20 June,2012 11:28 AM IST | | Kartiki Nitin Lawate
While local hill stations get saturated during the monsoons, we suggest you head to neighbouring Gujarat instead for a memorable experience.u00a0The Tourism Corporation of Gujarat Ltd (TCGL) has organised a monsoon festival at Saputara, one of the major hill resorts in the state. Saputara attracts Gujarati tourists as well as crowds from other states. Saputra is one of the main destinations being promoted by the Gujarat Tourism campaigns and they are set to organise a Saputara Monsoon Festival soon. The real beauty of Saputara can be experienced during the monsoon season when the hill station gets a beautiful wet look under the thick blanket of clouds.u00a0
Boat riding is one of the activities at Saputara
The season offers a unique experience of an adventurous atmosphere with clouds and mist-laden hills. The waterfalls cascade down the hills, and the unusual vistas of nature provide an unforgettable experience to the visitor. The hill station also has a great array of tourist attractions, which includes a manmade lake, one of the biggest tourist attractions of the hill station.
The view of the hill station
Kamlesh Patel, chairman of TCGL said, "Our government is spending a lot on attracting tourists. We will also be spending '12 crore to develop the Buddhist circuits. More than '20 crore will be spend on development of the hill station."
The temple at Saputara
Other things encouraged by the TCGL are Navratri Festival, Rann Utsav Festival and International Kite Festival. Saputara is situated at a height of 873 meters amidst the biodiversity rich Sahyadri Hills in Dang district. With minimal intrusion of urbanisation, cool weather throughout the year and an emerald green environment all around the year, it is an idyllic destination dotted with lakes, streams, woodlands and hills. It has been developed as a planned hill resort with hotels, nature parks, swimming pools, boat club, theatres and a museum.
The temple compound at Saputara
Sanjay Kaul, Managing Director of TCGL said, "While Gujarat is known for its industrial growth, the state is also a very rewarding destination for tourists. An avid traveller can enjoy diverse attractions in the state which has ancient archaeological sites, heritage hotels and religious places as well as 22 wildlife sanctuaries and four national parks."
How to reach from Pune:
>> You can travel till Nashik station and from there will be provided buses by TCGL to reach Saputara and enjoy the festival or one can go on their own conveyance.
>>u00a0u00a0To get there the nearest airports are Surat and Mumbai while it is hardly 125 km from Valasad railway Station.
>>u00a0u00a0Other places that can be visited in Gujarat are Mandvi, Somnath Temple, Davarka, Palitana, Ambaji Mata Temple.
