Before Switzerland, time for “Mini Switzerland of India”

There are some tourist spots worth visiting because of the various sightseeing or various eateries located in or nearby that place. However, there are some places which do not offer any such special spots but yet you could spend a day or two just by relaxing at the hotel room since the balcony of the hotel room offers panoramic views. Chopta belongs to the latter category. Wanna know how? Well, here is a sneak peak of the view you get outside the hotel room.

Now, let me share with you how Chopta treated us. A year back in June 2019 just when the Char Dham Yatra commenced, we set off on our journey to Kedarnath and Badrinath Dham- the two more popular ones amongst the four dhams. The idea was to squeeze in Chopta somehow in between since Chopta would be en route on our way to Badrinath from Kedarnath. Located in the foothills of the Himalayas in the state of Uttarakhand, Chopta is situated about 160 km from Rishikesh and 450 km from Delhi.
Owing to too much traffic, we reached Chopta about ten in the night unaware of the pristine beauty that lay in front of us. Tired and sleepy, we somehow had our dinner hastily and went off to bed in our respective tents at the Himalayan Resort. Himalaya Resort is one of the many resorts at Chopta but when it comes to resort with a Himalayan view, it is one of the few. There are six clean, hygienic and ecofriendly tents with attached washrooms and a separate dining area.

 

Now, I have always been a late riser and especially if the place happens to be a cold one, I am a super late riser. However, there was something about my mother’s call outside the tent at 5 AM in the next morning that despite my drowsiness and the chilly weather, I sprang towards the balcony of our tent. Next moment I found myself in the midst of lush green meadows with a stunning view of the mighty Himalayas in front and huge pine trees forming the backdrop. Difficult to imagine? Let me make it easier for you.

 

The snow clapped mountains clubbed with the chilly weather, chirping of the birds, the lush green surrounding and the salubrious ambience would make one fall in love with Chopta for sure. I was so much in awe of the beauty that I couldn’t sleep for the next few hours until breakfast arrived. This was essentially the breakfast with a view. Have a look!

Sadly, we were to check out at 11 AM and since we had just a couple of hours, we decided to take a stroll along the valley behind and pay a visit to the beautiful pine forest which would offer even better views of the snow-capped mountains and surely the view from the pine forest did not let us down.

 

The ones who could stay for another day could go for the Tungnath trek which is a famous trek offering a 360-degree view of the Himalayas and also a visit to one of the highest Shiva temples in the world. Soon after with a heavy heart and some beautiful captures, we bid adieu to Chopta and left for Badrinath.
If you have reached till here, thank you so much! It was my pleasure to give you a glimpse of my travel diary to Chopta. Hope to meet you soon at my next travel diary. That’s me by the way!

Manini Dhar

Written by: Manini Dhar (@maninidhar)

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