Having heard a lot of praise about this beach, I visited Tarkarli along with my family between 10-12 November(3 nights). Reaching Tarkarli: Lot of information on road/rail routes is already available in other posts. So I would not repeat the same here. We took one of the private luxury buses(Sarvottam Travels) from Thane teen-haat naka. These buses are expected to reach Malvan town by 7 AM. One can then take Auto Rickshaw’s near Malvan ST depot for Tarkarli(Rs. 100/-). It’s approximately 6-7 km.
Note: If you don’t have a personal vehicle and are planning to use Auto Rickshaw’s for sightseeing, note that any trip outside Tarkarli e.g. To Malvan, Devbag etc. Will cost you minimum Rs. 100/- one way. Therefore you may plan your daily itineraries such that you make minimal auto trips away from Tarkarli and try to consolidate sights as best as you can. E.g. You may combine Sindhudurg fort, malvan city, rock garden etc. In a single trip as all are adjacent places.
The idea is to avoid too many to & fro trips from Tarkarli and save time(and money!). The auto’s are conveniently available almost entire day and stay parked near MTDC resort gate. They normally provide you their phone numbers and make themselves available on call. Also, the hotel staff can call their regular auto guys from this auto stand to the hotel if you want so. I found these auto drivers very efficient and tourist friendly.
About the main attraction - Tarkarli Beach: The perception I had from my online reading was that of a beautiful clean beach! To some extent, Tarkarli beach meets these expectations. Following is my experience.
The Good Part
•The beach is good with clear water and clean white sand. But then Konkan is known for some of the best beaches in India. Frankly speaking, Tarkarli is good/average beach if you compare with other awesome beaches of konkan.
•My overall experience about the beach was pleasant and Tarkarli beach has all the required ingredients to meet the expectations of beach lovers.
•Along with the very enjoyable beach, Tarkarli offers added attractions like Sindhudurga fort, Scuba diving & snorkelling etc.
•All kinds of water sports are available at nearby Devbag beach.
The ‘not so good’ Part
•The beach itself and adjoining area seems to be suffering from uncontrolled commercialization. There is a part of beach(not the MTDC part) which was littered with garbage, plastic bags & beer cans and bottles. It was a real turn-off. Also we observed locals using small patch near the beach as trash pit.
However, there is a part of beach(known as MTDC beach) right in front of MTDC property which is clean and enjoyable. You will find most of the tourists on this part of beach. If your hotel/resort is not located near MTDC area, I will highly recommend you to use this part of beach.
Note: We found a nearby devbag beach(6 kms), which is actually an extension of Tarkarli beach much cleaner and un-crowded. We also observed few beach-facing properties at devbag which appeared very attractive as compared to Tarkarli. Also it’s hardly commercialised unlike Tarkarli.
Accommodation:
Large number of resorts and home stays are available at Tarkarli. Although we did not stay at MTDC resort, It should be the first choice – simply because of it’s superb on-beach location. However, MTDC resort gets booked months in advance during the season. We stayed at Hotel Sea View, which also is located very close to the beach(just a road dividing the resort and beach).
Places to Visit:
Since much has been already written about the spots, I will not repeat. However here are some quick points we may like to share.
•Beach: Ideal time to visit the beach is early morning 6-10 AM & evenings 4-6PM. Afternoons on beach can get hot even in winter. I will recommend getting back to hotel before it gets dark, as you will find it difficult to trace your way back in dark. There are no lights on the beach access roads. Also, do make a point to visit the beach in morning hours(during sunrise) at least once. It’s a truly enchanting experience to stroll on the beach with nature’s music and cool breeze. During my stay, I found these morning hours really soothing and they sure make your trip special.
•Sindhudurg Fort: Nice place for history lovers but hardly any structures inside the forts are intact. It was disappointing to see this place littered with plastic bottles and garbage of all kinds. The key attraction of fort is the ‘one and only’ temple of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj.
•Devbag beach & Sangam: A must visit spot for nature lovers. There is something special about this place. Dense greenery all around combined with a serene & unspoiled beach make it special. If you have some extra time, do spend it in just taking a short stroll through this fishing village.
•Boat Ride: This is a common part of itinerary for most visitors. Here is my feedback.
– This ride can be engaged at Devbag(one of the agents has a ticket counter here). However, if you are staying at Tarkarli, ensure you start your boating trip @ Tarkarli beach itself. This way you don’t have to travel to Devbag. Another plus point is that you get to go from Tarkarli beach to Devbag via the backwater which is a good experience(this may not be possible if your ride starts at Devbag)
– If possible, start your ride early morning i.e. between 7-8 AM. You will have to book the boat a night before and they promptly arrive on time to pick you up. As per the locals, chances of spotting dolphins are high in morning hours.
– The cost for boat ride was Rs. 1800 due to season time. The boat can take around 6-8 people. Since we were only three people, we could talk to another small family(3 people) and share the cost.
– The ideal duration of this ride is about 3 hours. However during the crowded season, they may try to compress your trip to 1 & half hour(so that they can be free for next trip). If you have ample time, INSIST that you DON”T want to be hurried back.
– About Spotting Dolphins: One of the key attractions of boat ride is Dolphin ‘Point’. We observed that in the crowded season at least 10-12 similar boats were present in the area and with loud noise of engines. No wonder we did not spot any dolphins. A more dedicated boatman might take you(or you may insist) little far inside the sea and kill the engine for some time in anticipation of spotting the dolphins.
Note: Ironchandru021y we did not spot any dolphins in this paid ‘dolphin safari’, but in the next leg of my konkan trip to Terekhol beach( a secluded beach on the Goa border) we were sitting on the beach one quite afternoon. We did spot quite a few dolphins swimming and occasionally jumping at a far distance while ‘sitting on the beach’. Realised why they say ‘. . . best things in life are FREE!’
– Bhogawe beach & Nivati rocks are one of the key spots to be visited on this ride. This will make your ride real value for money. We were told by our boatman that the beach is rocky and it’s risky to go closer. We later learned from other boatmen that this is just the excuse used to shorten the trip. We don’t know the fact though and it may be a good choice to trust the boatman.
– Tsunami Island: Apparently there are two such adjoining islands. One is totally secluded and other one is being used for water sports and has number of makeshift stalls selling snacks. I think all boatmen take you to the later one since tourists must be finding it convenient.
•Scuba Diving & Snorkelling: Another ‘must do’ at Tarkarli. Following pointers might help you.
– Just like boating trip, many tourists are guided to the scuba/snorkelling site near Sindhudurga fort. In case you are staying near Tarkarli beach, you may do this at a nearby scuba site from beach. There is stall of ‘Rohan Scuba Diving’ on Tarkarli beach. We found these guys very helpful and reasonable. There is a small rocky patch you can see from Tarkarli beach which they use and is suitable for scuba/snorkelling.
Scuba Diving at Tarkarli: I tried this for the first time and was a great experience. Charges were Rs. 1700 per person(1500+ 200(for the CD they provide you of your underwater recording using a special underwater camera). Please note that they need at least 2 people doing scuba diving in order to take you to the site. Alternatively you may request them to find another group for sharing purpose(which is perfectly possible in vacation season). The instructor was very good and properly conducted a quick training session on boat. Afterwards another diver takes you underwater(you need not know swimming) and guides you to the spots with exotic marine creatures and corals).
Snorkelling: For people who are anxious to go underwater(though it’s perfectly safe provided you don’t panic and follow the instructions meticulously), there is a much easier option of snorkelling. Charges were Rs. 400 per person.
For both Boat Ride & Scuba/Snorkelling, I will highly recommend ‘Rohan Scuba Diving’ on Tarkarli Beach. Contact Mr. Ramchandra(09404783216)
Sites in Malvan city:
– Beautiful Ganesh temple built by Late Shri Jayant Salgoankar
– Rock garden(best if visited in the evening during sunset)
– On the way to Tarkarli, you may visit famous Cashew factory called ‘Laxmi-Vishnu’ and buy top quality cashews.
Food: Since we were quite happy with resort restaurant(sea view), we did not try any other place. The resort restaurant serves simple but delicious veg/non-veg Malvani food provided you order well in advance.
