Ganapatipule

There was a time when me and hubby used to hit the road at every single opportunity and “Outlook Traveler’s 52 weekends” was our companion in our quest to explore the weekend gateways from Mumbai. With K coming in our life, the mother in me became cautious and slowly the trips became far and few. Sometime a long drive with her keeps us away from the trips, sometime the reason could be  below average accommodation available. However in the midst of so many trips with one being all the way to Goa, we missed out “Ganapatipule”.

This time around May/June on one of those Saturday night get together a close family friend with two young children (5 yrs and 8 months) and we with 3 yrs old K decided to make a trip to Ganapatipule.
In absence of any better options we had to choose the MTDC resort. Putting behind us, all the horrible experience that we had in all their resorts (been to 3 resorts before- Bhandardara, Harihareshwar and Shirdi; only Shirdi can be recommended) before we went ahead and booked 2 Super Deluxe room (Rs 1800/- per day plus taxes) for 3 nights and 4 days.

It was a long drive of close to 8/9 hours with two breaks in between, but it was certainly a drive worth remembering. We were mesmerized by the monsoon view with clouds kissing the green mountains all over and the occasional sights of waterfalls. We reached the MTDC property close to sunset and the moment we saw the vast ocean, blue water, large waves we were speechless.

However all our awe turned into a nightmare when we set our foot inside the rooms. Not that we had any high expectation but looking at the damped walls laden with moss, creepy insects on the floor, dirty toilets all our heart sank. Thankfully we were prepared with our basic needs considering we have young children with us. Considerable part of our baggage comprised of bed sheets, towels, mosquito repellant etc to put through the dirty stained sheets and towels that MTDC provides. The food serve was terrible too. We had to return the stale food served on two occasions, there was no room service and they serve the most pathetic tea in the world. Our friend, who was a huge tea connoisseur and cannot survive without her quota of two cups each day, actually had to switch to coffee.

MTDC resort is the most sought after hotel in Ganapatipule due to its unique beach facing location and being the only one which gives you a direct access to the beach. For tourists who haven’t come for the hedonism of the sun and sand only but for the town’s seaside temple with its Swayambhu Ganpati or naturally formed monolithic Ganesh (painted in lurid orange), allegedly discovered 1600 years ago, again will love the location of MTDC resort as it is barely few minutes away from the temple.

The resort sits on the side of a hill that faces the sea and I must add that we had great time at the beach. It was a virgin beach which was unspoilt by commercialization. We had some decent food in a nearby restaurant called ‘landmark” and went around the place to catch some astounding views of unspoilt beauty. The sight en route to Ratnagiri, the vast blue ocean kissing the horizon and the blue waters is mind blowing and tempt you to rush towards it for a dip. No wonder we went back to those unblemished spots to reach to the ocean the next day. It was a place where a poet will draw his inspiration from, a place where a painter will lose himself and an ordinary person like me will relive her childhood in the midst of pursuits like making a sand castle or teaching children how to make a well in the sand.

It’s a place I would like to go back again and again but only if someone spare me from the terrifying MTDC rooms. Any clue hoteliers, would you like to build a great resort there which faces the sea?