Summer vacation 2016: 5 off-beat places perfect to escape the summer this May

Dying to escape Indian summer? We have just the suggestions for you!

Edited By: Abhishek Mande

Updated: May 10, 2016, 3:13 PM IST

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May is upon us all and the mercury in our cities seems to be soaring with every passing day. What better time than now to head out to the hills, right? Except where do you go when e-v-e-r-y-o-n-e is heading the same way? Fear not! We bring you this list of off-beat travel destinations that aren’t Shimla, Ooty, Kullu Manali and the likes. Here are five off-beat places perfect to escape the summer this May.

1. Naukuchiatal

Photograph courtesy: Sandeepa Chetan/Creative Commons

Nainital is bound to be crowded with everyone descending upon this immensely popular hill station. But just an hour’s drive from Nainital is Uttarakhand’s best-kept secrets: Naukuchiatal. The star attraction of Naukuchiatal is its eponymous lake that is 175 feet at its deepest and exactly the kind of picnic spot you’d want to head to on a pleasant summer’s day. Naukuchiatal also offers a wide range of adventure sports activities such as paragliding and parasailing. You can also go fishing, rowing or yachting here.

ALSO READ Summer vacation package for Uttarakhand: Ranikhet, Kausani and Nainital tour in 5 days

2. Kotagiri 

Photograph courtesy: Karthikeyan K/Creative Commons

If you’re looking to escape the crowds of Ooty and Coonoor, Kotagiri is the place to be. Kotagiri is your quintessential plantation that lost the popularity race when the ghat road from Mettupalayam at the foothills of Coonoor opened up. Prior to that, everyone traveling to Ooty had to pass through Kotagiri. Besides offering several opportunities for trekking and rock climbing, Kotagiri is also the perfect place to chill out, unwind and take long walks in its vast tea estates.

ALSO READ Have you visited these 5 hill stations in Tamil Nadu?

3. Tawang

Photograph: Shuttterstock

Because of the lack of accessibility, Tawang remains the least explored destination in India. Which is great for everyone who wants to escape the crowds. Summers are a good time to visit Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh’s gem because the weather is extremely pleasant. There are a lot of places to visit in Tawang and quite frankly, we are already dying to visit it even as we’re writing this.

ALSO READ 10-day itinerary to explore the best holiday destinations in northeast India

4. Nelliampathi

Photograph courtesy: Sreelal TS/Creative Commons

Nelliampathi is a breathtakingly beautiful hill station in one of Kerala’s least explored districts: Palakkad. Known for its tea and coffee plantations, Nelliampathi is as beautiful as the road that leads to it from Nenmara. Full of hair-pin bends the winding road takes you through swimming clouds overhead and with each turn the weather and indeed the views only get more pleasant.

ALSO READ 5 off-beat places in Kerala that are calling out to you

5. Bhandardara

Photograph courtesy: Wikimedia Commons

One of the newest hot-spots in Maharashtra, Bhandardara is s-l-o-w-l-y gaining popularity. But it still remains relatively underexplored, making it the perfect place to get away from the madding crowds of the cities. Bhandardara has a great MTDC resort that overlooks the Bhandardara Lake and is a great place to stay for the entire family. If you are not the kinds who likes to laze around by banks of lake (and Bhandardara seems to have more than its fair share) you can trek up to the nearby Ratangad and Harishchandragad forts or, follow the trails that lead to Ajoba and Ghanchakkar peaks. If you are really dying for a challenge, Mount Kalsubai, the highest peak in Maharashtra is just around the corner too.

ALSO SEE 11 vintage photos of Maharashtra like you’ve never seen before!