CHAIL HOLIDAY REVIEW – THE DREAM AT TARIKA JUNGLE RETREAT

Almost three years have passed since my rendezvous in Chail at the Tarika’s Jungle Retreat. This happened to be the first destination of my honeymoon which made it even more special for obvious reasons. Just thought of reliving the magic by sharing the secret nestled in the quaint hill station – CHAIL.

We reached Chandigarh by air and from thereon, our trip was to be on road. Lets admit it – the thrill of any hill station is partly the feeling of approaching it – seeing the landscape change. Lush greenery, great heights and slowly but surely dropping mercury. Well, just the temperature, not the warmth of the hearts. The song that my wife and me love the most seemed more true than ever – manzil se behtar lagne lage he hain raste from the movie ‘jab we met’ ( meaning: the roads symbolizing journey appear to be better than the destination).

On our way we stopped at a place called ‘Tiber Trail’ which has a cable car connecting two hills with a deep valley in between. We decided to take the ride in the cable car. The river flowing on valley floor glistened with the sunlight and the greenery beneath just took our breath away. Twinkle in the eyes of my wife was however a little more beautiful than the picturesque landscape though. This resort ‘Tiber Trail’ was beautiful. Never ever had I known that a resort existed in India that had two wings – Hill A and Hill B, so as to speak. On both hills they had lovely cottages. I remember discussing ‘ oh gosh!! It would have been great if we had made reservations in this resort’. But we did not know that destiny had something even more enchanting, awaiting us. We left ‘tiber trail’ with a heavy heart with our fingers crossed praying that the resort we had made our bookings could match the standards laid out by the one we had just visited.

The drive to Chail was exhilarating. Altitude increased and so did the fun. There is nothing like stopping your car now and then for a hot cup of tea/coffee. A hot steaming bowl of Maggi noodles was truly a delight – When they tell you about preparing a bowl of magi, the fact that it tastes best on such chilly hilly roads is never mentioned – Do try it the next time you are on your way to a hill station and trust me – The magi you have will just not seem to be the one that you eat at your house. By evening, we reached Chail. But our destination was still far – If I remember correctly, Tarika’s Jungle Retreat is about 10 kms away from heart of Chail, hid in the forest like a treasure. The last few kilometres was the most captivating – Dense forests and not even a soul in sight!! With some deliberation and the help of sign posts we finally made it to the resort.

To our surprise the journey was still not over. The property is so huge that you have to travel atleast half a kilometre just to reach the reception (at the speed of a bicycle though). The grandeur of the resort was now no mystery. A glasshouse with plants and animal sculptures was truly a eye catchy reception. The staff were not cordial, the way you expect in a five star hotel – They were warm. That is what touched me and my better half. It seemed as if they were welcoming a guest in their house rather than a mundane stereo type welcome in a hotel.

We were taken to our cottage ‘Jungle Hide Out’ in a golf car. Yes !! walking by foot after a day long journey was out of question. The cottage was a ‘GLASS CRYSTAL’. I remember my wife giving me a big bear hug after seeing the glass crystal situated in one corner of the property at the edge of cliff. It was done in a way that the glass curvature surpassed the cliff too !! The sight was amazing. On the one hand, I could see the hills on the other side, perhaps kilometres away and on the other hand I could see atleast 1000 feet below my feet !! Now that is called a honeymoon suite. It was a duplex. The bedroom and living area was on first half and a huge bathroom in the lower half. The bathroom had all the modern amenities starting from a Jacuzzi to a shower cabin. But the speciality was the view that the bathroom offered. The bedroom was also nice and cozy equipped with all that a person can desire.

Standing in the room looking at the hills on the other side and a deep valley right below your floor was truly something that I would never forget. When I had described this to my friends, their remark was ‘hey you guys were on a honeymoon in a glass room . . . Ha ha !! Other people in the property also must have a good time then”. Lol !! sometimes you wonder how people think. But to answer their question, which I am sure is shared by some of the readers too – ‘ No. You could not see a thing from the outside – perhaps something to do with the glass used’.

We spent lovely three nights at the resort. The food was amazing – the paneer dishes were something to die for. Room service was prompt. Facilities were good and well maintained. In some sense, it was really perfect.

The best part about the place was – peace. Something which you do not find in a place that becomes visible on conventional tourist maps. So my suggestion is - visit the place before the whole world discovers it and kills the pristine mountain beauty that it promises today.

The time I was leaving the place, I made a complain to the manager – This place is really not what you guys promised on the website or what your marketing executive told me. At this he politely replied with an apologetic face ‘ We are sorry for the inconvenience. Kindly tell me what was the problem and we well definitely try to improve. ‘” I just smiled and said “ The place was much more than promised. If only, I knew that the place was so amazing I would have spent my entire honeymoon here itself. Not just three nights. “ We smiled again and bid farewell.

P.S – The most popular hotel in Chail is the ‘Chail Palace’ – The house of ‘Ranchor Das Chanchad’ in the movie ‘3Idiots’ is actually Chail Palace. However, it is good for people who like a heritage feel. Moreover, the place is not as quaint and as liberating as Tarika’s Jungle retreat – which is really a tete-a-tete with wilderness and coyness at the same time. But this is just my personal opinion. Chail Palace too may charm many a few with its classical touch and beautiful gardens.

OTHER GREAT HOLIDAY IDEAS AT OFFBEAT LOCATIONS can be found in my other articles. Click here to read.