This Year, Kickstart Your Summer Right With Shimla Summer Festival

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Shimla, the very name transports you into a dream where you're walking along the ridge with candy floss in your hand and the sun shining upon you through the icy cold breeze. I give you the perfect excuse to visit the city and live this reality as Shimla welcomes summer with the Shimla Summer Festival this June.

Credit: Nagesh Kamath

Photo of Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India by Saumiabee

Shimla Summer Festival

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Photo of This Year, Kickstart Your Summer Right With Shimla Summer Festival by Saumiabee

A time of complete revelry, the Shimla Summer Festival is a popular event that is organised by the locals. Usually a full-fledged 10-day event, the festival witnesses a host of events that are suitable for every age and every preference. A platform where local culture and tradition is on display in its full splendour, the festival is a must visit if you'd like to delve into the beautiful Himachali culture. The event offers you everything you would need in a city festival- folk music, dance performances, handicrafts exhibition, photography exhibition, a flower show and even an ice-skating event.

The idea of the festival is to promote local talent and attract tourism, so if you're heading to the festival, please focus on how you can make your trip more sustainable. Please do not dirty the city and counterfeit the efforts that the locals have made.

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Photo of This Year, Kickstart Your Summer Right With Shimla Summer Festival by Saumiabee

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Photo of This Year, Kickstart Your Summer Right With Shimla Summer Festival by Saumiabee

Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Photo of This Year, Kickstart Your Summer Right With Shimla Summer Festival by Saumiabee

The vibrance of the festival is heightened by children from schools across the city who perform cultural shows on pertinent topics of the times. Alongside, the highly-coveted fashion show represents the talent of young, local designers. Needless to say that all this vibrance is backed-up with a host of cuisines at your disposal. From Himachali, Tibetan to Chinese and North-Indian food, at Shimla Summer Festival, it's a party for your taste-buds too!

Things To Do In Shimla:

If you're in Shimla for the festival, it also makes for a good opportunity to roam around. Here's what you can do:

What's a visit to a hill-station if you don't undertake at least one trek? Chadwick Waterfall, located only 7km from the main city is the perfect trek to start your day with. Begin the trek early morning and try to catch the sunrise from the waterfall. The rising sun makes everything poetic and the waterfall gets soaked in magic. It is definitely a sight that you cannot miss.

Credit: Max Pixel

Photo of Viceregal Lodge & Botanical Gardens, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India by Saumiabee

This is a marvel of British architecture. The viceregal lodge, situated at the top of Shimla overlooking rich, sprawling gardens is another place that you must visit. Originally constructed as a summer-retreat, the lodge is now used to promote research and development in the field of science and arts. Do visit if you are bent towards history and architecture.

Scandal Point

Credit: Darshak Pandya

Photo of This Year, Kickstart Your Summer Right With Shimla Summer Festival by Saumiabee

Another tourist attraction, the Scandal Point is perfect for photography enthusiasts as the landscape becomes ideal to catch Shimla's beautiful colours. If you're lucky, from Scandal Point, you can even see snowy peaks on a clear day.

For much more on what do to in Shimla for a perfect summer, read this.

Where To Stay:

Photo of The Oberoi Clarkes, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India by Saumiabee

This is definitely one of the best properties to live at in Shimla. The antique decor of the hotel will make you feel part of the Colonial era. A completely wooden structure, the passageways are adorned by cute little windows that overlook the bazaar beneath. With magnificent views of the city, a stay at Oberoi Clarks will not disappoint you.

Cost: ₹10,000- ₹14,000 per room (for two, breakfast included)

How to Get to Shimla:

Air: You can fly to the Jubbarhatti Airport in Shimla, to which there is one flight from New Delhi everyday. A ticket will cost you anywhere between ₹2,000-₹4,000 and it will take about 1 hour 20 minutes to reach.

Road: Getting to Shimla from New Delhi by road is very convenient. It takes only about 7hrs to complete the journey. The route you would be following is Delhi-Sonipat-Panipat-Karnal-Ambala-Morni Hills-Pinjaur-Kalka-Shimla.

Rail: You can take a train from New Delhi to Kalka, after which you can take the toy train to Shimla. The toy train is one that everyone must experience at least once in their lives. The toy train runs slow and gives you a breathtaking view of the mountains.

Credit: Pixhere

Photo of This Year, Kickstart Your Summer Right With Shimla Summer Festival by Saumiabee

So don't waste time overthinking your summer trip for 2018, visit Shimla for a wholesome experience.

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