Weekend Trip to Malvan- A quaint paradise!

We started out journey on Friday from Swargate bus stand. We boarded a shivshahi bus AC bus. They usually have 2 buses in morning & 2 at night for the Pune-Malvan route. As expected, due to long weekend, there was quite a rush on the roads. To reach Malvan, we need to cross ghats which separates Malvan from rest of Maharashtra. The journey through Phondaghat was a peaceful one. It was full moon night, & the sight of Moon in the sky and pitch darkness around us.

We reached Malvan in the morning. It took us 11 hours from Pune. We were staying in the LIC guest house situated near the Malavn bus stand. But one can easily find places nearby the beach. We rested for a while and then headed out to see the place. Just outside the ST bus stand, there’s a shop named Ganesh Tourism, which provides different travel services. We enquired for a moped bike for 3 days & after some negotiation he agreed for Rs 300 per day for an activa.

Once we reached Malvan beach, we relaxed for a bit and then headed out to visit the majestic Sindhudurg fort- an island fort from the times of Shivaji Maharaj. One need to take a ferry to reach the fort. Having read about this fort in the History & Geography textbooks, we knew about it and hence refrained from hiring a guide. The strong and sturdy fort takes you back in time. Once we explored the fort, we returned to Malvan in the same ferry.

If you are a vegetarian, you will find limited options in Malvan. A place opposite to bus stand serves good breakfast and a very few places in the city that serve veg food. Solkadi- one of the traditional drinks of Konkan is available almost everywhere in Malvan. It is a must try drink for everyone.

Solkadi for the soul!

In evening we left for Chivala beach, around 5 kms from the place we were staying. The best part of this beach is that there’s a laid back vibe to it. We relaxed at the beach, listening to music, reading books and watching the sunset in silence. After the hustle bustle of Pune, this silence lead to a feeling of peace.

Sunset at Chivala beach

Next day, Sunday, we woke up early and went to Malvan beach for water sports. This is one of the major attractions for tourists and being a long weekend, it soon got flooded with people. One can get the best deals early in the morning. After a long discussion with the person incharge of the place, we went for scuba diving and parasailing (Rs 500 per person per water sport). They provide you with all the essentials and there’s an instructor who gave us a good training on how to breathe and different indications. Having hydrophobia, it took me 2-3 attempts to finally stay under water for a longer time. Once you start going deeper into the water, you can see the corals and fishes. After scuba diving, we went for parasailing. The view from the top is simply amazing. Seeing the Sindhudurg fort in the middle of the sea and nothing but sea on all sides!

Scuba diving surrounded by fishes

Monday, our last day at Malvan, we decided to head out early and go to Devbag beach. It’s around 15 kms from the place we were staying, and it took us around 40 mins to reach there. We stopped at a few places to enjoy the beauty of the nature. Devbag was by far the best beach of this trip. With a very few people around, it is the perfect place to spend some ME time. This is the place where Karli River meets the Arabian Sea. The sight is simply breathtaking. One can easily see the meeting point of the river & sea. Hence, it is called ‘Sangam’. Behind the river is a range of mountains.

After the water sports, we rested at our place for a while and then went to Tarkarli beach. It’s located around 7 kms from the place we were staying. We stayed at the beach till sunset- watching the waves, playing on the beach & relaxing.

We headed for Tsunami Island. This Island surfaced after the Tsunami, hence aptly named. Water sports such as banana ride, jet ski, etc is available here. If lucky, one can spot dolphins on the way to the island. During high tide, the island gets submerged under water till knee length, hence, we left from the place and returned to Devbag beach. We had lunch at a small hotel nearby the beach and returned to Malvan.

On our way back, we stopped at a temple, which is beautiful. Sat there under a massive tree for a while. Chatted with the locals around, who recommended some shops, where we could buy Cashews, Kokam sherbet & other special food items available in Konkan.

Since, it was our last evening in Malvan, we decided to visit the Rock garden. A perfect spot for watching the sunset and bidding goodbye to the place! After dinner, we returned the bike we had rented.

This ended our beautiful stay in Malvan. Next morning we boarded the Shivshahi bus to Pune and reached Pune in evening!

#memorylane