Fodor's Travel Talk Forums - Trip Report Palampur (Himachal Pradesh)

We have had a scorching summer in the plains of northern India, with the mercury hitting 46 – 47c. To escape the hot weather we settled for a few days at the cooler climate of our Himachal Pradesh Hills at Palampur. There are several nice hotels to choose from but our idea was to stay at a working Tea Estate, where one could relax and be a part of nature, as also to visit some historical places of interest.

Bhandari’s Darang Tea Estate (operational since 1853), a large working Tea Garden is located outside the city of Palampur, nestled between the snow clad Dhauladhar range running north & south in the east, and the well wooded local mountains to the west. Apart from the sprawling tea gardens which are visible from the cottage verandah, there are orchards of litchi and mango to complete the picture of a dramatic rural setting! The main bungalow is located on the eastern fringe and the gardens spread out all around.

We arrived here on 5th July for three days to be warmly received by the owner Mrs. Neera Bhandari. Beyond a very heavy shower on the night of the 6th, the weather was extremely pleasant. The day temperature was about 22c and the nights being a few degrees lower, with cool breeze blowing throughout the day! We were quickly taken to our cottage and given a welcome drink. The ‘Upper Cottage’ consists of 2 large rooms with ensuite bathrooms, a sitting room and a small pantry. Nothing fancy but comfortable. The ambiance is of an Old Forest Rest House, we are so accustomed to from the days of the Brits!!

That evening, we went for a hike in the tea gardens. The dinners were served in the old Bungalow and what a treat! Each dish, without an exception, was delicious home cooked food, the vegies straight from the farm.

On the 6th we planned to visit Sobha Singh’s Art Gallery & the Pottery Studio at Andretta, some 30 minutes away. As we were getting ready, we saw a truck load of women farm labour driving in for the Litchi harvest. We all trouped into the orchard and had great fun watching them. The trees were laden with ripe fruit!

The delayed visit to Andretta was very interesting. On the way back, we stopped over for the Tea Tasting & factory Tour at The Wah Tea Estate. The lunch at The Tea Room, recommended by Mrs. Bhandari, overlooking the sprawling tea gardens was singularly satisfying and very reasonably priced.

On the 7th we were recommended to visit the Dharamsala Cricket Stadium, perhaps one of the second highest cricket grounds after Chail. We being a family of Golfers & Skeet-shooters, were not so much inclined but all the same it was a good experience as the local girls team were having a practice match, which we watched from the visitors’ gallery.

we visited the Norbulingka Institute and did some shopping for souvenirs at the local market. Lunch was partaken of at The Encontro…great recommendation once again from Mrs. Bhandari!

The only thing yet left on the agenda was a trek up the hill on the western boundary of the Darang T.E. So that evening, we all trudged up to have spectacular views of the country surrounding the estate. The water flow was furious in the nullah below but there is an iron bridge that took us to the far side.

The dinner time chat that day revolved around sports, tourism, politics, gardening processes and how the leopards would steal the dogs off the estate just a few years back!

On the way back from Palampur, one could stop over at Kot Kangra (Kangra Fort). The views of the confluence of rivers Ban Ganga & Manjhi are spectacular from the ramparts.

Everyone in the family was of the opinion that it was indeed a great holiday!