Matheran Hill Station: Most Popular Hill Station & Best Tourist Destination For Holidays in Maharashtra, India

Matheran Hill Station

About:

Matheran is an idyllic hill station in Maharashtra that is popular for its scenic beauty and laid back pace. If you are looking forward to some peaceful moments travel to Matheran Maharashtra. Time seems stand still in this part of Maharashtra. Hill Resorts in India provides an overview of the beautiful hill station.Amid the green Jambol forest, situated at 803 meters (2,636 ft) above sea level, Matheran is the most splendid hill-station in Maharashtra. It covers an area of 8 square kilometers in Sahyadris. Its pastoral beauty is especially pristine thanks to a blanket motor transport ban.This lovely spot was discovered in 1850 by Hugh Poyntz Malet, the collector of Thane district. He was camping around the village of Chowk, when on hill top he stopped for a drink of water from a spring - which still bears his name.

Matheran is located in the state of Maharashtra and is about 103 kilometres from Mumbai. Matheran's lush green landscape and verdant hills attract a number of tourists to the quaint hill station every year.

Matheran is an undulating hilltop cloaked in shady trees, that sprawls languidly at an altitude of 800 m. The journey involves an adventurous two hour ascent in a toy train.With food and drink vendors and monkeys jumping on and off, as the valley glides by sedately! Or a tough 11 km. Hike through thick and shady forests.Matheran's cliffs with incredibly steep drops to the plains below create stunning viewing points. These panoramic vistas, by day and night, leave you feeling light-headed. The Hart Point offers a view of the lights of Mumbai at night!.

Its close proximity to the nearby cities of Mumbai (100 km) and Pune (120 km) makes it a favorite holiday destination among the tourists from all parts of the world. Literally meaning “Mother Forest” or “Forest on Top”, what makes this quaint place unique is that excluding emergency vehicles, all other vehicles are banned here. Within the vicinity of the town, ponies and man-pulled rickshaws are the only modes of transport. Even the cops ride on ponies inside the town. Many people also prefer to travel this distance on foot, enjoying the hill station’s verdure and beauty.

Thus, with its red laterite roads, lush vegetation and country atmosphere, this little hilltop of Matheran emanates a rustic appeal, beguiling everyone who visits the place. Along with its arresting landscape and countryside serenity, Matheran also harbors a lot of colonial architecture and relics that are now preserved as heritage structures. These architectural splendors, along with the pastoral feel of the place, whispers of a bygone era and makes one feel heady and nostalgic to the core.

Location info:

Address:70 kilometres from Thane

District:

Nearest City: Mumbai

Best time to visit: October and May

Climate/Weather:

Temperatures vary from 16°C in winter to 32°C in summer, with an annual rainfall of 524 cms.

History:

Matheran grew more accessible and popular under the patronage of Lord Elphinstone, the Governor of Bombay. He visited Matheran in 1855 and was mesmerized. He chose a beautiful site for a bungalow and named the mansion Elphinstone Lodge. He introduced roadways and, in 1907, opened a mountain railway for the first time. A quaint little train chugs slowly for miles along this track. The toy train journey takes you through spectacular grassy hills sides, plains, sheer cliffs, plateau and thick forest cover.

Interesting things to do:

There are a few wonderful eating joints that serve sumptuous food. Chikki is what dominates the food items in Matheran. It is made of gram flour, jaggery and cashew nut.

Interesting things to Visit:

Sharlott Lake :The main water source of Matheran 1 km from main market.

Panorama Point :This is 'sun-rise' point. The longest point in Matheran. Almost 6 kms from market. One can see 'Neral' on east and 'Panvel' on the west of the point. The other points in Matheran like Sunset Point , Monkey Point , Maldunga Point and Heart Point etc. are also to the west. If weather is good, you can see Khandala and Bhimashankar ranges as well. Truly, 'the king of all points' is Matheran.

Sun-set/Porcupine Point :Famous for Sunset. A deep forest nearby can be easily seen. 'Prabalgad' can also be seen from this point. Around 4 kms. from main market.

Echo point
offers a panoramic view and allows you to enjoy the echo's

King George point
A must visit point in monsoon as it offers a beautiful view of the waterfall formed by the water overflowing from Charlott Lake. One can even reach he mouth of the waterfall with care, strong wind prevents the water from falling down and throws it back.

Charlott Lake
It's the only water source atop Matheran nad it provides water to entire Matheran.

Louisa Point
It offers a beautiful face on view of the waterfall seen from the King George point.

Panorama point
Although quiet far from Bazapeth it gives you a panoramic view(that's why it's named as Panorama point) of the Sahyadri ranges.

The Mall Road
The Mall of Matheran is the favorite destination for tourists extending from one end of the road to the other. The place has many hotels, restaurants and bazaars. The main market (Kapadia Market) in this area offers several items for purchase. One can hire ponies for sightseeing from this point.

Kapadia Market
This is the main market in Matheran. It was built in April 1917 by Mr. P.N.Kapadia in memory of his wife. The market has many interesting shops and offers a variety of attractive items like cane and leather articles, hats, chappals, riding boots and food stuff such as popular sweet chikki made locally.

Mobile range info:

How to reach?

Nearest Railway Station:You can take train to Neral from Mumbai and then take the toy train to reach Matheran.

Nearest Airport:Mumbai International Airport.

Road Transport:70 kilometres from Thane

Nearest Visiting places:

The other famous points in Matheran are Loisa Point , Echo Point , Chowk (One tree Point) , Garbett Point , Eleward Point , Pemastar Park , Navaloji Lord Garden and Cathedral Rock.
Norama Point
Hart Point
Monkey Point
Porcupine Point
Coronation Point
Hanuman temple, at 'Hashya Cha Patti'
Prabal Fort
Echo Point
Tree Point
Shivaji's Ladder
Chowk Point
Rambagh

Nearest Petrol Pump:

Hotels/Lodge/Accommodation:

There are a few hotels and lodges in Matheran that provide an ideal base to tour Matheran. MTDC Holiday Resort, Royal Hotel, Rugby Hotel are some hotels that you can opt for when travelling to Matheran.

Things to carry:

Carrying water is essential.Carry camera too so that u can take photos of beautiful place.

Tips & Suggestions:

Help Line/Phone Number:

Police Station:100

Nearest Hospital:Hospitals at the nearest city,at the Hill station.

Society/Community Phone Number

Photo Gallery

Video Gallery

Dynamic View

Nearest Attraction

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The Ballaleshwar Temple, Pali

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