Maharashtra Eco Glamping: Perfect getaway from urban chaos | Travel
The road to Heaven leads through Hell. Will you make the decision whether it’s worth walking?
On that long, rutted road from Nashik airport to Maharashtra’s first riverside glamping (glamour camping) site, I remembered what an author with strange initials (IJ.A.L) had said about the road to heaven leading through hell. Well, that warm Spring afternoon, I surely wasn’t driving through hell. I, however, knew some kinda heaven awaited. Yellow flowers broke the monotony of the green wheat fields, boughs were bent with wild plum, ripe grapes peeping from the green vines and disobedient sheep were choking the narrow road. As the car swerved towards a dirt track, the barn swallows flitted merrily, nylon flags fluttered and conical tops of the white tents magically rose out of the blue sky. And I entered Maharashtra Eco Glamping site through the large gate that wore rattan baskets as epaulettes. Also read | 5 unexplored glamping destinations you can visit in India by train
Nestled next to the backwaters of Gangapur Dam, the 60-tent Maharastra Eco Glamping is the first-of-its-kind riverside glamping organised by Maharashtra Tourism. White tents of three categories (Deluxe, Royal, Presidential) and four modern Pods have been pitched in a large tract of farmland far away from urban chaos. In the reception area, framed Worli art by Anil Vangad, a UNESCO World Craft Council (WCC) Award winner, stands on wooden easels, so do enchanting wildlife photographs by Hiren Khatri, a Nashik-based naturalist, researcher and photographer. Not too far away is the glistening backwaters where egrets, gulls, ducks and other birds roost.
As the sun began dipping behind the thorny kikar (babul) trees, artist Anil Vangad pulled out tiny bamboo sticks and rectangular canvas for a session in Worli Art under a thatched roof. A fourth-generation Worli artist, Vangad sedulously taught how to use geometric shapes to narrate a story on canvas. Traditionally, cowdung/red soil was used to create the background on which drawings were rendered with rice paste (water, rice flour and gum). But for novices, Vangad had replaced rice paste with acrylic paint. I dipped the bamboo stick in white acrylic to paint a palm tree, two grazing deer, a woman grinding wheat in an ancient stone mill. Minutes into the Worli workshop, I realised my deer looked like gnarled dog, the palm tree wilted with uneven strokes and the woman riding wheat a grotesque alien. Certainly, Worli art is not my forte and I invoked all the gods that live in Nashik to help me draw symmetrical triangles on cowdung-covered canvas. Also read | Eco Retreat: To boost tourism, Odisha organises 2nd edition of glamping festival
The Gods weren’t listening. Thankfully, Eco Glamping arranges sight-seeing tours and I could step into Trimbakeshwar Temple, one of the 12 jyothirlingas in India, as well as Panchwati, from where, according to Ramayana legend, Sita was abducted by Ravan. In the evening, I joined the massive crowd for Godavari river Aarti where large oil lamps lit the dark sky. Back at Eco Glamping, I gazed at Jupiter, its moons and other stars through a large telescope set near the Royal tents.
There is so much to do at Maharashtra Eco Glamping. One can feast on lavish food spread, attend cultural evenings, do early morning walks by the backwaters, go parasailing and paramotoring, photography workshop by Hiren Khatri and even try hands at archery and air rifle shooting. Add to it the joy that you can happily shun the alarm clock – the birds wake you up with their honeyed chirps.
At night, as I walked past the tall tepee and entered the well-appointed tent wearing floral motifs on its tarp, I once again remembered the author with strange initials and his idea of reaching heaven through hell. Well, I am unfamiliar with hell but those Spring days in Maharashtra Eco Glamping did seem like an approximation of heaven. Also read | Photos: Best camping sites in India to reconnect with nature
Fact file:
Where: Gangapur Dam, Girnare Village (Nashik, Maharashtra).
Maharashtra Eco Glamping is on until March 31, 2025.
Website: maharashtraecoglamping.com
Book at: mahabooking.com or call +91 8623978834, 862497884
Getting there: Nearest airport is Nashik, nearest railway is Nashik Road (about an hour’s drive). Ola is available from airport to the Eco Glamping site. Airport/railway station pick/drop can be booked with Eco Glamping (Cost: ₹2,000 each way).
Tariff (per night, excluding GST): Deluxe tents ( ₹4,000), Pods with river view ( ₹6,000). Royal Tents ( ₹8,000), Presidential Tents (can sleep 4, ₹10,000). Tariff includes all meals (a la carte orders are chargeable).
Workshops: Photography, Worli Art, Biodynamic Farming, Indigenous Cooking, Naturopathy. Prior notice required, charges apply.
Activities: Paramotoring ( ₹2,500 per person), Parasailing ( ₹1,500; ₹2,500 for two), ATV ( ₹500 per person), Air Rifle Shooting ( ₹250 for two), Star gazing ( ₹6,000 for 6 individuals), Kayaking ( ₹800 per person). No pre-booking required.
What to see/do in Nashik: Trimbakeshwar Temple (1 of the 12 jyothirlingas in India, buy VIP entry ticket on the Temple’s website)), Wine Tasting in Sula Vineyard, Kumaramangalam Artillery Museum (Asia’a only museum dedicated to artillery), Coin Museum, Aarti at Ram Kund, Panchwati, Ram Temples, Kapileshwar Temple. All sight-seeing tours are chargeable.
Tips: Mornings & evenings get cold, carry a light jacket/sweater. Wi-fi is not available at the Glamping site.
