Manali Itinerary – A weekend in the heart of Nature

We opted for the Swagatam Travels Volvo from Delhi to Manali on Thursday so that it can save us the hassle of driving after a long day at work. We boarded the bus from Majnu ka Tilla and reached PatliKhul, a place 12kms from ShivAdya and almost 30kms from Manali, the next morning. The welcome was warm as we could find the staff awaiting our arrival, the fireplace set up right in the lounge and a hot ginger tea served soon. The initial 15 minutes spent in conversation with the staff, made us feel very much comfortable and at home.

Welcome to Shivadya Resort

With smooth check in and sumptuous breakfast setting the mood right, it was time for a quick tour of the property. We took a walk around the property, spoke to the staff members and also spent time with the owners of ShivAdya. Getting to know about the hard work put in my each and every member of the crew to bring up this beautiful masterpiece was truly an inspiration.

Our favorite spot – The Sundeck

Soak in the serenity!

I wish I could stay here forever…

After lunch we went to the Reorich Art Gallery in Naggar Village, which is also the old house of the famous Russian painter and writer Nicholas Reorich. The gallery displayed the mountains painted in all hues by the artist and must be visited if you are an art lover.

Reorich Art Gallery

View of the valley from Reorich Art Gallery

The day 2 of our itinerary had Sollang Valley/Nallah and Manali city written all over it. Sollang Nallah becomes the favorite spot for tourists during winters as it hosts a variety of adventure sports. We tried our hands at Skiing and an All Terrain Vehicle(ATV) for the first time here. Although we didn’t enjoy ATV much, Skiing ensured we made up for the loss. The entire valley was covered with snow and we could find people enjoying themselves to the core.

How about some Maggi?

We also took a rope way to the top and enjoyed snow fights before returning back. The snow on the top is much cleaner and in abundance, so a ropeway ride is definitely recommended. After spending more than 4 hours in the Sollang Valley we headed towards the old Manali town. We visited the Hiddimba Devi Temple, the Vashisht Temple and took a walk through the lanes of the town.

Vashisht Temple

Hiddimba Devi Temple

As it was evening, it was time for us to head to the famous Mall Road of Manali. After exploring the local shops and some wine shopping we retreated back to ShivAdya for a Himachali dinner.

Shivadya at night

As it was our last day in Manali and we were bound to head back home in the evening, we kept it light. Post our very tasty hogging session of the aaloo parathas we went for a hike through the Dashal Village and the forest. We found a water stream flowing through the forest and spent some time there. The calmness of the nature definitely helped us listen to each other’s sweet nothings making it a perfectly romantic moment. Even before we knew we had spent quite a few hours there, just sitting and relaxing.

After the amazingly refreshing break we started back for ShivAdya, through the village again and visited the Kat Koni houses, the traditional houses of Himachal. At ShivAdya, we had a Pattu draping session for Saumya post lunch. It helped us understand the way the women of Himachal dress smartly to combat the freezing temperatures and look beautiful too. Soon it was evening and our time to say goodbye to ShivAdya and Manali, we couldn’t thank the entire staff of ShivAdya Resort and Spa enough for being the perfect host one can think of.

Kat Koni houses, the traditional houses of Himachal

P S: We were invited by Shivadya Resort and Spa. The views or opinions expressed in the article are solely of the author and are not influenced by the management in any way.
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