Gujarat Any info?

Alan D

The wife and I are slowly putting our plans together for our next trip to India. At the moment we hope to be in Diu in late November, then travel north along the Gujarat coast, finally ending up in Mandvi for Xmas and New Year (a dry one this year).

Has anyone been to Veraval, Porbander, Dwarka, Ocka and Jamnager? If so, do you have any recommendations for hotels, places to eat and general observations on these towns. Yes, we do have a couple of guide books and have been reading up on the area but would welcome any personal accounts. We have been to Diu twice before and spent Xmas and New Year at Mandvi four years ago so we know the situation there.

Also, does anyone know if it's possible to take a boat from Dwarka or Ocka to Mandvi or Mundra across the Gulf of Kutch?

indiawise

There was a new ferry service that started last year or so._jamnagar to mundra. mundra is close to mandvi. i expect that it should still be running. In case you r in dwaraka then thats close to jamnagar and on your way to mandvi. Of all the places i would definately avoid verawal. Nothing there except the temple and boat harbour. ok for a couple of hours. It would be nicer to stop over at junagadh. There is however an excellent place to stay in verawal, and that is the govt. hotel called 'Toran'. There is a dining hall down the road at the clock tower cross-roads-'prakash dining hall' serving gujarati thalis. Lots of other places to eat.
of all the places dwaraka held some charm for me. Okha is nothing but a small non-descript town. I drove down that way a few times on my motorcycle about 10 years back. the landscape is interesting. In dwaraka the hotels recommended are Hotel Meera, Hotel Dwarkesh. all decent places and priced bet. rs. 250 to 600/ reasonable.
Porbandar left me bored. Okha was better.
Where did you stay in mandvi. I believe that the nicest place to stay in mandvi is again the govt. hotel ..same Toran chain of gujarat govt. tourism hotels.
Avoid Diu in the first 10 days of november. as it is diwali and just about the worst time to visit. Which hotel do u recommend in diu.
I have just finished driving around baroda-rajkot-ahmedabad-palitana-udaipur area last week. Things are just fine and normal.To let you know.

Alan D

Thanks for all the information---especially about the ferry from Jamnager to Mundra. That would save us the long trip by road and also give us the chance to do some seabird and pelagic watching on the way across, not however, if there is a cyclone in the area.

Dwarka seems definitely worth staying around for some days. I met an English woman a few years ago who stayed at the Toran Tourist Hotel in Dwarka and really liked the place.

From the write-ups in the guide books I don't expect much of Veraval, but you never know, a room with a view, a good eating place or an interesting bazaar, all make a place worthwhile, at least for a day or so.

We actually had a meal at the dining hall at the Toran Tourist Hotel in Mandvi but didn't stay there. It has a good position right beside the beach but it's on the other side of the river from the town and inconvenient for shopping etc. The food wes not that impressive---much better places in town, especially Zorba the Buddha, just inside the town walls and close to the main bazaar, where they do excellent thalis.

We stayed in Junagadh a few years ago as a base to visit Girnar Hill and the Jain Temples. In Diu we have stayed at the Apna and Alishan hotels (owned by two brothers) just past the town square on the way to the fort. Comfortable and clean rooms for 400-600R's with balconies overlooking the water and close to the fishing boat harbour. In the main holiday times prices seem to double as Indian tourists arrive in force.

Since you posted, Gujarat has experienced more communal violence. We hope somebody, State or Central Government, takes strong action to stop the extremists on both sides. At the moment we see no reason to cancel our plans for visiting Gujarat in Nov/Dec but we will keep a close watch on the situation.

vistet

As we are speaking , there was both more violence and strong response. The NSG goverment forces confronted two gunmen (in Ahmedabad , if I got the name right) who had killed cirka twenty visitors to the temple, and killed them.

I was struck by the picture of the group as they exited the temple - barefoot.
You don't attack a temple with automatic weapons in India - at least not in boots...

indiawise

Sorry Alan D, but it seems that the ferry service from jamnagar to mudra has stopped ..well..ferrying! I met these friends of mine a couple of days back, mix of indians and germans, making a movie on seaports with historical backgrounds. They told me that the ferry is not functioning any more. At present any way. They also told me that it was just fine travelling around gujarat right now.

Funny that i didn't mention about the TORAN guest hotel at dwaraka...cause thats where i stayed twice and i liked it very much.
It was basic then about 10 years back but the kind of place and surroundings i preferred.
being indian i guess i have had my fill of crowded bazaars so i look for quieter places. unless sometimes its for a short while/visit.
i wasn't very lucky in mandvi and stayed at pretty lousy places. I guess i didn't have the time to find the right place. i was on my bycycle and tired out after cycling those kilometers! But mandvi obviously has more to offer than what i saw. I just spent my time having not-so-good thalis and great cycling along the beach. then i headed off towards Bhuj.
Gujarat is peaceful right now. It will stay this way since the people are fed up. However its a wait and watch situation since there r the usual breed of politicians waiting to play the caste/religion card at all times. Only this time it just might fire back on their faces! I am in gujarat and will post about the 'groun-realities' as they appear in the coming weeks.

reporter indiawise signing off..!!
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Alan D

Thanks for the update Indiawise. I know there was talk a few years ago about starting a ferry service across the Gulf of Kutch but maybe there wasn't enough traffic to justify it. Possibly we could find a local boat from Dwarka or Porbander which is making the crossing. If not we will take the bus to Bhuj and from there a bus to Mandvi.

Did you visit Vijay Vilas, built by the local Maharaja in the 1940's, just a few miles west of Mandvi? I was watching "Lagaan" the movie a few weeks ago and suddenly realised they were using Vijay Vilas as a movie set. The grounds around the palace are a great place to wander around, desert-thorn covered sand dunes and an untouched beach for miles. One of the quietest places I've been in India.