If you love Sea, you will definitely love Bakkhali, chaotic but beautiful beach. Maybe half a day you will spend at the seashore. Being a very small place, you will have a few sightseeing options.

At a distance of approximately 130 kilometers, Bakkhali, the nearest beach of Kolkata, can be your next weekend destination. It is located in one of the deltaic islands of the Bay of Bengal. Being a part of the Sundarban forest, Bakkhali has unmatched beauty to offer, mostly during sunrise and sunset. Probably for the first time, you will see how the tide can change the sealine, during low tide the sealine move so far that you can literally walk for 30 minutes straight.

Henry Island

Henry island is half an hour far from Bakkhali. This place has some accommodation options too. Surrounding greeneries look very soothing from the watchtower. You can even walk for 15 minutes to reach Henry Island beach through the section of forests, as per local mangrove trees can be spotted during the walk. The beach feels abandoned and calm than the Bakkhali counterpart.

Jambu Dwip

If you love ferry ride and want to have some adrenalin rush in the middle of the bouncy ocean, visit Jambu Dwip.

Fraserganj

Fraserganj is famous for fishing, in the morning you can’t even stand long due to odd fish smell. This place has a major role in supplying fishes throughout the state. This locality also has few windmills which produce electricity.

Crocodile project

A part of the forest range is opened for the public to show few crocodiles.

Know more about Bakkhali here.

Accommodation:

There are plenty of options available for a comfortable and budget stay. Normally the hotel fare remains low than any other sea destination of Bengal, although you might have to bargain a lot in some cases. Our first recommendation will be WBTDC lodge, one of the best options in Bakkhali. Other good options can be Balaka lodge, Hotel Babylon, Hotel Amaravati, etc. You should check out our How a Hotel should be post to know must-have basic amenities and privacy checks.

Fooding

You will get Chinese, Mughlai and Bengali cuisine throughout the Bakkhali but the experience could be bitter. Few of the restaurants serve Bengali cuisine in the meal system, if you want to save more, you may try out there. Other and better option would be to dine in the Hotel you are staying, of course, few hotels serve good quality food but charge unreasonably sometimes. If you like crab don’t miss it here.

Transportation

Bakkhali is well connected by road and rail. Every hour or so you will get a train for Namkhana from Sealdah station which will take approx 3 hours then you can hire a local cab, motor van or bus to reach Bakkhali, another 30 to 40 minutes. By car, you can reach Bakkhali via Dimond Harbour and recently opened Hatania Doania Bridge. Even you have an option for bus services from Esplanade to reach Namkhana and then hire local transportation to reach Bakkhali. For local sightseeing, you may hire Toto (E-Rickshaw), Motor Van or small cab.

• Bus Timings – From Esplanade 06:30 AM, 7 AM, 07:30 AM (AC), 8 AM, 2 PM (Approx time 4:30 Hrs). From Bakkhali 1 PM, 2 PM, 06:30 PM. The fare is INR 93 for non-AC and INR 210 for AC.
• Train Timings – Train fare in INR 25.

Best time to Visit Bakkhali

You can visit the place whenever you want but during monsoon and winter, this place becomes so pleasant. Having a cup of tea/coffee in the rain and watching the sea is a fantastic combination, you will love it.

Nearby Places to Visit

You may like to add a few more days and visit nearby places like Mousuni Island and Ganga Sagar.

Suggested Itinerary

• Day 1 – Start around 5 Am from Kolkata and Reach Bakkhali by 10 to 11 AM. In the afternoon visit Henry Island.
• Day 2 – Visit Crocodile Project, Bonbibi Temple, Fraserganj & Jambu Dwip. Return to Kolkata.

Conclusion

Bakkhali is any day a good beach to refresh your mind in a low budget and short duration. We travel to places to get some peace or to find our inner soul. But here situations sometimes get chaotic which somehow defame this place. Spend some time on the beach out of all hustle.

Click to follow our Social Media Handles to get the latest updates

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest

Although, we are in a process to queue up the next post shortly until then do subscribe to Rider Escaped Newsletter to get future updates.

BTW, You can check out our Puri, Vizag, Mandarmani, Digha guide here.

If you loved the content, share this with your buddies. Importantly, if I missed out on anything do let me know in the comment section, I will include in the post.

The post Bakkhali, a Chaotic but Beautiful Beach appeared first on Rider Escaped

Mandarmani is famous for calm surroundings and different water sports also. One of the pleasant beaches in West Bengal. Once upon a time, we were allowed to take our own vehicle to the beach itself but due to some stupid people who used to race on the beach, beachside drive/ride is completely banned now.

If you want to spend some quality time with your inner soul or with dearest ones, Mandarmani is certainly one of the best beaches in West Bengal. A small detour of approx 9 KM from Chawlkhola (public transport is easily available) will take you straight to Mandarmani beach. Many options are available for stay, almost in every budget. Check out our Digha post to get direction to reach Chawlkhola and public transport options from Kolkata are also discussed. 

Although we are working to get some hotel details in every budget, we will try to publish in our Recommended Hotel Details section. Also, Check our generic guide Hotel Booking Tips to get better rooms.

Fooding is completely individuals choice, in case you are fond of fish, there are lots of stalls selling different tastes of fish items, just check whether those are fresh. Few more nearby beaches:

• Digha
• Chandpur
• Shankarpur
• Tajpur
• Bankiput
• Junput

An update and more detailing to this post are due for our next Mandarmani visit.

Click to follow our Social Media Handles to get the latest updates

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest

Although, we are in a process to queue up the next post shortly until then do subscribe to Rider Escaped Newsletter to get future updates.

BTW, You can check out our Puri, Vizag, Bakkhali, Digha guide here.

If you loved the content, share this with your buddies. Importantly, if I missed out on anything do let me know in the comment section. I will include it in the post.

The post Mandarmani, beautiful beach of Bengal appeared first on Rider Escaped

Digha is one of the most famous sea beaches in West Bengal. It is approximately 190 KM from Kolkata and very well connected by road and train also. By your own vehicle or public/government bus, you can easily be there in 4 Hours. This can be your next weekend trip if you not been to Digha else you can rejoice the old memories. In fact, some people consider Digha as “Goa of West Bengal”. But I doubt, every place has its own charm, we can not compare them at all.

How to Reach Digha?

FIrstly, Start early around 04:30 AM from Kolkata in your own vehicle or 11:45 PM (previous day) by Bus from Esplanade. In 1.5 hours you will reach Kolaghat, where everybody stops here for quick bite and rest. There are multiple restaurants, find a suitable one for you based on your companion. Trust me, they all almost taste the same, few exceptions like Sher-E-Punjab, etc but again they are quite expensive too.

Continue your journey towards Nandakumar, a good four-lane highway is a treat to ride or drive. Sadly, after Nandakumar, it is a single lane road to Digha and beyond. Be aware, people and local transports are quite careless on the road. You can stretch yourself and reach Digha, or take a 15 min tea break in Contai, depends on you.

Accommodation:

Nowadays, Digha is oversaturated with hotels of almost every budget, although few hotels restrict single person check-in. If you can walk a bit to the sea or have your own vehicle I will suggest staying in New Digha near Amravati park, quite a nice ambiance, hotels are decent & pocket-friendly too. Otherwise, Old Digha has Seahawk, Saikatabas, etc. Nowadays, New Digha got more tourists than the OLD Digha but spending an evening in OLD Digha Beach road feels always good, try to be there till late evening and refresh yourself.

We have listed a few good accommodations in our Recommended Hotel Details. Also, check out our Hotel Booking Tips to get better rooms.

Fooding:

Fooding is completely individuals choice, if you are fond of fish, there are lots of stalls selling fried & tandoori fish, just check whether those are fresh or not.

Sightseeing around Digha:

Chandaneswar Temple:

A temple of Lord Shiva. Keep leather items in the vehicle, those are not allowed inside the temple.

Talsari:

Talsari is also a very beautiful place for nature lovers, soak into the beauty for hours. In the afternoon, cool breezes will relax you. Lots of red crabs, you can run behind them.

Udaipur Beach:

Udaipur beach now looks like Goa, people drink beer and all. But just get aside and feel the nature. Sea is a bit calm here, not roaring like Digha. If you love nature and want to spend some time with yourself, walk the beach route towards Digha (Approx 1.5 KM). During sunset, this middle point looks divine, you can defenitely connect with yourself.

Note: Be careful, as this route will be empty and dark.

Mohona:

Passing through new Digha Gate, surrounding greeneries, you can reach Mohona in less than 30 minutes. A variety of fishes is available here at cheaper rates. Go straight to the end, spend some time to observe the beauty of the place. Lastly, Sunrise from this place looks awesome.

Also, you can enjoy the Rope-way ride, Marine Aquarium, Zoological Survey of India.

Also, there are multiple shops to buy souvenirs, key-rings, handicraft items, pearls jewelry and Saankh, you may get these items really cheap based on your bargaining skill.

Additionally, few more nearby beaches:

• Mandarmani
• Chandpur
• Shankarpur
• Tajpur
• Bankiput
• Junput

Transportation:

There are electric rickshaws, motor vans, Mahindra maximos and cars for local sightseeing, choose as per your budget above are few nearby places.

We have been in Digha a couple of times via different modes of transport (Car, Motorcycle, Bus, train). But I suggest taking your own vehicle to Digha else via Government bus (Bus fare: NON-AC: 145-155 & AC: 300-330). The train is also a very good option but you will reach almost around 10:30 – 11:00 AM which I personally don’t like.

Click to follow our Social Media Handles to get the latest updates

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest

Although, we are in a process to queue up the next post shortly until then do subscribe to Rider Escaped Newsletter to get future updates.

Similarly, You can check out about other Sea Beaches in India here.

If you loved the content, share this with your buddies. Importantly, if I missed out on anything do let me know in the comment section. I will include it in the post.

The post Digha, most popular Beach of West Bengal appeared first on Rider Escaped