Meghalaya is a spectacular state in North East India. In every point of this state, tourist can fascinate with the beauty of nature.
I heard those words many times. So I decided to explore this awesome natural beauty and when we visited Meghalaya, I realized the story what I read or heard about this state is true. Mountain, Hill, Lush Greenery, Rain altogether makes Meghalaya an amazing tourism place in not only in India but also the World.
The state has divided into three parts – Khasi Hills, Jaintia Hills and Garo Hills and each area has its charm and uniqueness. We visited all three regions to see more closely.
We landed at Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport which is also known as Guwahati Airport and it is the nearest airport from Meghalaya. After check-out from the airport, we took a hired taxi. AC, Non-AC and shared all type of taxi were available with the different price range. Drivers were charging around INR 400-500 for shared, INR 2000 for non-AC and INR 2500 for AC taxi (price may vary according to season and time). I preferred AC taxi.
Just before 15 km from the Shillong – capital of Meghalaya, there was a nice big lake, called Umium Lake. Many travellers preferred to stay in this location. But I did not stay here. I stayed in Shillong town. In the evening I roamed at local Police Bazaar. There were numbers of good restaurants in the locality. We took our dinner in one of the restaurants, and it was tasty food.
Next day morning, it was a day 1 journey. We left for Sohra or Cherrapunji. One thing I want to mention here, if you are planning for an early morning journey like 5 am or 6 am you will get a nice view of nature. So, we started our journey within 5.30 a.m.
Waterfalls are the main attraction in Sohra. On the outskirt of Sohra, we visited Wah Kaba Waterfalls. Our next destination was Dainthlen Falls. The place where we were standing was the starting point of the falls. When someone visits Sohra, he/she must visit Nohkalikai Falls. So as we and enjoyed the wonderful scenery of this place. Then we visited Seven Sister falls. Another attraction of Sohra is the cave. We visited Mawsmai Caves. It took 7 -8 minutes to enter and exit the cave. Our next destination was “Double Decker Root Bridge“. To reach this bridge, you will need to walk 3500 steps down this mountain and in a way; this is a full-day affair! The speciality of these bridges is roots of many trees have come together to form this bridge. This bridge is called Double Decker because these are two bridges one above another. So, we walked to that side from this bridge and come back from the one above it. There was another bridge called the Rainbow bridge, but we did not visit. If any traveller likes to visit Rainbow Waterfalls, then he has to walk from Double Decker Root Bridge for 1 – 1.5 hours. We spend two days to witness those awesome views.
Now, we started the journey of Day 3, and our next journey was Dawki. It took around 3.5 hours from Sohra to Dawki. At Dawki we saw the crystal clear river, and the river was so clear that we saw the stone at the bottom. We enjoyed boating. The best time to visit this place is from December to February as this time water becomes much clearer. There is a place called Shnongpdeng where tourist can enjoy water sports. If you have enough time then spend one more day, visit Jowai in Jaintia Hills region, and enjoy the local food. After enjoying at Dawki we returned to Shillong. It was around 3 hour’s journey.
On day 4 we tour at Shillong. We went to Laitlum Grand Canyon. It felt like we were standing right in the middle of the clouds! We were standing on top of a mountain and covered with clouds on all sides. When we looked down, we saw clouds floating up towards us!! We visited Shillong town rest of the day and visited Elephanta Falls, Sweet Falls, Cathedral Catholic Church, Golf Course…
It was Day 5, and time to return. Meghalaya Tourism offered us a fabulous natural view. Every traveller should visit Meghalaya at least once in his lifetime to explore one the best tourism place in the India.
I shall come back with another awesome story. Till then, goodbye….
Author: Swati Agarwal, Traveller, TravellBlogger
Tourist Places in India 