Summary - Inclusions
Meghalaya Indeed is where Clouds meet the earth , Water never stops flowing and every blink of an eye is a waterfall or a beautiful landscape. Below I have tried to make easy, simple, step by step itinerary to my #Meghalaya trip. I travelled within Meghalaya with a local who became a friend (Vibhu) while on the trip. So, of course the local hidden gems are right here below in the itinerary. To my surprise he was a Maharashtrian living in Meghalaya as his dad works in Border Security force posted on Indo-Bangladesh border , Vibhu also has his tourist car service. So, I will leave his no. incase you are looking for a cab to travel around. I had rented a bike for this trip. Below #itinerary is planned in a way that you save time and kms while travelling without missing out on anything. #Hotels, #Transport #Restaurants are suggested below. Each and every cost mentioned below in incl. 2 adults #food , #stay , #ticket, #fuel , #car . You can choose hotels as per your #budget. My suggestions are based on my budget for the given trip and given day.
Some facts about Meghalaya before we start the itinerary -
1) Sunday's are good to travel in Meghalaya only & only , If you have your own or rented self drive vehicle. As most of the population in Meghalaya are Christians. Sunday Church mass and Sunday off is taken very seriously. People spend most of their day in Church and its almost each and everyone
2) November is best time to travel and the water is in it clearest and cleanest form during this month.
3) Everyone knows English , if not Hindi. Khasi is the main tribe and main tribal language although there are many tribes and languages.
4) Carry jacket for Cold, Rain & regular clothes for summer as well because the weather in Meghalaya changes every hour of the day.
5) Early Sunrise 4:30AM-5AM & Early Evenings 5PM
Itinerary -
1) Reach Guwahati by Flight or Train. Arrive by 2PM in Guwahati
2) Go to Paltan Bazar. You will get multiple shared TATA Sumo and Bus options at 300/- . Take whichever leaves earlier. Leave by 2:30 . Guwahati to Shillong takes 3hrs (100kms)
3) Reach by 6PM in Shillong and Hire a bike for 4 days. Book your bike from Ace Bike Rental 97747 62192 . Yamaha RayZ is for 700/- per day 2800/- https://www.instagram.com/acebikerental/ . Fill Petrol tank full and also carry 2-3 Ltrs of Petrol in plastic bottle which you can keep under the seat. Incase you are looking for car you can connect with Vibhu - 7005120852
4) Checkin at Airbnb by 7PM - shorturl.at/gAGT0 the room price is 2200/- per night and is close to all the main locations of Shillong. Use my link to Referral link to Sign up and Get 2200/- off on the booking shorturl.at/pqMZ1
5) 7:30PM Get freshen up with the best coffee ever. I instantly became fan of this coffee shop and called the owner to compliment for the same and asked for few pouches of coffee and DIY to try at home.
6) Head to Police Bazaar to see market of Shillong, walking distance 100mtrs. 8PM - 8:30PM
7) 8:45PM Tango Restro Bar & Lounge . This is the best place in Shillong and the entire youth of Shillong is here on weekends. However, End the day early as there is lot to do the next day. Wrap up the day by 11PM
2) Shillong to Laitlum Grand Canyon, also known as the dark valley because of the depth and dense forest (23Kms , 1hr) It may take longer to reach as the road is quite scenic which makes us slow our bikes down and click some pictures. 6:15 AM at Laitlum Grand Canyon
3) Dawki River - Crystal Clear Water as if you are floating in the air. Laitlum to Dawki River (2hrs , 67Kms) Reach at 9:30AM . Spent an amazing time with Boat owner , I spent almost 2hrs here Boating , Swimming and Yes sipping Beer. I asked the boat owner if i can get a beer here, to my surprise in next 5mins I had a Tuborg Strong on my boat. Dawki is one of those waterbodies which is shared by India and Bangladesh. You can see Bangladesh on the other side and their part of the river and tourist spot. You can call the boat owner (Bahdeng) when you reach Dawki boating point - 8729966780
4) India Bangladesh Friendship Gate - Border Crossing @12PM. This is a border crossing point with immigrations office. If you want to visit Bangladesh you can enter from here by road with a valid visa. You cannot cross the line beyond Indian National Flag. However , the feeling of standing on border of India is priceless. There is a BP petrol pump here refuel your petrol to full tank.
5) Borhill Falls. From the border gate to Borhill falls is an amazing road with greenery on 1 side on the left being Bangladesh and Right being India. (10Kms , 30mins) Reach at 12:45PM
6) Mawlynnong - Cleanest village in Asia , from Borhill falls to Mawlynnong (20Kms , 1hr, Reach at 1:45PM) . Its an amazing with village with local Khasi houses , Extremely Clean. I also got an opportunity to visit one of the local Khasi house. Its a must visit place to learn about how in a distant village they have maintained health ,hygiene & happiness as the first priority
7) Lunch in the same village @ 2:30PM. Home cooked food 150/- @ Wahumsang's Food.
8) Living Foot Bridge the most loved attraction of Meghalaya, is in the same village. However, you can go only walking from the restaurant to the Living foot bridge a walk of 15-20mins will get you there. Leave by 4PM
10) Mawlynnong to Stay in Cheerapunjiee is (70Kms , 2hrs 30mins) . Its better to take a stay in Cheerapunjee as next day we will be covering the Cheerapunjee region. The name of the #Airbnb is Rani Cherapunjee Homestay 1450/- per night and the link to stay is shorturl.at/ESUW5 . You can sign up on Airbnb with my link and get 2200/- off shorturl.at/pqMZ1
Day 2 -
1) Wake up at 4AM. No need to Bath as we are going to go to an exceptional waterfall with natural pond for it. Leave hotel at 4:30 AM
2) Double Decker Living Root Bridge - (22Kms , 1hr) Reach at 5:30AM. Leave at 6:30AM from here
3) Wei Sawdong Watefalls - (9Kms 30mins) Reach at 7AM, Small walk leads you under the waterfall. This is one of the most beautiful waterfall as per me, it easily beats those picturesque Bali waterfalls. The waterfall has a clear , pure water with a natural pond to Swim and Bath. You wont find much people which makes this place a 10 out off 10. Spend an hour or 2 here with breathtaking water and view. Leave from here at 9-9:30AM
4) Nohkalikai Falls (13Kms , 30mins) Reach @ 10 is the tallest waterfall in India. Its height is 1115 feet . You have option to either just have a glimpse from top or to go at the bottom of the falls. Below is an image of Falls from miles away, imagine its beauty at a close look.
5) Mawsmai Cave (11Kms , 30mins) Reach @ 11:30AM
6) Seven Sisters Fall View Point (1.5Kms , 15mins Walk)
7) Khasi Heritage Village (5okms , 1hr30mins) Reach 3PM . Its a centre to know about Khasi culture right in middle of a forest
8) Elephant Falls (15kms , 30mins ) 5PM
9) Cathedral of Mary Help of Christians 5:45PM (12kms , 30mins) - Landmark of Shillong also called as the Blue Church
10) Thats the end of the trip. There are two ways to head back to your location. Option 1 - is leave from Shillong to Guwahati and take a flight back to your respective city. Option 2 - I took a flight the next morning at 11:40AM from Shillong Airport to Kolkata. There is only 1 flight in a day from Shillong Airport and goes to Kolkata only. This airport operates only for these 2-3hrs of the day. I took this flight to get this unique experience of flying on ATR42 its flies so low that you can actually use your internet all the way till Kolkata and the best part was I was flying alone on this flight.
9) Sunsets in Meghalaya is quite early at 5PM. So, Its safe to checkin to a hotel by 6:30PM as roads at some places aren't good for night drive. So, will take a hotel enroute to tomorrows route of Cheerapunjee. Scenes at 4PM are like below.
