Cheese-Making To Dolphin Watching, These 6 Farmstays In India Offer You Unique Experiences!

From cheese-making to tea- tasting, dolphin watching to milking cows, mat weaving to pottery making, farmstays in India offer a unique set of experiences to travellers.

Ever thought of a holiday which goes beyond the typical hill stations, or the beach vacations? Ever thought beyond the luxurious spa retreats or the pilgrimage spots in India? Ever thought of a holiday where you can indulge in activities like milking cows, making cheese, picking up tea leaves and planting paddy? Ever wondered how it is to wake up in the midst of greenery, breathing in fresh air and reconnecting with your inner self?

Welcome to the new genre of vacation trends, farmstays in India, where you can indulge in a variety of activities worth exploring, giving you a different experience to look forward to, incorporating both relaxation and adventure.

Listing down the ones which caught my interest and which I personally found worth exploring,

Destiny Farmstay

Ooty, Tamil Nadu

Located near Ooty – in the Nilgiris, this offers activities like riding into a sunset or trekking over the hills, and camping as well. For kids, they have kid-friendly activities such as petting calves, and playing with and feeding rabbits. If that doesn’t strike you as interesting, you can just unwind in their holistic spa indulging in Balinese massages, while the kids experience farmlife, first hand.

The farm is complete by itself, populated with a stable of horses, a diary of cows, a hutch of rabbits , guinea pigs , sheep and geese. For the interested ones, you also have the provision to learn about their ecofriendly farming practices, as well.

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For more information, visit them here.

Acres Wild

Coonoor, Tamil Nadu

Unlike the previous one, this doesn’t offer resort facilities but this is a unique, one-of-its-kind farm. Located in Coonoor, this is a 22 acre organic cheese making farmstay! Here, cheese is made in an organic way, sans pesticides and fertilisers.

The USP of this place is the two day cheese-making course, which starts from milking the cows to processing the cheese and preparing your own flavoured cheese. The constraint, however is the limited accommodation, due to which prior booking is highly recommended. Making gourmet cheese obtained from the milk of hybrid Jersey and Holstein cows is an activity of interest here.

For more information, visit them here.

Spiti Ecosphere

Kaza, Himachal Pradesh

This is another beautiful farmstay in India run by locals. This is an initiative giving travellers a peek into their local farming practices and the intricities of water management. Travellers have the opportunity to farm crops such as sweet pea, sattu, etc. For the adventure seeking, they offer yak safaris and leopard spotting safaris, as well.

This is located on the Leh-Manali highway

For more information, visit them here.

Heritage Tea Estates

Assam

This is located in Assam, and if you are a tea-lover like me, this would interest you, as well. Here, you have the opportunity to pick tea leaves and learn the subtle art of tea tasting, as well. For the luxury seeking crowd, they have a private lake and a golf course, five kilometers away. They have a vast number of accommodation options available, beautiful tea themed retreats to stay in, elephant rides and activities such as treks and birdwatching. You can also spot rhinos and head off nearby to Hoolongapar Gibbon Sanctuary to spot India’s only ape, Hoolock gibbon.

If this doesn’t excite you, they have river- rafting and dolphin watching options. Also, available are cooking classes, from North India to Anglo- Indian and Assamese cuisine.

For more details, visit them here.

Emerald Trail

Bhimtal, Uttarakhand

This is a pet friendly, 3 acre property located in Jungaliagoan, a village located 9 kms uphill from Bhimtal. This is an ideal destination to have a unique holiday experience. You have the opportunity to explore the mountains and valleys together and they offer many interesting activities to its visitors .

You can enjoy trekking and exploring the nearby forest areas, or also fishing in the nearby Chaapi River. It is a haven for a few uncommon migratory birds like the magpie and the black headed jay. Hence, it serves as a treat for bird watchers and photography enthusiasts to capture the exotic species of birds and butterflies. There are plenty of lakes to do boating and you can also plan other adventure sports such as paragliding, depending on the weather.

The food served here is largely the produce of the farm and even the milk served in the morning tea/coffee is freshly sourced from the cows, which are a part of Emerald Trail. This is among the highly rated farmstays in India.

For more information, visit them here.

Dwarka Farmstay

Sindhudurg, Maharashtra

This is a 15 acre picturesque property located in Sawantwadi, in the Sindhudurg district at Maharashtra. It is around 30 minutes drive from the pristine Vengurla beach.

It encompasses a beautiful orchard and a farm. They offer various interesting in-house activities such as, walks to the nearby pottery village, bamboo workshop, and the experience of mat weaving. Also available are water sports such as para sailing, scuba diving, kayaking and snorkeling. They have a variety of fishing options as well. They serve authentic Malvani cuisine, for food lovers. The property comprises of nine double rooms.

For more information, visit them here.

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