[Engine_Roars]

I met my wife 4 years ago, we fell in love and got married on 23rd January 2014. We officially became The Driver & Navigator for each other. Six months later, we bought our first new car, Hyundai Xcent with only one wish. I wanted to visit my hometown, Jodhpur in my car with my wife on our first Diwali . It was the longest road journey we had ever taken, we drove 2700 Kms, crossed three states, and on that road trip I found my navigator in her and she found herself comfortable sitting by my side trusting me with her life. This travelogue is not of that journey. I will leave that for some other day. This one is about our first wedding anniversary drive.

I have been living in Pune since 4 years now, and my favorite past time has been riding to all the places around Pune, visiting all the waterfalls, points and what not. So, this drive had to be different, something which should be cherished for a long time. After a not so quick search through Google & Team Bhp, Dapoli was zeroed in for the clean beaches it offers.

23rd January was a Friday, so we applied for leaves and left for our destination at around 7:00 AM. The roads till Tamhini were fine, however the actual adventure started after Tamhini, the number of potholes was more than the number of vehicle on that dirt track. I could not shift to 5th gear for a long stretch. Dapoli was 190 Kms away from my place, which ideally should have taken 4.5 Hours at max, however it took us around 6 hours to reach with few short breaks of few minutes.

Unfortunately,being a long weekend(26th January), all the beach side resorts were booked. We had to settle for a Studio apartment kinda room, at Mango Inn, Dapoli. Recommended for the service they provide and also for the well maintained apartments, but only if you are travelling by your own vehicle. It is pretty far from the beaches, something like 10-20 Kms. I did regret about not staying at some resort on the beach. We checked in, and after having a simple but delicious lunch, we drove down to one of the beaches, Murud. That is one beautiful beach, icing on the cake was being a Friday it was not at all crowded, perks of not working on weekdays. I wanted to go and dive right away into the water, but I could not let myself lose and get wet because I did not want to spoil the car's seats. However, we spent a wonderful time sitting on the sand, witnessing a beautiful sunset with awesome background music of waves. The moments lived like these are worth dying for. We headed back to the hotel around 8 PM, changed and had a simple but delicious dinner. Next day morning, we drove back to our Pad with some beautiful memories, and an amazing road trip.

As you might have noticed till now, I am not at all good at writing and I do realize that. I also realize that this is not a complete travelogue and hopefully I shall improve with every passing day. I hope my camera can compensate for my pen.

Thank you for bearing with me through this not so long & not so interesting travelogue.

[S2!!!]

Hi Engine_Roars.

You've got some nice pictures. Can you tell me more about this place? Over a weekend is it too crowded (like alibag?) Also, how would you compare the beach and its cleanliness when compared to Alibag or Kihim? I had visited Alibag sometime ago but was put off by the litter around, which is a direct result of too much tourist traffic.

Was looking at a nice, clean weekend getaway. I guess I will consider Dapoli and Murud. Any particular beach resorts that you would suggest (inexpensive ones please)?

[Engine_Roars]

Originally Posted by S2!!!

Hi Engine_Roars.

You've got some nice pictures. Can you tell me more about this place? Over a weekend is it too crowded (like alibag?) Also, how would you compare the beach and its cleanliness when compared to Alibag or Kihim? I had visited Alibag sometime ago but was put off by the litter around, which is a direct result of too much tourist traffic.

Was looking at a nice, clean weekend getaway. I guess I will consider Dapoli and Murud. Any particular beach resorts that you would suggest (inexpensive ones please)?

Hi,

Thank you for your kind words.

I did not stay there for the weekend hence I am not the right person to give you a very clear picture about the number of visitors on weekends, however while returning back on Saturday morning; I was thanking my stars that I chose Friday to visit Dapoli and not the weekend (It was a long weekend (24th, 25th & 26th January), which might have increased the numbers). The number of vehicles coming towards Dapoli was huge and considering the overgrowing population of this country I am afraid each and every tourist destination is going to end up getting overcrowded sooner or later.

In comparison to Alibag, I would say this beach was indeed cleaner. The beach has blackish sand, however no odor of any sorts. There are 2-3 beaches around Dapoli, Murud was one of them. We could not visit the other ones; however the hotel owner did happen to mention about one beach which according to him was secluded, thus cleaner. Sorry, I do not remember the name, but a quick google search might help you. If you are a sea food lover, you are going to simply love this place. I am a pure vegetarian; however my wife is not, and is a complete foodie. She loved the food there.

It will be better to first zero in upon the beach you would like to spend most of your time at and then going about looking for the best available resorts near to that particular beach.

Hope this helps

[Trojan]

Hi Engine_Roars,

Nice set of pictures buddy, nothing like going for a nice drive on the beach with its hard sand!

@ S2 - Dapoli is way better than Alibaug! At Alibaug, you can try Kashid beach which is also very clean.

Dapoli beach is very clean and is as big as a major highway, vehicles are allowed on the beach and the hard sand helps.
There are a lot of options on the beach itself and are pretty reasonable, unless of course you reach there on a long weekend

We stayed at Silver Sand resort, which is bang on the beach, reasonable place, good food and awesome view.

And yes, you can go for the boat rides in the morning for dolphin sightings! And if you are interested in some fresh catch, you can head towards the nearby port of Harnai and get a good bargain to take some fresh fish on your way back home!

Cheers!

[fiesta1.6]

Great travelogue with equally nice set of pictures.

As far as I remember, there are four beaches around Dapoli. Murud (11 km), Karde (13 km), Harnai (15 km) and Anjarle (20 km). The beaches are better than Alibaug. There are lot of places to see around like Kadyavarcha Ganpati, Parusham Statue, Unhavare Hot Water Springs, Dabhol.

[Engine_Roars]

Originally Posted by Trojan

Hi Engine_Roars,

Nice set of pictures buddy, nothing like going for a nice drive on the beach with its hard sand!

@ S2 - Dapoli is way better than Alibaug! At Alibaug, you can try Kashid beach which is also very clean.

Thank you for your kind words, and also for adding the valuable information.

Originally Posted by fiesta1.6

Great travelogue with equally nice set of pictures.

As far as I remember, there are four beaches around Dapoli. Murud (11 km), Karde (13 km), Harnai (15 km) and Anjarle (20 km). The beaches are better than Alibaug. There are lot of places to see around like Kadyavarcha Ganpati, Parusham Statue, Unhavare Hot Water Springs, Dabhol.

Bulls eye. Great info and Thank you for the appreciation!!!

[divyankar]

Hi Engine_Roars,
Great travelogue with awesome pictures.
I have been to Dapoli twice and I simply loved the place. The beach you are referring to is Murud (correct me if I am wrong.) and yes there are two murud, other one is called Murud Janjira which is near kashid beach.
Second time when I was in Dapoli I stayed on Karde beach and believe me that’s something you don’t want to miss.
Such a clean beach with very less crowd and the best thing was the resort in which we stayed. It was so pocket friendly and we can see the beach while dining in their garden.
And yes I am in pune too, let’s catch up some time.

[ghodlur]

Originally Posted by divyankar

Second time when I was in Dapoli I stayed on Karde beach and believe me that’s something you don’t want to miss.
Such a clean beach with very less crowd and the best thing was the resort in which we stayed. It was so pocket friendly and we can see the beach while dining in their garden.

I am planning to trip to Dapoli/Karde in the coming weeks. Can you provide some details about the resort you stayed in please. Will help me in my planning. Any idea how far is Harnai beach from Karde. I heard the fish auction is one you should not miss.

[divyankar]

Originally Posted by ghodlur

I am planning to trip to Dapoli/Karde in the coming weeks. Can you provide some details about the resort you stayed in please. Will help me in my planning. Any idea how far is Harnai beach from Karde. I heard the fish auction is one you should not miss.

Hi Ghodlur,
I stayed at Hotel SeaFace. This one is budget hotel and has awesome sea view. Do call and book in advance.
Also Harnai beach is about 10 kms. I didn't get chance to see fish auction as I only had one day.
Please do share some pics of your trip.

[AbiS]

Hello Guys,

I am planning to go to Dapoli this Saturday from Pune. Please suggest the best route? Is Tamhini in good condition.

Appreciate your help and Thanks in advance.

[Majumdarda]

A few pointers from my recent trip to Kihim beach :-

• Alibag Revas road is in full construction mode. The entire stretch of 20 kilometers would take not less than an hour to complete. The condition of this stretch is so bad, that one has to perform more lateral movement with the car to try and avoid the pot holes. Better to avoid for at least 2 months.

• From Khalapur toll plaza till Pezari, there are no construction happening and the road is in shambles. Basically there is no road at all because of constant heavy vehicle movement. This stretch of approximate 40 kilometers would take a decent 2 hours to traverse if you are travelling in a hatchback / sedan, owing to the moon-craters and dust. A few tricky points are in and around the Pen and JSW Steel works.

• From Pezari, if you have to go towards the beach via the Alibag Revas road, try taking the MIDC Pipeline road. This is basically a single lane road, where two vehicles can pass with mutual adjustment; the surface is excellent and no potholes too.