A Mountain Holiday
has become a happy yearly ritual for most people living in the plains. Come April, the appraisals get over, exams are finished, and schools/colleges declare their holidays. This is kicks off the holiday season, and a majority of us make our plans for heading to the cool, breezy mountains.
A mountain holiday obviously, is the perfect way to beat the brutal heat and spend some quality time with our loved ones.
Now more often than not, a lot of us will head to a hotel / resort in the hills, spend some time sightseeing, hang out at the local social spots and then return home.
However, if you’re less on the lines of “I came, I saw & I went” and more on the lines of “I came, I saw, I did & I conquered”, we have a few ideas that you just might find worth exploring.
1. Mountain Biking:
Strap your helmet, grab the handlebar & off you go! Mountain Biking is about the most amount of fun you can have on two wheels.
Best part? It’s for everyone in the family.
Most premium resorts that are located within or in close vicinity of forests own MTBs for their guests. These MTBs are geared, so the riders can easily go up inclines. The best fun however are the declines, where you just have to make sure you use the breaks well, and then enjoy a blast of crisp, chilled mountain air as you zip past trees.
MTBs are really popular as you can cover much longer distances than you could have on foot, and as we all know, the further away you get into the wilderness, the more beautiful it gets.
Here is a clip of MTB enthusiasts in action at Bir-Billing, which is in Mandi district & close to Rakkh Resort, Dharamshala. If watching his does not get you in the mood for a MTB mountain holiday, we’re not sure anything else will.
Both Rakkh Resort, Dharamshala & ShivAdya Resort, Manali have bikes and are close to excellent trails that’re just waiting to be explored.
2. Paragliding:
However, if you want to get away so bad, that not even a simple mountain holiday will do, we suggest you simply take off!
Paragliding at Bir-Billing & Solang Valley, we assure you, is an out-of-the-world experience.
You drive up with certified paragliding experts to a launch area, strap yourself into a harness with the instructor, and there begins a ride that you won’t forget in a fair while.
One really amazing thing about paragliding is that in a lot of cases you climb higher after taking off without the aid of any engines or mechanical push! The secret of this lift lies in the warm air that rises up the valley as the day gets warmer, and helps the paragliders gain altitude.
After circling the skies where you get unparalleled views of himalayan ranges valleys and villages, the instructors slowly circle the glider to the landing pad, where you can then just sit back and enjoy a leisurely lunch.
Here is a video of some paragliding action at Bir, which will give you a fair idea of what you can expect to see once up in the air.
The best mountain holiday options for paragliding are available in close vicinity to Rakkh Resort, Dharamshala & ShivAdya Resort, Manali.
3. White Water Rafting:
Done with both land and air even? Fear not. You can always choose to battle a few rapids on the river Beas instead.
Rishikesh is probably one of the most famous destinations for those wanting to indulge in the sport, however Manali, we believe is truly under-rated given its beautiful setting and breathtaking rapids.
What’s also great about rafting in Manali is that the water tends to be ice-cold from the fresh melt in summers. Can you think of a better antidote for the heat that you will be escaping?
Here is a clip to get your adrenaline rushing till the point you get to your raft in Manali!
White Water Rafting is definitely not a mountain holiday idea for the faint hearted, but then most that is worth experiencing also isn’t. By-the-by, did we tell you ShivAdya Resort, Manali is run by an adventure junkie?
4. Trekking:
For those who’d rather stop and smell the flowers on their adventure instead of rushing through it, Trekking is the perfect way to go. The Himalayan mountains are full of gorgeous trails that will awe you every step of the way.
Not much to be said here, except that if you haven’t been out and about in the mountains till now, it’s nothing short of great disservice to yourself.
A short video of the trek to Beas Kund near Manali, which has views that’ll make you pack your bags right now!
For a mountain holiday with lots of treks you can choose between Himachal Pradesh, where you can head to Rakkh Resort, Dharamshala or ShivAdya Resort, Manali or Uttarakhand, where exists the beautifulAbbotsford, Nainital