5 places in Maharashtra you Must Visit At Least once
Maharashtra is a state best described as a land of cave temples, hilltop forts, and Mountains. Best time to explore them are the monsoons and post monsoons, definitely not in summers.
These 5 places in Maharashtra are a must visit,
5. Lavasa
The first planned hill station in India and probably the most controversial for the deforestation reasons. Even the road from Tehghar dam till Lavasa is spectacular with forest cover and green valleys. Best time to visit is during monsoons and post monsoons. Best time of the day is after the sun goes down with the entire city lighted up, and the musical fountains adding more flavour to the evening.
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| Lavasa City during night |
4. Lonavla-Khandala
Unlike Mahabaleshwar, Lonavla is a monsoon hill-station. Best time to visit is during monsoon and post monsoons (July-Dec) when the entire hill range turns into lush green grasslands and numerous waterfalls across the hills, rest of the year it is pretty much dried and hot without any greenery and waterfalls.
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| Water stream flowing through during monsoons, Lonavla |
The spectacular views at the Khandala Ghat makes it one of the best road trips in India passing through numerous tunnels.
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| Khandala Ghat |
About 12km from the Lonavala town is a beautiful place for a small trek through the Lohagad Fort, another 12km takes you to the tranquil lake of Pawana.
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| Scorpion's tail, Lohagad Fort |
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| Pawana Lake |
3. Mahabaleshwar-Panchgani
Mahabaleshwar is one of the wettest regions of Maharashtra. During monsoons it is not advised to visit due to the heavy rains. Many of the rivers including the Krishna river source from this place. Don't forget to stopover at the Mapro Garden for Wood Fired Pizzas and fresh fruit milkshakes. Horse riding at the table land in Panchgani is one of the most popular things to do while you are in Mahabaleshwar-Panchgani. For some breathtaking views of the valley do visit the Elephant/Kate's Point, Arthur seat point and the Lodwick point.
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| View from Kate's point, Mahabaleshwar |
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| Table Land, Panchgani |
2. Mumbai
The city that never sleeps - Mumbai is the heart and soul of Maharashtra. South Mumbai being the most happening place in Mumbai with popular tourist destinations like the Gateway of India, Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus and Marine drive. Its also famous for the Art Galleries/Museums, street shopping, and street foods.
While your in Mumbai one should drive through the Bandra-Worli Sea Link, visit Siddhivinayak Temple, travel through the local trains from Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, Shop at Colaba Causeway, stay at the heritage Taj Hotel, peep into one of the many art galleries and museums in and around Kala Ghoda, enjoy the chowpatty beach street food, and end your day sitting at the boulevard of Marine Drive with an amazing view of the Queens Necklace.
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| Gateway of India, Mumbai |
1. Ajanta-Ellora, Aurangabad
The cave temples of Ajanta and Ellora are a must see once in a lifetime. Among the two, Ajanta is by far the older dating back to 200 B.C, carved out of the mountain and lavishly painted in the inside. Ajanta and Ellora collectively have 64 cave temples. Kailasa temple of Ellora is one of the largest rock-cut monolithic temple in the world.
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| Paintings inside the Ajanta Caves |
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| Ajanta Caves |
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| Kailasa Temple, Ellora |
Devgiri/Daulatabad fort and Grishneshwar are also popular places to see in Aurangabad District.
Other prominent Cave temples in Maharashtra are Elephanta caves, Karla caves , Bhaja caves, Kanheri caves, Bedse caves, and Lenyadri.
Three of these Ajanta, Ellora and Elephanta are UNESCO World Heritage sites.
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