A place for ALL SEASONS!. Review on Silvassa

(WITH THIS REVIEW I COMPLETE A CENTURY ON MS! WITH MY 100TH REVIEW, HERE COMES MY FIRST VIDEO REVIEW!)

If you are a Mumbaikar and want to have a weekend relaxing getaway, then Silvassa should be one of the ideal choices! Silvassa is a not a fantastic tourist destination like Daman, Lonavala or Mahabaleshwar. But though, it is fast becoming a tourist spot as it is nestled amidst greenery and hills and makes your stay quite comfortable.

HOW TO REACH THERE?

Silvassa is the capital of the union territory Dadra Nagar Haveli. It is located to the north of Mumbai, tucked in the lower Sahyadris between Maharashtra and Gujarat.

BY ROAD: Silvassa by road is 185 kms from Mumbai.

BY RAIL: Nearest railway station is Vapi (26 kms)

BY AIR: Nearest airport is Mumbai.

BEST TIME OF THE YEAR?

The Dadra Nagar Haveli Tourism describes Silvassa as ‘A place for all seasons’. It is true as Silvassa has pleasant climate throughout the year. Even during the summers, the temperature does not soar too high.

WHERE TO STAY?

Silvassa has many hotels available for accommodation. The best among them are:

1. Kamat’s Silvassa Resort: The resort where I had stayed. It is located on the Naroli Road. All rooms include AC and each room gives a nice view of the Damanganga River. The staff and the receptionists are quite friendly and helpful. The resort also includes of swimming pool, kiddies park and indoor games. It has two restaurants-Kamat-ni-wadi and Little Chef A/C Restaurant. The south Indian food was quite nice here but the Punjabi and Chinese dishes were okay. But though, I would recommend this resort for a relaxing and comfortable stay.

2. Ras Resorts: Ras Resorts is located on the other side of River Damanganga. It is slightly costly that Kamat and gives better facilities. It also has a Wellness Centre and a Helath Club.

3. Damanganga Valley Resort: This resort located opposite Ras Resorts and is slightly away from Damanganga River. All luxury facilites are available and the rates are reasonable.

PLACES OF INTEREST IN AND AROUND SILVASSA:

1. Tribal Cultural Museum: Tribal Cultural Museum is located in the heart of Silvassa (which is also called as ‘Chaar Rasta’) near the Tourist Information Center. It was established in the year 2000 with the sole objective of preserving the rapidly vanishing tribal culture. It depicts the socio cultural heritage of simple tribal folks of the Union Territory. The museum showcases masks, hunting tools, fishing gear, musical instruments, agricultural implements, household kitchen articles and life-size statues of local tribals and their leaders. A visit to this museum is a must. (This museum is closed on Tuesdays.)

2. Our Lady of Piety Church: This Church is located just opposite to the Tribal Cultural Museum. It was established in 1897. A visit here should also be made because it is one of the very few Portuguese structures in Silvassa

3. Lion Safari Park: In my opinion, this is the best and the most important tourist place in Silvassa! It is located in Vasona, 9 kms away from Silvassa on the Khanvel Road. It is spread over 20 hectares and it houses a lion named Dharam and a lioness named Sonal. One is driven around in vehicles with ‘nets’ to watch the duo lions. It is really fantastic to see lions from so close distance in this park. The entry fee in this park is Rs. 25 for adults and Rs. 10 for children. Timings: 9:00am-5:00pm (Closed on Mondays). If you visit Silvassa, do not even think of missing this place. Lion Safari Park is a place Dadra Nagar Haveli is proud of!

4. Deer Park: Deer Park is located just 2-3 kms away from Lion Safari Park. There is no entry fee here to enter this park and one can go in their vehicles to watch the deer. There are around 150 deer in this park, but one may get to see only a few as deer usually are found deep inside the park where no car can go.

5. Vanganga Lake Garden: The Vanganga Lake Garden, located in Dadra 5 kms away from Silvassa, is well kept with lush green garden, sea of flowers, jogging paths, thatched huts and paddle boats. The main attraction here is the lake where boating is a beautiful experience. This garden is full of greenery and a visit to this place is highly recommended! This park is closed on Tuesdays.

6. The Hirwa Van Garden: Hirwa Van Garden is located in Piparia, on the Silvassa-Dadra Road. It is a beautiful garden with rustic stone walls, misty cascades, twin arches, colourful flowers and roaring waterfalls. It’s popularity is lesser than Vanganga Lake Garden and therefore this garden is less crowded. But though, it should be visited to experience its complete greenery.

7. Khanvel: Khanvel is another tourist destination, located from 20 kms away from Silvassa. There are 2 tourist destination here-Vanvihar Tourist Complex and Bindrabin Tadkeshwara Temple. Vanvihar Tourist Complex is a tourist complex comprising of rolling meadows, terraced gardens, Tribal Museum, Cacti Garden. Bindrabin Tadkeshwara Temple is an old Shiva Temple on the banks of the river Sakartod.

The Silvassa town has is the only urbanized and modernized town in the whole of Dadra Nagar Haveli territory. It has cyber café, restaurants, supermarkets, hardware stores, food stalls etc.-everything a modern Indian city consists of. But Silvassa has no greenery and it looks like a concrete jungle. The DNH Tourism should make Silvassa as beautiful and attractive as possible because Silvassa is the only tourist place in the Dadra Nagar Haveli and also because it is located just 35 kms away from Daman, another tourist place which has a beach and which is more popular than Silvassa.

On the whole, Silvassa is a nice tourist place, which can be visited any time of the year. Though it is not so attractive and beautiful, the places of interest here are very nice and worth visiting. If you want to have a nice weekend holiday, then you should try Silvassa!

(PLZZ RATE MY REVIEW AND ADD A COMMENT)