Manali ,India : General Information-



Manali located about 40 kms from kullu is named after Manu. There is a beautiful mythological story asociated with Manu and the place Manali.The story has been best described on HPTDC (Government official tourism website of Himachal Pradesh)-

One day, Varvasvata, the seventh incarnation of Manu found a tiny fish in his bathing water. The fish told him to look after it with devotion as one day it would do him a great service. The seventh Manu cared for the fish till the day it grew so huge that he released it into the sea. Before departing, the fish warned Manu of an impending deluge when the entire world would be submerged and bade him to build a sea worthy ark. When the flood came, Varvasvata and seven sages were towed to safety by Matsya, the fish which is regarded as first avatar of Lord Vishnu. As the water subsided the seventh Manu's ark came to the rest on a hill side and the place was named Manali (2050 m) after him.

Manali is a place of breathtaing and mesmerizing natural beauty. Administratively a part of kullu district, Manali is an important and famous hill station in the northern state of Himachal pradesh of India.it is a popular tourist spot for Indians in summer and a magical, snow-covered place in winter. A staging point for a number of treks (Beas Kund, Chandrakhani Pass) and sports such as white-water rafting, Manali is also on the road to Ladakh via the valley of Lahaul and Spiti.

How to reach Manali-

Unfortunately there are limited options to reach this exotic hill station. Travelling by bus to reach this place is the best option. Manali doesn't have a railway head and airport so reaching here by these media is somewhat inconvenient.

Reaching Manali by Air-
Nearest airport from Manali is Bhuntar which is about 60 kms away from Manali.Furthermore Very limited number of flights operate from here most of them run to and from Delhi.So reaching Manali by air is somewhat inconvenient as you don't have many options available and to add to it you may have to break your journey several times in order to reach here.

Reaching Manali by train-
Jogindernagar is the nearest rail head to Manali but it is a on narrow gauge line and not too many trains arrive and reach here.Most of the trains reaching here are from adjoining areas. The nearest broad gauge rail head is Chandigarh which is some 354 kms from here.From Chandigarh you have to journey by bus to reach Manali.

Reaching Manali by road-
The most convenient option to reach this place is by road.You can hire cars and taxis or you may travel by bus which operate from many parts of the country on a regular basis.The cities like Delhi, Chandigarh, Jaipur, Shimla, Dehradun, Ambala etc. are well connected to Manali via road.Perhaps the road to Manali is the highest motorable road in the country.


Where to stay in Manali-

Manali boasts of having many hotels ,resorts and guest houses.In fact it is said that Manali has more number of hotels than Delhi.Furthermore ,huts and tents on hire are also available which can certainly be a nice experience.But even with so many options available to stay it is sometimes difficult to find a place of accommodation during summer months (May and June). So, you should make arrangements for accomodation even before starting your journey or atleast before reaching here.

Numerous HPTDC run and recognised accomodation options are available which can be booed via internet. For booing a hotel through HPTDC click here. It would be advisable to boo your accomodation places through HPTDC which is the government official tourism website and thus more reliable.If you are not able to find a place through HPTDC then you can go for some other travel websites.You can search for these websites through google with search term " Manali Hotels".


Eating out in Manali-

There are plenty of places to eat in Manali. Most of the eating places are located in the centre of the city and there are many options to choose from.Right from chat to Indian (veg/nonveg) to international cuisine like Italian/Chinese are available in the main market which is just opposite the Manali Bus stand. The mall road has a variety of eating options ranging from stalls and dhabas to fancy restaurants. Deeper into the lanes of the town, one can find more local eating places, catering to special tastes and habits ranging from Tibetan food, to Vaishnavi Dhabhas. You are sure to find something without hunting around too much.
 
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