara on Surat road.
Gira Falls - close by from the garden
Mahal Forest - 60km from Saputara.
Saptashringi Mata Temple - 60km + 400/500 steps to climb.
Tips
Mobile phones do not work here.
Most of the hotels do not serve non-veg and liquor is prohibited.
The nearest medical store is 6km away at Hathgad.
The nearest petrol pump is now in Saputara (else it was 57km away).
The parking charge is Rs.10 for 24 hours - opp. Lake.
See the sunset from Vaity Ropeway Resort.
Best times to travel
Adventurers - monsoon - June to Aug.
Families with kids - winter - Oct to Jan.
This hill station is just in making and therefore is not crowded. I did not see any queues or big groups at any of the spots.
A really good place to just relax.