Mahabaleshwar is a hill station in Satara district in the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is located in the Western Ghats range with one of the few evergreen forests of the world. It served as the summer capital of Bombay province during the British Raj.Mahabaleshwar is located about 120 km (75 mi) southwest of Pune and 285 km (177 mi) from Mumbai.
Mahabaleshwar is known for the honey and strawberries produced here. One can visit strawberry farms to enjoy the real flavor of the fruit. It is said that the climate of Mahabaleshwar is ideal for strawberries and mulberries. Don’t forget to have “Strawberries with Cream” or “Mulberries with Cream”
The Venna lake is one of the major tourist attractions of Mahabaleshwar. The lake is surrounded by trees on all sides and tourists can enjoy a boat ride over the lake or a horse ride next to the lake. A number of small eateries line the banks of the lake. The Mahabaleshwar city market and the S.T. bus stand is about 2KM from the lake and makes for a nice walk during the day. Most tour operators include the Venna lake in their tours.
With another popular and scenic hill resort Panchgani in close vicinity (about 20KM), most tourists often visit both places together. The ‘Table-Land’ phenomenon of nature at Panchgani is breath-taking which is a flat land over the hill top.
Around 25 km from Mahabaleshwar is the legendary fort, Pratapgad which was built by the eminent Maratha warrior Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in the year 1656 in order to be in command of the rebellious rulers of Javali basin located nearby. This place is also the site of the historic battle that took place between Shivaji and Afzal Khan, who was the ruler of the Bijapur Sultanate.
Mahabaleshwar is also home to several scenic points that are located here such as the Lodwick Point, Elphinstone Point, Kate’s Point, Wilson Point, Helen’s Point, Badington Point, Falkland Point and Carnac Point.
For the pilgrim tourists there is the Panchaganga Mandir, where the five holy rivers Krishna, Venna, Koyna, Savitri & Gayatri show their appearance here in five springs flowing closely. They are seen flowing in five stone ducts & joining in one horizontal half channel leading to the Goumukhi cowface spout. Another temple is the Shri Shankar Mandir where the Mahalinga of the lord Shiva is of Rudraksha shape & believed to be ’self-bodied’ (swayambhoo) It is called Trigunatmaka meaning Brahma-Visnhu-Mahesh are on it for ever. Mother Jeejabai was weighed by gold by Raje Shivaji in this temple & then the gold was distributed in charity.
The Bazaar is in the center of town and consists of a pedestrian-only street with shops selling everything from fancy locally-made walking sticks to snacks and the specialty of the region – roasted chickpea nuts. You also get a variety of hand crafted wooden articles and decorative items and numerous shops selling jams, jellies, squashes and chikkis.
Best time to Visit: Throughout the year
