One of the most popular beaches in Dapoli, Harnai is a long flat beach with the Suvarnadurg fort looming in the horizons on the northern side and the vast expanse of sandy beach extending upto Karde and further towards its south.

Harnai port is the main fishing village. Every evening hundreds of fishing boats come back after fishing and gather to auction their catch. The fish auction is the essential trade step between fish landings and the trade. Business worth lakhs of rupees is carried out daily between 4 pm to 7 pm. Loads and loads of Pomfret, kingfish, mackerel, white jumbo prawns, lobsters, squids, sting rays and many more varieties of fish are auctioned and sent to Mumbai, Cochin as well as exported to the international market. You can also participate into the fish auction and bid for fish of your choice. It is an unforgettable experience for all seafood lovers. Watching fish auctions has become one of the major tourist attractions at Harnai.

Situated 15 km from Dapoli, Harnai beach provides a quite and a peaceful experience. It is an isolated stretch that is lined with a fort on its northern end. With natural harbor, clear waters, beautiful seascape and rocky coasts, it promises to be a place for pleasurable holidays. It is becoming a popular tourist spot amongst many visitors from Pune and Mumbai. People love to spend their relaxing vacations here by exploring the deserted beaches and feasting on delicious sea food.

Harnai promises a quiet and peaceful natural harbor, clear waters, delicious sea food, beautiful seascape and rocky coasts. Harnai is a place blended with olden styles of Maratha architectural buildings and the modern terraced buildings and ancient temples.

There are hills on one side of the beach, a mosque in the backdrop and Harnai Bunder on the adjacent side. In the evenings one can see boats anchored near the bunder, many colourful flags fluttering atop them.

If you wish to get away from the daily hustle-bustle of your city life, but have time constraints, a visit to the beautiful serene beach city of Harnai would be perfect. An ideal weekend getaway from Mumbai and Pune.

How to Reach

Air
The nearest airport is at Mumbai.

Rail
The nearest railway station is khed on Konkan railway.

Road
Number of state transport buses ply regularly to Dapoli from Mumbai, Pune and Kolhapur. Harnai-Murud is just 14 kms away from Dapoli and autorikshaws are available in ample.

Book your Harnai holidays with our affiliate partner Booking.com

Harnai-Maharashtra-India

• , •
• Maharashtra •
• No Comments •
• by travel life journeys
  travel life journeys

— Continue Reading —

Torna was the first fort captured by Shivaji Maharaj. He captured this fort and started his journey to build the Maratha empire when he was just sixteen years old (in 1643). This shows his valor and determination to construct a new empire.

Torna Fort is also known as Prachandgad. The Marathi word prachand means ‘huge’ in English. The name Prachandgad itself suggests the spread of the fort. This huge fort is perched in the great Sahyadri Ranges in the district of Pune in Maharashtra state of India and boasts to be the tallest in the district with an altitude of 1405 meters from the sea level.

The fort has two temples on it. The first one is of goddess Toranjai and the second one is of goddess Menghai. You can stay in the temple of goddess Menghai if necessary. The fort has two major wings (in Marathi Machi) the Zunzar Machi and the Budhala Machi. On the Budhala Machi, there is big vertical rock. When seen from distance it seems to be a thumb held up. The fort also has two gates: the Binicha Darwaja (Bini Gate) and Konkan Darwaja (Konkan Gate). The Binich Darwaja takes you inside the fort, while the Konkan Darwaja takes you to the Budhala Machi.

Torna was an extremely important fort of Maratha kingdom because of its strategically important position. James Douglas a famous British traveler described this fort as "If Sinhagad is lions cave then Torna is Eagles nest"       

Though most parts of the Torna fort is in ruins the panoramic view the fort offers is well worth the climb up.

A number of monuments like Bini darwaza, Kothi darwaza, Hanuman Bastion around the fort make the visit more interesting for history lovers as well as picnickers. Trekking along the steep hillside of the tallest fort makes it more challenging and inviting for adventure seekers.

How To Reach
To get to the Torna, one has to first reach the base village called Velhe.  From Swargate bus station in Pune, take a state transport bus with route 'Swargate - Velhe - Ghisar'. This bus will drop you at Velhe in around 1hr 45mins. It will be good to start in early morning for the fort. 6.30am bus will be very good option to reach early to the fort.
 Velhe is the base village of the fort and the trek up to the fort will approximately take 3-4 At Velhe you can park your vehicles Near the police station and start trekking. and Fort could be seen within 2 hours.
By Railway 
Pune Railway Station
By Air
Pune International Airport

Torna Fort - Maharashtra - India

• , •
• Maharashtra •
• No Comments •
• by travel life journeys
  travel life journeys

— Continue Reading —