I'd been craving a quick getaway from Bombay's madness for a while and it finally happened last weekend. Three colleagues and I decided on a weekend that worked for everyone and then zeroed in on Prakruti Resorts at Kashid, which is about an hour away from Alibag. I emailed Prakruti for accomodation rates and availability through their site and a very helpful Mr. Tejas from their Bombay office mailed me back promptly. He answered all my questions about the place, like tariff and what was included (3,500 per person, per day, which includes all meals), how to get there, and tourist attractions near the resort (the beach, the fort, the temples).
Since there were only four of us going, I was told that they have only two two-bedroom villas. If those got booked, we'd have to stay at the main house in apartments. We badly wanted the villa, which has a ground floor and a first floor, and both floors have a large sitting area, bedroom, balcony, and bathroom. So we decided to book immediately and they sent a person to pick up the advance cheque and the deal was sealed. We paid 50 percent in advance (Rs. 14,000) and then the balance when we were checking out. Now the countdown began and we were excited!
In the meantime, we had to figure out other logistics. I'm the only one among the four who can drive, and driving four-five hours at a stretch isn't something I was looking forward to. Also, my friends don't trust my driving skills enough to agree to that :) We very stupidly (in hindsight) decided to take a MSRTC bus, booked our seats online, and expected a peaceful bus ride. But we couldn't be more wrong! It was an overcrowded hell! We threw away our return bus tickets and Mr. Shetty (the very helpful and hands-on Prakruti resort owner) arranged a Qualis to bring us back home in comfort. We found out that we could also take a ferry or a catamaran from the Gateway, but those aren't available in the monsoon.
Anyway, we got to Alibag on Friday morning around 11 am and from there took local transport (a big autorikshaw, called a Garuda) from Alibag to Kashid and were at Prakruti Resort at around 12 pm. As soon as we got to the resort, we were enthralled by the natural beauty and greenery that surrounds it, and even the artificial beauty in terms of the architecture and interior design details across the entire resort. The main reception is really beautiful and has all kinds of antiques, including an adorable grandfather clock and a beautiful fountain and a really funny, bendy man statue just outside.
We were handed welcome drinks while the check-in formalities were being completed, then we were taken to our own private villa :)
What's really cool is that they have golf carts to ferry you back and forth from your villa to the main reception or wherever you may want to go in the resort (which is really huge). The two golf cart drivers were very sweet and helpful and chatty. Prakruti also has bullock-carts (I'm not a fan, specially after I noticed the animals were pretty old and should be retired to graze the grass and live out their lives peacefully) to take you from the resort to the private beach, which is a five minute walk. Their private beach is beautiful and clean. The water looked amazing and the sand was spotless - very unlike the beaches in this city. The resort's sweet and helpful beach attendant brings you chairs and ensures people don't go too far out into sea. The resort guests have to take coupons from the reception for access to the private beach, and that ensures it never gets crowded.
I was really worried about the resort's cleanliness because I tend to be a hygiene freak, and I'm sad to say that I was right to be worried. When I went to bed the first night we were there, I found lipstick stains on the white quilt. That really disgusted me, however, it was too late for me to do anything about it. I just wore my full-sleeve shrug over my pjs to make sure my skin didn't make contact with the quilt. The next day, when I told the staff at reception about this, they were very apologetic and surprised at this oversight, so I'm guessing it doesn't happen regularly. They had the quilt covers and sheets changed promptly. Besides that, the villa itself was spotless, and while the bathrooms were very basic (no tub, just a shower), they were really clean, which is more important than fancy fixtures. And they had hot and cold running water 24/7, and had also thoughtfully provided shampoo, soap, and shower caps.
Now about another important part: the food. The three main meals were included in the package and all three were buffets. I'm a major foodie (no surprises there) and the first day I was really disappointed. Lunch was alright, especially because we were starving after the long journey from Bombay, but dinner was disgusting in terms of the food's taste and this incident: the buffet is set in an open-air area, and my friend noticed a cricket jump into the dal and an employee just reached in and pulled it out. The dal wasn't thrown away. Hearing about that grossed me out to no end, so after that I stuck to very visible food, nothing that could camouflage an insect. Insects in your food and then staff reaching in and taking it out is a big no-no! That's really not ok, all the guests could end up with food poisoning. Or imagine finding a huge cricket in your meal as you eat? I really hope the Prakruti people take measures to ensure that their food stays clean and bug-free, specially considering they force the meal and accomodation package on you (there's no option for just accomodation).
The meal I thoroughly enjoyed there was breakfast! Both mornings there was fresh watermelon juice, papaya, cappuccinos, milk (cold and hot), cornflakes and chocos, brown and white toast, and eggs made to order. The first morning they had Indian options like idli and wadas with sambar and chutney, and poha. The second morning, there was upma, uttapams with sambar and chutney, and batata wadas (weird to include that at breakfast right?). Lunch and dinner on the second day was pretty good too. Lunch had a delicious chole and some yummy paneer, besides the usual rice preparations and assorted rotis and many other things I didn't try. Dinner had a live pasta counter and the chefs put together some amazing pasta, with a choice of spaghetti, penne, fussili, or macaroni in white or red sauce, and several veggies like mushroom, olives, bell peppers, sweet corn, and baby corn.
Besides the high and low points of the food and the cleanliness, there were several other high and low points. One low point was discovering that we wouldn't be able to go to the Phansad Animal Sanctuary nearby because it closes during the monsoon - this of course doesn't have anything to do with Prakruti resorts, but I've included it so that others can make an informed decision if they are planning a trip. The second was realizing there was no dolphin safari (I'd read about that and was really excited because dolphins are just adorable, so that was disappointing). And one low point about the Resort, their room service only extends to sending tea or coffee to your villa, no snacks, no meals, no drinks. For all that you have to come either to the main restaurant or the poolside.
Now the high points: We did get to go see the Murud-Janjira Fort (again, Mr. Shetty arranged for a car to take us there since we didn't have our own vehicle), but viewed it from a distance and were too scared to get in the boats that would take us there (really tiny, rickety old things). Besides that there was plenty to do in the resort. The entire place is beautiful and vast, so early mornings I'd jog around discovering new paths. There's a store inside the resort, which sells stuff like swimsuits, floaters, and sunscreen, and even coconut water. The store also rents out bicycles. So I got to ride a cycle after a long time :)
There are also two pools in the resort, and tables nearby where they serve snacks. The pools were overcrowded, which is to be expected on a long weekend, I guess. Prakruti also has a Kerela Ayurvedic massage center, so on our second day there, all four of us got massages. They have two massage rooms so we took turns and then met at the pool. While the massage was fun (and ticklish), and the masseuse was very nice, I was left bruised and battered after the massage. So if you can't handle a wooden massage table, I'd suggest staying away.
Besides what went right and what went wrong, I rate Prakruti highest on service. Everyone from the owner, to the golf-cart drivers, to the beach attendant, to the housekeeping and room service staff was helpful and sweet all the time. The resort's beauty, both natural and man-made comes a close second. With the excellent service, beautiful resort, and amazing villa all to ourselves, Prakruti made our weekend getaway really fun. Some things they can do to improve: move their buffet indoors to avoid encounters of the insect kind and ensure that no lipstick stains are left on sheets and duvets. But other than these massive hiccups, the resort is amazing.
So next time you're planning a weekend away from the city (if you're in Bombay or Pune), skip the usual suspects (Lonavala-Khandala) and head to Prakruti Resorts at Kashid instead. Remember to either take good company or a good book and make the most of the clean beach!
