W – Wonderful Wai #A2Zchallenge

A short trip to Wai and Wai sightseeing

Wai is a small sleepy town located in Satara district near the foothills of the popular hill station Panchgani. However, there are plenty of exciting Wai Sightseeing spots here. Wai is better known as Temple Town because of the famous Ganesh temple and other Temples in that vicinity. Temples date back to being over 256 years old.

More about Wonderful Wai

My sister and aunts (better known as Gang of Girls) decided to do an all-girls trip to Wai, V Resorts. We had three whole days to discover Wonderful Wai. Read on to find out more about this lesser-known tourist destination.

How to get to Wai

The road distance between Mumbai to Wai is 230 km. There are no direct flights or trains or buses to Wai. The convenient and fastest way to reach from Pune to Wai is to take a taxi from Pune to Wai. We decided to take a  private AC taxi that stayed with us for all three days. With a really good offseason, bargain offered us a good rate, we could do up to 300 Kms per day so long drives and site seeing was included in the fare.

V Resorts, Anandvan

The V Resort in Wai offers peaceful quiet stay amidst Nature. The view of manicured lawns with the Sahyadri mountain range completes the impressive backdrop. Check-in to the resort, where you can opt for a cottage stay or Suite. Each room has an attached garden and personal coconut tree in the backyard to lean on. The resort staff can arrange treks, walks, and picnics if you wish. Read on to know more.

Things to do in and around Wai

 1. Visit Dholya Ganpat

Wai is the city’s more than 100 temples, Wai is famous for the Dholya Ganpati on Ganpati Ghat. The local people have given the name of dholya Ganpati. This famous Ganesh temple in Wai was worth a visit. No photography was allowed inside the temple. The  River flows alongside the temple so it looks very beautiful.

2. Sunset a Menavali Ghat

Swades, One of Shahrukh Khan’s movie had Wai as a location in his movie. As you descend to the riverside you will see women busy with their pile of clothes and men leading their buffaloes to the water. The glistening river gave a very soothing feeling. The place is not polluted and locals are keeping up with the maintenance of the Menavali Ghat. Very photogenic. A small temple on the coast of river Krishna. One of the best wai sightseeing spots.

3. Nana Fadnaves Wada

We reached the location following the maps. A very sleepy town indeed. The huge banyan tree with hanging roots at the entrance truly amazed me. The elderly village folk was sitting around. The Wada is under restoration yet one could get a feeling of royalty n wondered about the lifestyles of people so many years ago. The Wada remains closed from 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm for visitors. There are caretakers who will give you a tour of ‘Wada’ without any fees.

4. Dhoom Dam Lake

This placid beautiful place is situated near Wai village, Satara District. From our hotel, it was a 20-minute clear drive. Scenic serene lake with clean water, surrounded by hills & boating. – you can just enjoy nature’s beauty. It’s worth a visit if you like calm scenic places. This place is clean, pristine and a good place for water sports.

5. Field Hopping

Yes, while my friend back in Mumbai decides and goes Bar hopping over the weekends. In Wai, we went to Farm Hopping. This was a trip organized by our Hotel V Resorts. Through a tiny muddy road, we walked with fields on both sides. You must try the strawberry farms where they let you pluck fresh strawberries which are really good. I don’t prefer the ones available in Mumbai which look artificially coloured and big. These were really sweet and fresh. Another unique wai sightseeing wonder.

6. Drive to Mahabaleshwar

The drive to Mahabaleshwar is really a  picturesque one. You get some breathtaking views of the deep valleys and lush green forests during the rainy season. Summer will be plain and dry nonetheless the view from above is amazing. Be careful on those turns and honk as you go up.

Great picnic place to visit. A well-maintained expanse of Gardens, restaurants, shopping counters. the informative film about factory & strawberry farming. They offer you complimentary juice samples & other product tastings. plus there are good quality jams, syrups, sweets,  chocolates, honey, gulkand and a lot more to take back home…

8. Mahabaleshwar Market

The market runs for over a kilometer on both sides of a narrow lane and was bursting with colours. While I walked almost the entire stretch of the market, I identified a few things that one should or could pick up which are unique to the region. Besides fresh strawberries, you can but baby carrots and radish. Wooden articles, leather footwear, shawls and popular things to buy in the market. After all this shopping you will enjoy savouring a tall glass of strawberry cream, which is ubiquitous, with almost every second shop in the market selling the same. Another variation is strawberries with ice cream. Both taste equally good.

9. Stroll down from V resorts to river

We even took an early morning Nature’s walk from our hotel. The area near the Dhom dam is truly scenic and this walk surely added more appreciation towards Nature. We really enjoyed the chirping of birds, insects crawling around and overall charm overall experience. With majestic views of the Sahyadri Range on one hand and the serene Krishna river, on the other hand, this is your chance to experience some of the best elements of nature in a single trip

10. Wai is famous for turmeric

I was also told that Wai is famous for its Turmeric. We stopped at one such stall, had some sugarcane juice. And also picked up two packets of homemade unadulterated turmeric powder.  The colour was lighter than the powder one buys at supermarkets. Guess it was pure with no added colours added.

Hence we ended our Wai Sightseeing and holiday. Returned home with a Suitcase filled with beautiful memories.
This was my Blogpost for letter W – Wonder Wai for the A to Z Blogchatter Challenge. Here is Letter V – Virtuous Vatican City