Mumbaikars to throng beaches, hill stations & tiger reserves this extended Diwali weekend

MUMBAI: As the October heat is making the city sweat—probably the hottest of this season in the last seven years at 37 degree Celsius—Mumbaikars will be heading to beaches along the Konkan coast, and forests and hill stations in the Western Ghats and Vidarbha this extended weekend.
“Our beaches, including Ganpatipule, Tarkarli, Kunkeshwar and Harihareshwar, are full, so are our resorts at Tadoba and Pench tiger reserves. Even at Mahabaleshwar, Bhandardara, Malshej Ghat and Chikhaldara, the resorts are full to their capacity,” said Satish Soni, joint managing director, Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC).Considering the demand, MTDC has probably become the first tourist agency in the country to open its bookings till December 2015, revealed another official.
“The crowds at Pench and Mahabaleshwar indicate that people want to move to destinations where temperatures are low,” said an official, pointing out that even private resorts at most of these destinations are packed this weekend.
Officials said a few Mumbaikars are even braving to drive to Tadoba, which is 900km away, and Ajanta and Ellora caves near Aurangabad. “The number of SUVs with series MH 01 to MH04 and MH12 reveal that the crowd is coming in from Mumbai and Pune for the tiger safari,” said an MTDC official.
Soni said the growing demand for rooms has forced MTDC to increase capacity and refurbish the existing infrastructure. “We are adding 20 rooms at Chikhaldara and Tadoba and around 15 rooms in Sakoli, which is famous for ecotourism,” he said.
Kunkeshwar beach in Malwan will get 40 new rooms and a scuba diving institute will be set up at Tarkarli where 60 people can be trained in sessions ranging from one day to one month. Soni said the institute will be open on November 5 with online booking facilities. “Harihareshwar will have 12 new rooms, while Bhandardara will get 15 more. In Mahabaleshwar, 30 new heritage suits have been refurbished and Malshej Ghat got 45 new rooms. At Pench tiger reserve 10 new rooms are opening,” said Soni.
An official said bookings will now be done through agents and free breakfast will be offered for online bookings.