Shimla Travel Guide

Shimla holds an important place for India for mainly two reasons: It has been an important summer holiday destination for Indians for centuries. Britishers adopted to this idea of spending summer time in Shimla and created 2nd capital here to operate in India during hot weather months.

Shimla Travel Guide	Shimla Homestay – An artist den
Cafes of Shimla	Homes of Shimla
Flowers of Shimla	Temples of Himachal Pradesh

The sleepy valley town, the lazy winding roads, the pine trees, the monkey eating berries of trees – Shimla has been described in childrens book and novels. Even without being to this place, most Indians have read about Shimla in some form. Shimla is extremely popular vacation spot to the point that it has become a commercial town. The tourist side of the town has many dhabas, fun-fairs, bollywood music blasting from cafes and restaurants and Mall roads overflowing with tourists.

So, in June when we wanted to spend 1 week away from Mumbai’s hustle bustle and time off from our work, we decided to rest it out in Shimla. Our agenda for this trip was relax in a nice homestay, enjoy the hilly views, take a walk in the evening, pop in some cafe and enjoy lovely local food. This being our agenda, we decided to look for an amazing homestay which had great view and cozy ambience.

We happen to find the Perfect HomeStay for our time in Shimla. This 100+ years old home of a local family that have contributed and witnessed the slow changing life in Shimla. The home has mainly 2 bedrooms for travellers. There is one big hall that can have atleast 25 people sitting by a fireplace. I can picture how the family in its young days would have used to entertain guests and the room would have witnessed conversations of all types from politics, to government, to traditions, to trends, to changing cultural landscape, and to development. The hall leads to dinning area that also has make shift table in open overlooking the valley to be used in summer days. The bedroom on 1st floor is simple room with bed, balcony and fireplace. And then the star of the stay is “The Attic” – its a beautiful attic straight out of novels. The attic is big which a walk-in library filled with books of all kind, couple of sofas to lounge while you soak up the space or decide to take a nap, couple of tables for painting, wiritng, reading, and a diwan overlooking valley. The attic also has painting stached in every nook and corner. The attic was a candyland for us and we spent most of our time here chilling, reading, painting and pondering. We would start our day at 5:30am and come straight to the attic with some warm tea. Read more about the homestay here.

Things to do in Shimla:

We did spend some time seeing Shimla, visiting temples, hoping cafes, and enjpying local food at popular joints.

1. Take a guided walking tour with a local guide to see the main Shimla mall road, heritage sites, and landmark buildings. We took a walking guide with Mr. Sanjeev (98170 16580). ALternately you can book a guided tour walk here. We happen to take a long walk starting at 9am till 5pm. Our local guide gave us detailed history of the Mall road from colonial era, history of landmark buildings, and important of the key temples that we visited. We ended our tour with a visit in the bazaar where he helped us buy some famous local stuff (listed below souveniers to buy).
2. Visit Viceregal Lodge building which is an important monument for independent Indian history. During the colonial era, britishers treated this building as 2nd headquarters during the summer as Delhi’s summer was too harsh for to manage. This building definitely evokes many emotions within as an indian as this is the place where India’s partition was discussed at that time. Now this building is converted into Indian Institute of Advanced Studies.
3. Pray at Jakhu Hanuman mandir and get in aww of the tallest Hanuman murti in the world. Nestled on the Shivalik hills, this mandir was built by sage Yaaku after he met Hanuman. This mandir is surrounded by pine trees and during snowfall, the ariel view of Hanumanji surrounded by small snowclad pine trees is just beautiful. Read about the Temples of Shimla.
4. Pray at Kali Bari mandir which has a long ancient history in Shimla however, not very well recorded. The latest record suggest that a Bengali Brahmin man constructed a Kali mandir in 1823, however, probably due to incovenice the mandir was shifted to its current located by Britishers in 1825. This mandir recently completed 200 years which had many devotees flocking to this temple for celebration in 2023 & 2024. This mandir was also seen as an important symbol of Hindus standing their ground in Shimla during the time when Shimla was mainly consisted of Britishers and Indians only as servants.
5. Visit the Mall road which is the most happening place of Shimla. This is a long stretch of road that consists of many shops, food joints, offices,etc. This road signifies a beacon of what colonial times were like for Indians as this area was exclusively built for Britishers and no Indians were allowed to be in this area. Britishers used this area was walks, evening recreation whereby they ate at food joints, watched play in the theater and enjoyed Shimla valley view from the view point. Only Indians working as servants in these shops, etc were allowed to be in this area. When I heard this story it made me realise that most people taking photograph there didnt realise the brutal and shameful history of this place.
6. View point at Summer hill to get a good view of the town. Shimla is actually a group of 7 hills, of which Summer Hill is one. With an altitude of 2,123 metres, the suburb is also known as Potter’s Hill. If you have an afternoon to spare, marvel at the charming houses that dot the landscape of this hill.
7. Visit Himachal state museum which is located on a hill named ‘Inveram’, this museum is actually an ancient Victorian manor which has been modified to accommodate its galleries. The Himachal State Museum curates and displays historical, archaeological and artistic samples from the past, with a view of inspiring the future. It gives a peek into different tribes of Himachal, their unique home styles, and other key point in the museum is to cover are the activities taken place in Shimla during freedom movement. Dont miss out to buy beautiful postcards at the souvenier shop.
8. Camp at Glen site which is essentially a U-shaped hiking trail at an altitude of 1,830 metres in Shimla. Located only 4 km from Mall Road, this valley is a preferred site for camping and picnicking. A big reason for this is the brook that flows through this valley, making it appear even more attractive. It is possible to drive into The Glen, but backpackers will enjoy the short hike through the forested area full of pines and deodar trees. Birdwatchers should take this opportunity to indulge in some birding as there are some unique species one can sight here. Avoid visiting in monsoon when the chance of a landslide is higher.
9. Spot wildlife at Shimla reserve forest that is spread over 950 acres of forested land. The Shimla Reserve Forest Sanctuary is a must-visit attraction for wildlife enthusiasts. You can sight mountain animals such as leopard, barking deer and jackal amidst exotic trees like silver oaks and weeping willows. Birders can look out for Himalayan eagles, pheasants and partridges. Maple and rhododendron trees here are popular in the kitchen as well. Women like to make sauces and jams from the fruit of these trees. The rhododendrons themselves come in various colours, making the forest appear enchanting. There are 9 streams that flow through this sanctuary and they never dry. If you wish to enter this forest, you will need prior permission. There is a provision to take your own car or bike inside. You can also hire a bike and explore the area via cycling or plan a hike through the forest.
10. Pray at Tara Devi temple is 250 years old built in Pahari-style, but is fully a reconstruction of the ancient temple. Dedicated to the Bengali deity of Ma Tara, this temple was established by Maharaja Sen of Bengal after he had a dream. The temple sports intricate woodwork and silverwork, apart from idols of other female deities such as Saraswati, Bhagwati & Kali. At an altitude of 1,851 metres above sea level, Tara Devi Temple took more than 6 crore rupees to be rebuilt. The temple is accessible on all days between 7 AM and 6:30 PM. However, leather goods are prohibited inside. We ate the traditional “dham” food at the langer that starts from 12am onwards.
11. Visit the Sankat mochan mandir constructed by famous Baba Neem karoliji maharaj in 1960s as a memory of the spot where he used to meditate. This mandir also serves Dham food in langer during lunch hours in prasad.
12. Visit 2 of the oldest bookshops of Shimla which are Asia Book store and Miverva Book house. These book stores has been around since the Mall road was developed during Brritish era and said to have some of the finest book colelction.

Shimla, located in Himachal Pradesh is also highly connected to many beautiful towns around it. In the south of Shimla you have Kasauli and Dharampur that are beautiful to visit, in the west Kufri and Sipur (Wildflower oberoi hotel is located here) is worth visiting, and in north-west worthy Mashobra has beautiful untouched small town charm.

FOOD TO TRY:

1. Siddhu – is a stuffed steam bun made from wheat flour and has savory and sweet variation. This is the most popular street snack among the locals that you will find mom & pop shop selling them. Savory Siddu is served with mint chutney while sweet one is served with ghee. 1 Siddu was enough as my lunch meal which makes sense why localiets eat them so much.
2. Dham – is a Himachali thali which has multiple course served that has dals, lentils, rice, and sweet. is a traditional festive feast of Himachal Pradesh prepared during religious festivals. The origins of Dham are said to go back to Chamba Valley more than 1000 years ago. The Rajas ordered the cooks to make a meal that would justify as an offering for the Gods. The cooks prepared a variety of dishes from across the valleys and since then the tradition of Dham has continued. Read in details about various types of Dham here on the blog.
3. Babroo is another street food made of deep fried fermented wheat flour served with tamrind chutney, almost resembling kachori.
4. Other food that is a must try but I coudlnt find are Patande (wheat dosa version of Himachal), Askalu (similar to rice paniyaram), Sepa (steamed buns of kulath dal), and Poltu (almost like fried puri). Read more about them on these dish and Himachali food here on this blog.

BEST TIME TO VISIT:

Beginning and ending of winter and summer are the preferred time to visit by Indians. This time of the year, entire Himachal Pradesh’s beauty is at its peak. The beautiful flowers (read my Shimla Flowers article here), beautiful color spectrum in the sky, the festivities, and if not these then the mountain life’s rhythm will get you excited. Better to skip monsoon to avoid getting stuck in land slide.

HOW TO REACH SHIMLA:

Even though Shimla stands at an altitude, there are a number of ways to get up here. Shimla has its own airport located in Jubbarhatti which is 22 kilometres from this hill station. However, only Alliance Air (which is a regional subsidiary of Air India) operates flights between Delhi and Shimla. The aircraft capacity is also very low. Alternatively fly to Chandigarh which is 23kms away. Train is not generally recommended unless you wish to travel slow and enjoy the sights at ease. Shimla Railway Station is only connected to Kalka (96 km away), and most trains take over 5 hours to arrive. Overnight buses are a cheap way to travel from Delhi to Shimla and they take about 8 hours. Private bus operators and Himachal Road Transport Corporation (HRTC), both are good options to choose from. I find government buses to be quite reliable as they have expert drivers who know how to drive in the winding and scary mountain roads of Himachal.

TAKE A VISUAL TOUR