This Is How I Planned My First Himachal Trip Post COVID Unlocking, Safely

So after being locked in homes for more than 6 months, my only wish was one chance of moving to the hills. After the states started welcoming tourists once again, it was the time to fulfill that wish. But the nature of travel has changed completely due to this pandemic fear, in turn changing the traveler inside us. Unlike previous times, now it’s not just your bags and leave.

Here in this article, I will share my experience of the first trip post-COVID unlocking and the points you should consider too.

Why I chose Mashobra(Kasauli)?

The village Mashobra is around 2 km before Kasauli. Its a quaint and secluded place to stay and enjoy nature.

Less crowded

After Himachal started welcoming tourists, all the known and hyped places will be already flooded with tourists. I was looking for a less famous tourist destination but equally worth visiting. And believe me, you won’t regret choosing Kasauli.

Self Drive destination from Delhi

Due to the COVID situation, it’s anyways not safe to visit crowded places and to use public transport. And hence Kasauli turns out to be a perfect place at a distance of around 300 km from Delhi, which can be covered by self-drive, in around 6 to 7 hours.

Why I preferred homestay over the hotel & hostel?

1.Due to Covid, nature of travel has changed a lot. Unlike previous times, now before stepping out we have to more cautious. Some of the points I considered to be safer, is to come in less contact of people and avoid outside food.

2. And thus the best choice was to choose any homestay with a good valley view and cook on its own facility. In most of the places, everything was perfect, however, the cooking facility was not available. You can check out the balcony view video here.

So finally after exploring a lot, I came across this house, 2km before Kasauli with an amazing valley view, good internet, and a cooking facility(Will be soon sharing a detailed property review ).

Not to forget travel essentials amidst COVID

1. First and foremost, sanitizers and use and throw gloves to avoid touching any surface in case you need to step out of your car during the journey. Ladies, this ones for you especially, better keep a pee safe urinating device(or just avoid drinking water on the way, which I did, to avoid using public washrooms)

2. Avoid stopping by Dhabas and hotels for food, keep home-cooked alternatives. Also for the washroom, in case you need to go, prefer stopping by Gas stations, as they are most of the time empty, compared to hotels or Dhabas which are always crowded.

3. Keep a spray bottle of Sanitizer, and sanitize all the room doors, bed, window handles, and everything, before settling.

How the experience was different from previous travel experiences

Unlike previous times, I was more cautious and concerned about my entire trip. I sanitized almost every part of the home, where I stayed.

But I think, it’s now a part of our lives to deal with the COVID situation, best we can do is to be more cautious. Let’s be more aware rather than fearing and keep following the guidelines. Once you return from your travel, take a few days for self-quarantine, before meeting anyone in the friends and family.

**Don’t believe what they say, go and see it**

Soon I will be sharing detailed review of property where I stayed.

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