NAINITAL - THE KUMAON BEAUTY.

A gorgeous hill station having a beautiful emerald colored pear shaped lake at a height of 6800 feet in Kumaon range of Himalayas. That's Nainital. This is the best hill station in north India. The lake is called Naini lake and is surrounded by mountains with coniferous trees from all the sides.

The lake is believed to be one of the eyes of  Lord Shiva's wife Sati that had fallen on earth when Lord Shiva carried her body after her act of self-immolation. In fact there is a temple called Naina Devi Temple which is said to be the exact place where the emerald colored eye had fallen.

The mountains surrounding the lake have numerous peaks. The tallest peak is called Naina Peak or China Peak and is at a height of about 8600 feet. It offers you an enchanting view of Nainital lake and its surroundings as well as of the surrounding Kumaon range of mountains. One has to go by car and then take a horse ride to reach this top.There are a couple of points from where one can visualize some of the beautiful mountain tops in this region, such as Snow point and Tiffin top.

View of Kumaon range of mountains from mountain top.

View of Nainital from top.

Nainital is visited by a lot of foreign as well as Indian tourists. There are plenty of hotels of all suitable budgets for accommodations. A boat ride on Nainital lake is a great attraction for tourists as one can see most parts of Nainital during the ride. There is a boat club as well as individual boat men who take you throughout the length of the lake.

There is a high altitude zoo on one of the mountain tops which has endangered species of animals from the Himalayas. The zoo also has a variety of high altitude birds. The zoo is a popular tourist attraction.

 There are two beautiful houses-Governor's House built by architect F.W.Stevens and Gurney House, which used to be the residence of Jim Corbett. The later has been converted into a museum.

 
There is a gurudwara as well as a mosque at Nainital. There are many famous boarding schools here. Mall road is the main shopping place for tourists.

View of Nainital from boat.

Play ground.

View of Nainital lake from Mall road.

One can visit many places in the surrounding, during their stay at Nainital. Nainital is one of the lakes out of four in Nainital district, the other three being Bhimtal, Sattal and Naukuchiyatal. These lakes are worth visiting. One can even  plan overnight stay at Bhimtal, which is fast developing into a favorite tourist destination.

Other places to visit by road are Almora, Ranikhet and Kausani. These are nearby hill stations and share the pleasant cool climate of Nainital. Ranikhet is known for its orchards and has a huge botanical garden and a government run fruit research institute. Another famous spot at Ranikhet is Jhula Devi Temple. There are a few hotels for overnight stay at Ranikhet. Almora is a cantonment town having thick pine and fir trees. Kausani is a picturesque hill station with panaromic view of the Trishul, Nandadevi and Panchachuli mountains. It has a famous ashram called Anashakti ashram, where Mahatma Gandhi had stayed for some time. Kausani also has hotels for overnight stay.

Another place to visit is Jim Corbett National Park, which is India's oldest national park, built to protect the Bengal tiger. It is at a distance of about 62 km from Nainital.

Click Here for a short clip of the beautiful Nainital Lake.