Manali is great place to be if you want to spend time in good scenic beauty and calm atmosphere. It is a small town, while kullu is bigger and dirty. You travel some more time from kullu to reach manali. You will be in devine atmosphere.
The best part is, you go more than 200 KM along side the beas river. It is something like one of the best remembered dreams. Some new tunnels are being built to cut short the time of travel. It is difficult terrain otherwise.
Traveling from delhi, will take around 12-16 hours. It is overnight journey by HPTDC or private buses. Or take train to chandigarh and taxi afterwards, or go by your own vehicle.
I had been there this year from 15th July 2003 to 24th July 2003. We stayed in Hotel Beas View on rohtang-naggar highway. It was good hotel with fantastic view of snow capped hills and river beas below.
I loved the place at first sight. Everything is available at reasonable price except Taxis. Taxi service is very costly there. Good thing is that, Travel operator offer you to share the taxi with other couple. So the cost comes down.
One funny thing about manali. There are many small restaurants in manali with the name ’’Sher-e-Punjab’’. You will find these lines written every sher-e-panjab, ’’we have no branch’’, ’’beware of duplicates’’. Now god knows which one is original.
If you have time to enjoy there, Dont forget to do biking on rohtang highway. It is a great experience.
I will go again to this place this year in nov-dec time. I have plenty of plans to do what I could not do this time.
Everything great!!!. There are no fans in hotel rooms in manali ;-)