Activities

 

There are lots of things that a holiday maker can do when on holiday at The Retreat.

You can enjoy nature walks through our Lakeland Estate, formerly a British Tea Plantation. Beautiful agrarian scenes of rice terraces, wheat fields, and small villages with the smell of cooking dinner and the happy shouts of playing children greet your senses. Wildlife abounds amidst the luscious green pine and oak hillsides and throughout the valleys of the estate.

Take a walk to Panna Tal which is a 30 to 40 minute walk away. Once there enjoy  a picnic lunch (barbecue optional) on the lake shore and take a swim if in the mood. Walk, or drive back in a hired taxi, stopping along the way at Nal Damyanti Tal to feed the sacred Mahseer fish and to visit the temple with its ancient ashtadhatu idol which was excavated from the lake bed. Also have a look at the 100 year old water driven flour mill.

Hike through the forested hills of the Estate to the cliffs of nearby Surya Gaon. There is a possibility of spotting Ghoral, Serow, Sambhar, Muntjac (Barking Deer) and numerous bird species while on the walk.

A full day hike to the top of Karkotak Hill which has a view of Nanda Devi. Picnic on the peak and come back to a cosy tea.

Pick tea from Orange Pekoe tea bushes, planted by the British in the 1850s, from our Estate Forests. The tea bushes flourish in oak forests that have been allowed to grow around them.

Visit a village on the Estate with a village guide (and a family member, if desired) and have a pahari meal in a village home if you like.

Birdwatchers will enjoy a stay here as the entire area, being well-forested, has numerous bird species right at The Retreat as well as on all the walks around.

Visit the Observatory at Hanumangarhi near Nainital

In the evenings sit around a campfire and have a barbecue to wind down the day.

If you are a keen angler, fishing permits can be arranged to allow you to indulge in your pastime.

The weather permitting you could also go parasailing nearby.

Nearby trips include Nainital or the sloping orchards of Ramgarh and Ranikhet, where one can see the beautiful icy peaks of Badrinath, Trisul and Nanda Devi (7770m).

Uttarakhand is also referred to as “Dev Bhoomi” which means the Land of the Gods. If spiritually inclined you can visit Chota Kailash, Mukteshwar Dham, and Naina Devi Temple.

 

Day trips can be arranged to:

Nainital

Kilbury (horse riding to Kilbury from Nainital)

Almora

Ranikhet

Mukteshwar

Hairakhan

Chota Kailash

Corbett National Park

We also offer cooking classes to those who may be interested.

 

If none of the above appeal to you then just relax at The Retreat and recharge your batteries on fresh air, great food and an absolute relaxed atmosphere.