Harihareshwar Resorts and Homestays
Harihareshwar is really just a small Konkan village with a famous temple that accounts for most of its tourism. Most of the accommodations here are basic, budget home-stays catering to visitors from nearby towns. We saw only two big hotels. One, called ‘Beach Resort’ is close to the temple on the main road and faces a beach (not the prettiest one in town). The other is owned and managed by MTDC and is simply known as ‘MTDC Resort’. One of our reasons to stop at Harihareshwar was to stay at this resort as it had absolutely fantastic reviews online. But when we got there it was a Friday and we could get a room for only one night; the resort was completely booked for the weekend. So we checked out on Saturday morning and stayed at a nearby home-stay called Gokul.
MTDC Harihareshwar Resort
This property has the best location ever! It’s on a large piece of land that sits atop a small cliff overlooking the sea. Right next to this property is a lovely, secluded stretch of beach, which is
absolutely heavenly! And it is the instant access to this piece of paradise that makes this resort absolutely worth a visit.
They have 3 different types of accommodation. The main building, which houses the reception on the first floor, has standard rooms. Then there are cottages known as Konkani Houses. Each of
these has a lovely porch at the back with glass doors opening out to it. The rooms are spacious with a large double-bed, color TV and ample closet space. These are located quite close to the reception building and are about 200meters from the sea-facing, canteen area. And finally, there are tents or fabric-walled, cottage-style structures that are passed off as tents. Though smaller than the cottages, these are priced higher as they have a bit of a sea view.
But it’s also an older property. So everything, from the furniture to the fixtures, is quite old and would do well with a bit of updating. So it’s not a fancy place to stay at – just an amazingly serene and scenic one!
Rating: 8 out of 10
Gokul Home stay
Gokul is located quite close to the MTDC resort within the village roads. It is run by a couple who have built rooms atop their home and let them out. More rooms have been built on the compound of their gated property, out of which two are air-conditioned and newly updated. We stayed in one of these and it wasn’t bad. The room itself was actually quite good. It was spacious with a comfortable double-bed and color TV. The bathroom, though, was cramped and could do with better fixtures. Moreover, there was no running, hot water . One of the helps would bring hot water in a bucket, if and when required – not a very convenient option.
They have a small, canteen area where food is served but it needs to be ordered in advance. We never got a chance to try it.
Gokul cannot really be called a home-stay as the couple runs it like a mini-lodge and are not particularly warm people to be around. This was a little disappointing as most others we’ve met in the Konkan have been more than warm and friendly. But they were definitely helpful and on checking out, helped us chart the route to our next destination.
Rating: 6 out of 10
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