anybody been to chakrata? is it possible?

Hi, I have been trying to find info on chakrata nr. mussourie about accomodation etc, but there does not seem to be much info anywhere the few sites i have found contradict each other (must be indian!) some say you need a permit to visit others say you cannot visit. I would be grateful for any info also thinking of going to lansdowne & pauri once again any info would be appreciated. Thanks kk

most sources tell that it is restricted for foreigners

Hi,
fay try www.greatindianoutdoors.com .... these guys run a camp there in Chakrata ... Nalin the guy behind the company is a friendly person and would give you the right info .... however I have not heard of Chakrata being off bounds for foreigners ..... lets find out though ...

Cheers,
dhananjay

Chakrata is very nice. It is inside or near a reserve forest. You would need to get an entry into the reserve forest at Kalsi, which is I guess around 30km from Dehradun. You drive for some 90 odd kms through the reserve forest to reach Chakrata. There is a very old very very beautiful british style guest house there, which for some wierd reason nobody seems to know about. The number is 01360272241 (Hotel Snow view). It is perched overlooking a valley and is most lovely to stay. You can tell him about the group which left all their baggages there and disappeared for a year. I don't think you need permit for foriegners, but what ever the case, just go to Kalsi. Coz only the DFO there decides. The gates open every 3 hours so. One way traffic opens,the other way closes and the other way around.

Chakrata is home to two very hush-hush defence organisations - The Special Frontier Force and the Aviation Research Center. hence there might be some special attention given to new faces. Be aware of that.

Hi Kaushiks, Thanks for the info i have found the "snow view" site looks very nice can you tell me if the hotel is totally isolated or is it close to other places in chakrata if indeed there are any other places there the term hillstation makes me think of a small densely populated town with a mall on a hill but as i said previously i cannot find much info on it (with it been top secret & all that) could you be kind enough to describe chakrata to me in more detail? (don't worry i'm not working for the k.g.b or chinese secret red army!).
Hi Dhananjay, Very sorry to hear about the horrific floods i hope all your friends & contacts on the road to spiti are o.k. As you know i was planning that route in august but i am now looking at plan B to garhwal do you think this is wise or do you think things will be getting back to normal in 4 weeks i was thinking i could reverse my journey & set off to spiti from Manali instead please keep me posted. By the way you keep calling me fay which is my wifes name when i sent you personal mails i used her email address please stick to calling me Robert in future because people are starting to talk & i am getting funny looks when i walk down the street. kk

I didn't know it had a site. Don't expect what you see in that site. It may look like that in some winter for a couple of days. Regardless, If you are in India for a family trip it is one of the lovely places to go to. Chakrata is not like Shimla with mall road and all that. It is not densely populated. I didn't know of SFF. The hotel is totally isolated but I don't think it was too far away from the town. It has some typical tourist stuff like tiger falls, some mahabharat time palace (lakhamandal palace) and all that. I didn't go to either of these. I have heard that tiger falls is very beautiful. But beware of the bumpy ride from Kalsi onwards.

Yes you can go to Chakrata but to the best of my knowledge foreigners need a permit. Accomodation options are very limited. You can try for Forest Rest House in Chakrata or Kanasar. A few private hotels also exist but don't expect much luxuries (read necessities).

Kalsi seems to be the bet place for all permits.

Happy Travelling !!

u can find my pics on chakrata and surrounding areas on ... http://community.webshots.com/album/362873720SIsqFf

if any other info is needed, please feel free to ask

Great pics Almoraboy i didn't get there this year somehow ended up in kullu & parvati AGAIN but now i've seen your photos i'll definitely try & get there next year I'm planning to go to gangotri by enfield bullet so i'll make chakrata part of the route with a quick call to mussourie. kk

Hi Almoraboy,

Commendable pics of Chakrata. Infact I was there just a couple of weeks back and would like to post some pics too. I'll try to post them inline within this thread only. Most are high res pics so I shall have to downsample them.

But I really loved the place. The lack of crowds is a welcome break from city life. Will definitely go there again since much of trip was washed out due to incessant rains.

Cheers,
Sachin.

Would someone with a PIO card also need a permit to get in?

what is a PIO card??

see, all human being can come till chakrata town. animals can go even further .

now, for human being to go furhter to deovan (pronounce: deb + wan = god's forest) and surrounding areas, they need to get permission from the authorities. deovan is not city or village. rather, it is a small old guest house situated on top of a hill. the charges are 75 bucks/night for indians and 500 bucks/night for foreigners. be sure to confirm the rates with the authorities coz even the old chowkidars aat the guest house don't know about the rules. they say that their job is to just serve u. and if u get ur reservations done for deovan, buy all the eatables, foodstuff from chakrata itself.

but the road to deovan from chakrata is a real thriller. ultimate experience. u can go by ur vehicle all the way, but i would recommend to stop at the nursery which is on the way. from the nursery send the vehicle to the guest house with all the stuff in it while u can go by walking. the forests there r just tooo good

Can someone provide distance / approx time for travel from Dehradun to chakrata alongwith road conditions, and if possible details on areas in the vicinity like distance, time to travel, mode (motorable or just trekkable)

TIA

chakrata is some 90 kms. from dehradun and the roads are in average condition.it will take some 3 hours from dehradun to reach chakrata because from kalsi there is one way traffic.dont bother and go chakrata.i am sure when u go there u find urself in a divine place.and yes the roads are motorable.