I traveled to Kandhla and Lonavla on 4th June 2006. Unfortunately it was too late, when my husband, son and our friends with their son left Mumbai at about 5pm. It is much better when you leave at 11am or noon so to avoid traffic jams on the main roads and highways.
Anyway, we arrived in Kandala at around 7:30pm. We stopped at Kamat Hotel that first showed up on arrival, gave our one year old sons their idli dinner and drank a cup of tea too warm ourselves up in the cold and windy weather. It started drizzling and we quickly then headed for Lonavla before the roads become very unclear and fog starts to rise.
Once we arrived in Lonavla at approximately 8:30pm, we couldn’t find any hotel with accommodation! I got frantic but still kept my cool. We searched for bungalows. But with bungalows you need about 10 people or more. Nevertheless, we didn’t lose hope. We searched every hotel and inn, at around 11:00pm we found a four star hotel called The Metropole with just one room available, and it wasn’t any sort of room! It was a suite that was going for Rs4, 500 per night and to put an extra double bed in the room, it costed an extra Rs500. We weren’t worried about the money, we were just grateful that we found a big enough room for the six of us to stay in. The best thing of the hotel was that the owner of the hotel was using the suite for himself and when he saw that we had babies with us, he was very kind enough to give us his suite as he knew that the boys were now cranky and tired.
Before we moved into the room, the owner had it cleaned up in five minutes. When we moved in the air conditioned room, there was a lounge, a bathroom with hot water for 24 hours, a master bed and room service also was 24 hours, cable television, a flask with drinking water and lighting was excellent. If a couple comes on their honeymoon, it will be very romantic with the dim lighting! We settled our things quickly, ordered dinner in the room, bathed the kids and put them to sleep by midnight.
Before the dinner arrived, the house-keeping boys came in and set up a double bed at about 12:15am. By the time dinner arrived at about 12:30am we were relaxing. We ordered mutton masala, hydrabadi biryani with raita, and rumali roti. For my vegetarian friend, she ordered mixed vegetable handi and jeera rice. All of this came to about Rs700.
We chatted till about 4:30am then went to bed. The bed was very comfortable, with crisp white sheets and soft headboard especially for the boys.
Then the next day we went touring. We left the hotel at about 10:00am. First we wanted to go to Bushy Dam, but when we passed it, there was no water and so the dam was completely dry. I was told that when the rains come heavily, the dam will fill up and many people enjoy swimming in it.
Next we headed to a waterfalls at about 10:30am. While driving up the mountain, you can see large valleys from the top. At about 11:00am we stopped at a parking spot, to take in the fresh air and experience the fog. The fog was so dense that you didn’t want to move anywhere!
We reached the waterfalls at about 12:00 noon. It was amazing, it wasn’t too crowded, although the water was slightly chilly but you can still swim in it. The waterfalls are naturally made, and you don’t have to go all the way in to the centre of the pool. There are not many rocks with sharp edges where you can get hurt. Overall you can really enjoy yourself!
We arrived at the hotel at about 1:00pm and ordered lunch in the room. The boys had fresh tomato soup, french fries and rumali roti. The adults had mutton masala, sofiyani (chicken briyani), murgh tika (made in curd) and rumali roti. This came up to about Rs500.
After lunch, we packed up, checked out and went to buy Lonavla’s famous food - Chikki, Mahableshwar Honey, Jelly Golly and Jelly sweets, and Dry Fruit Gulkand. The jelly items are made from fruits. All are very tasty!
We left Lonavla at 4pm and arrived in Mumbai at 7pm.
Overall, I think this trip is best when you go with family, friends and as a couple - never alone. Always carry a pair of warm clothes, if you are going to go swimming. Make accommodation reservations at least a week before arriving. The bungalows are really worthwhile if you are 10 people or more, they are very cozily made and very affordable!