10 Best Things To Do In Lonavala Hill Station For The First Time

10 Best Things To Do In Lonavala Hill Station For The First Time

ABOUT LONAVALA

Lonavala hill station and a town located in the Pune district of state Maharashtra, India. It is one of the popular and most visited holiday destination near to Mumbai Pune. A day visit to Lonavala on weekend is known as most famous activity for enthusiastic. In monsoon it gives tremendous pleasure to the visitors. Drive through curvy road, hiking to the mountains, chilling up at resorts, and greenery spread across the surface is the identity of Lonavala hill station. The forts here, surrounded to the hills are the proof of the ‘prestige of Maratha Empire’. The one who wants to witness the mystical mountain, handsomeness of Lake, attractive caves, and adventurous activity, it is perfect destination. It is also known for its production of hard candy chikki.

HOW TO REACH LONAVALA HILL STATION

Being one of the famous tourist attraction, there are lots of easy and budget friendly sources to reach.

By Air

There is no airport at Lonavala. Nearest airport is Mumbai International airport on 100 km from Lonavala and Pune airport on 65 km from Lonavala. From here one can option for self-drive vehicle to reach Lonavala or regular buses and share cabs are also available.

By Road

The best way to reach Lonavala is by road. Lonavala is located on Mumbai-Pune express highway. This express way is well connected to all cities from Maharashtra and also major cities like Bangalore, and Chennai. State buses, private buses, and taxis are regularly available to reach Lonavala. Driving towards Lonavala from express highway, one can see ample amount of beautiful waterfalls on the way.

By Rail

Lonavala has its own railway station. There are plenty of express train’s runs to and from Mumbai and Pune. Few of the train’s running from Bangalore, Chennai also halt’s at Lonavala railway station. Frequency of train is not an issue here.

For internal transportation there are regular rickshaw’s available.

This is one of such place where I love to visit again and again. From the list of my favorite place, Lonavala hill station is the one that stands on top. On my visit to this place, there are some unique places to see around it, where one would love to get engaged with. 

TOP 10 THINGS TO DO IN LONAVALA HILL STATION

NIGHT TREK TO RAJMACHI

Rajmachi night trek is one of the well-known activity for adventure lovers. Rajmachi is the name of one of the historical fort from Udhewadi village in Lonavala and Khandala. Fortification of Rajmachi consist of Shrivardhan and Manoranjan fort. This has become one of the most popular trekking destination. Lonavala to Rajmachi distance is about 18 km one way. Trek route involves dense forest, rocky terrain, waterfalls and fireflies’ activity in night. One can also hire shared jeep or own vehicle up to Rajmachi base village. Driving route is very tough from Lonavala to Udhewadi base village of Rajmachi. Post monsoon is the best time to enjoy the surrounding on route.

RAJMACHI FORT

MONSOON TREK TO VISAPUR FORT

Visapur is fort located on the distance of 15 km from Lonavala. Nearest railway station to reach here is Malavli in Lonavala and the distance from fort is hardly 3 km. One can catch share auto from Lonavala or local train to reach Malavli station. Visapur fort was not known much, recently photos from this place, where water is flowing through stairs and one need to trek through it, has gone viral on social media and became famous tourist spot for monsoon. The fun part of this place is climbing the fort through waterfall. The beautiful nature and drizzle makes perfect combination to motivate you to trek here. At top one can witness reverse waterfalls with foggy climate. Ideal season here is monsoon when climate is pleasant.

VISAPUR TREK ROUTE

CAMPING AT PAWNA LAKE

Pawna Lake campsite is located on the distance of 20 km from Lonavala. From Lonavala station one can hire private Jeep to reach Pawna Lake. Ideal weekend gateway for people from Mumbai, Pune. Pawna Lake, is a reservoir turned artificial lake in Lonavala, Maharashtra. It is increasingly getting popular as picnic spot and camping site for visitors. This is awesome place to relax and rejuvenate your mind. Couples can enjoy solitude sitting near the serine lake. Pedal boating, speed boating, Horse riding, camping with bonfire and barbecues are some of this activities involved in Pawna lake camping. There are lots of private tour operators that arrange the camping at Pawna Lake. The costing goes up to 1200 per person including stay, food and barbecue.

PAWNA LAKE WITH VIEW OF TUNG FORT

BHAJA CAVES

Bhaja Caves located 6 to 7 km from Lonavala station and 2 to 3 km from Malavli station. One can take direct rickshaw to reach Bhaja Caves from Lonavala or Malavli. On the way one can come across spectacular waterfall near the cave where visitors can refresh themselves. It is a group of 22 rock cut caves dating back to the 2^nd century BC and dedicated to Budhas. This is a unique cluster of 14 stupas. The caves are 400 feet above the village Bhaja. The ancient caves are protected as Monument of National importance by the archaeological Survey of India. It can be visited throughout the year.  

TIGER HILLS

Tiger Hills also known as Tiger’s point, and also known as Tiger’s Leap. It is a cliff top with sheer drop of over 650 m, giving an extensive view. Tiger’s Leap is situated on the distance of 12 km from Lonavala. One can take private Jeep or rickshaw to reach here or buses are available up to INS Shivaji, 1.5 km before Tiger’s Leap, and then further walk for 15 minutes. Lonavala to Tiger’s Leap route is also known for its motor-able road for bikers. The curvy road, scenic beauty and dense fogs makes this place more charming in monsoon. The legend Shivaji being chased by Tiger once, the Maratha Empire king Shivaji jumped into a ditch on the hill and the Tiger leaped off it into the valley, hence known as Tiger’s Leap. Ideal season to visit here is monsoon that offers the view of waterfalls. 

TIGER HILLS

   

MONSOON VISIT TO BHUSHI DAM

It is a Dam on Indrayani River in Lonavala, Maharashtra. The distance from Lonavala to Bhushi Dam is 3 km, a perfect destination for one day picnic. The distance from Lonavala to Bhushi Dam is 3 km. Regular share autos are available to reach. In monsoon Dam overflows through the stairs giving the view of Milky waterfall. There has been cases of accident here in heavy monsoon. One has to be careful in heavy  monsoon when Dam overflows. Ideal time to visit here is monsoon.

ULHAS VALLEY

Ulhas valley is also known as Canyon valley. It is located on the distance of 5 km from Lonavala. In monsoon, valley is surrounded by number of waterfalls on the green hills. The trek to Ulhas valley is great satisfaction of ascend and descend trail. One can view the milky water streams flowing from the mountain. Road starts with walking for 3 km from Lonavala up to canyon valley and then descend towards the valley. This further leads to Kune waterfall.

ULHAS VALLEY

DELLA ADVENTURE

Della Adventure Park is India’s largest adventure park situated in Lonavala hill station. The distance from Lonavala to Della Adventure is 5.4 km. One can easily get private rickshaw to reach here. This is perfect destination for adventure lover. Della Adventure offers close to 50 adventurous activity for travelers. Post monsoon is the ideal season to reach here. One can do pre booking of passes online itself and it ranges from 3000 INR to 6000 INR per person depending on number of activity.

THRILLING WATER PARK RIDES

Wet N Joy Water Park and Imagica Water Park are two major destination available near to Lonavala, the adventurous activity that gives you the experience of Thrill over Breath taking water slides. It is an ideal place to get relief from stressful work and rejuvenate with splash and Joy. The Park offers the ride of more than 25 water slides. The park timing for both is 10 am to 6 pm. One can book the passes online or through book my show. The cost per head is around 1500 INR to 1700 INR. To reach here, private cabs are easily available. Wet N Joy is 13 km from Lonavala whereas Imagica is 26 km from Lonavala. Imagica is also known for its Snow Park and Theme park activity.

IMAGICA PARK

DAY TREK TO DUKE'S NOSE

Duke’s Nose, it is cliff between Lonavala and Khandala. This cliff is pointed like a snake head portion (hood) and hence it is also known as Nagphani. Duke’s nose is popular for Rappelling, Trekking, Camping, and Rock Climbing. It is 6 km from Lonavala station and its base village is Kurvande. Private cabs are available to reach here.

DUKE'S NOSE

Apart from above mentioned places, Lonavala is also a home for many historical forts. Some of them are Korigad, Tikona, Lohagad, Tung and Ghangad.
One should never  miss any opportunity to give visit to these forts. All of these forts has its unique structure and history to tell.

IDEAL TIME TO VISIT LONAVALA HILL STATION

Lonavala has lots of things to offer around the year. The best time to visit Lonavala is October to February, when climate is pleasant. In this period, sometimes the temperature falls below 10 degree. This is an ideal time for camping. The monsoon at Lonavala from July to September is marked as heavy monsoon here. One needs to be prepared to get wet throughout the day. All the Dams and waterfalls are full, up to the margin. One can get engaged in greenery and mist. However, summer in Lonavala is very hot and humid. For trekking and other activity at Lonavala summer is not recommended. One who wants to get chill in the hotels or resorts can go in summer.

PLACES TO STAY AT LONAVALA HILL STATION 

Lonavala is famous for its Pawna Lake camping and Rajmachi camping, so definitely staying in the tent is another next level adventure for visitors. Della Adventure Park offers great stay at their own hotels and camping on hill side road inside the Park. There are multiple handpicked collection of hotels available at Lonavala. One can also do online booking through various major booking site. Hotel price ranges from deluxe to economic room. One can get relax in the resorts having swimming pool and other indoor activities. There are so many option of resorts available here. Some of those are The Duke’s retreat, Kumar resort, and Sterling resort.

WHAT TO EAT IN LONAVALA

Lonavala is known for hard candy chikki production. One should not forget to buy Lonavala’s chikki. One should definitely try hot masala tea with the combination of Golden Wada Pav. In monsoon, climate adds the flavor to this combination. There are many road side stalls selling sweet corn. Many hotels from Lonavala serves yummy delicious food as per the region starting from South Indian to North Indian. Many varieties are available in different hotels starting from economic range to higher one.     

THINGS TO KNOW BEFORE VISITING LONAVALA HILL STATION

• Call up your hotel few days prior to your holidays for booking confirmation.
• Being a hill station, temperature is on lower side, so better to carry woolen cloths.
• If you are visiting Lonavala to chill up the spine and for peace then spend at least three days.
• Traveling with own vehicle is always preferred option in Lonavala, which is budget friendly and time consuming.
• Do not litter the area around.