Nainital: A Hill Station that Appeals to everyone

A town steeped in tradition and abundant natural beauty, Nainital has remained one of our family-favourite destinations in Uttarakhand. It is classic yet has a touch of modernity, coupled with sparkling glacial lakes and quaint resorts, offering incredible views of the Garhwal Himalayas. It was a couple of years ago when our entire family got to relive the tryst with its treasures.

We booked a top-rated cab from Delhi to Nainital cab which included our travel and local sightseeing tours. Even the drive from Delhi to Nainital was equally scenic, particularly because it was during spring when the mountains are at their best form.

It had been many years since we last visited this lovely locale, and yet, nothing seemed to have changed, except for newer establishments, catering to the new generation of travellers. Our resort was a little outside town, in a small cottage overlooking the mountains.

Day 1

Our tour started with a view of the sunrise at the famous Tiffin Top. Despite being late summer, the mornings remained misty, giving us little exposure to the rising sun, but soon cleared up and we were washed in golden sunshine.

When you are traveling with children, a trip to a local zoo or garden is always on the cards. The GB Pant High Altitude Zoo was an interesting place to start.

The small, green enclave was a sanctuary for endangered Himalayan animals and birds like Himalayas black bear, spotted deer, almost six to seven kinds of pheasants and parakeets, Tibetan wolves, barking deer, and macaques.

After almost two hours of tours and learning about various wildlife of the Himalayas, we headed to the Himalayan Botanical Garden, only be more awed by the exotic varieties of alpine plants and flowers. From there, we went for a drive to the nearest viewing points to catch a glimpse (and some photographs) of the Naina Peak, the highest point of the town.

On our way back to town, we took a tour of the Cave Garden, and also managed to include a cable car ride from Mallital to Snow Peak. 

finally, resorted to the lakeside promenade of Nainital Lake.
We had saved the best for the last, as a treat after a long day of drives and walks.

The huge glacial water body is the highlight of the town.

The summer sun had warmed up the town and the promenade was bustling with tourists and locals alike.
We took a boat ride for about an hour, waiting for the sun to hide behind the horizon. Although we had missed the sunrise, the sunset views on the lake with its golden glow on the mountains in the background, made up for the morning.

Day 2

Next day, we decided to move out of the town and explore other scenic places nearby. Since we had already availed a convenient Nainital taxi package, it let us include short day trips to Almora and Ranikhet.

From one lovely locale to another, the trip to Ranikhet felt just like those you see in travel programs, or so my children thought. The narrow, winding roads passed through tall pine forests and grasslands.

 It was barely a two-hour drive from Nainital and we had ample time to cover both Ranikhet and Almora within the same day. There’s nothing much to see in Ranikhet from a sightseeing point of view, but its charming landscape is what attracts people.

The town has somehow managed to hold onto its good old days, in certain pockets, which is visible in its vintage bungalows, some of which have not turned into retreats.

The drive from Ranikhet to Almora was a little longer and took us almost four hours. The horse-shoe shaped town with its postcard-likee landscape is always a delight to see.

Tiny houses sat on terraced land against the Kumaon Hills and were fringed with deodar trees and alpine meadows. We went straight to explore an apple orchard.

It was fun to see my children in complete awe of the trees bearing red, luscious fruit, which they are only used to seeing in crates at the supermarket. The orchard also had a section for apricot and plum trees, which were still bearing flowers. There were local farmers near the orchards who sold apple jams, jellies, and candies made of apples, which needless to say, was our loot for the day.

We always believe that a vacation is done well when you have managed to cover all the places that you had initially planned and brings smiles to everyone’s face. After three days in the mountains, it was time to bid adieu, but the hills knew, we will soon be back to relive these moments.