Kasol and hippie vibes

Kasol, a small village located on the banks of Parvati river in Himachal Pradesh, India. Being highly popular amongst youngsters across the India, it makes up for the place that offers serenity, good food, and rave parties (if you are present there on 31st December ????).

It is said that ages ago Israelis use to come to India for vacation and Kasol was the place where many of them started residing, making it a mini Israel of India. Even today major tourism includes Israelis and restaurants in the village offers Israeli cuisine.

Let's talk about how to reach their. There are many overnight Volvo buses that travels from Delhi to Bhuntar. And local bus from Bhuntar to Kasol. Both train and flight connectivities are available till Bhuntar. However, I suggest to hire a cab to explore the beautiful routes of Himachal.

As we had our personal car, we started late from Delhi and reached kasol at 12 a.m. in freezing cold. To reach our guesthouse, Sky heaven, we had to walk a kilometer at midnight across the bank of Parvati river, which was an adventure in itself. We had a company of an extremely fluffy and cute dog (tip - don't be scared of dogs in Kasol, they are friendly).

As soon as we reached our guesthouse, the energies at midnight was also high, the rooms were but our hearts were warm and happy. We slept by 3 a.m. in the morning and got up around 7 a.m. to view the sunrise. I could hear the sound of river in our bedroom. That's one perk of staying at a river bank. The mountain views from Kasol valley are breathtaking. So serene and beautiful.

Our guesthouse was 5 kms away from Kasol city center. So we decided to trek the valley to reach there. The valley is lush green and the air is so pure. Even after long travel and less sleep, I felt refresh and energetic. The Kasol city center has a small market where you can buy trendy woolen caps, jackets, scarfs, and accessories. Dream catchers are main attraction in this market. There are many small restaurants which offer multi-cuisine, however my personal favorite was hot stuffed paranthas with yogurt.

At night temperature would drop to -2 in the month of December. In our guesthouse had some beautiful radium paintings in the party room and trance music was played till late giving our stay an authentic hippie vibes.

I loved sitting near a fire place in the cold night, gazing the moon and the stars, from a place surrounded by mountains. At night the sound of river was more clear and more soothing.

It won't be a justice to just stay for a weekend at Kasol. At least spend 5 to 7 days in Kasol, and trek to nearby villages like Malana, Tosh, Kheerganga, and Manikaran. Nature has incredible power to clean you from any stress and ambiguity. And Kasol is one such place where you can stay close to nature and distress yourself.

Last but not least, do not forget to try momos and chocolate waffles at the city centre.

Thanks,

Pooja