Which are the 5 best places to visit in North-east India?
Northeast India is the easternmost region of India representing both a geographic and political administrative division of the country. It comprises eight states – Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Sikkim and Tripura.
1) Tawang
If you wanna experience the true beauty of North East, Arunachal Pradesh is a must visit. You will pass through mountains, rivers, snowfalls, rains and much more. If you are a bike riding enthusiast, then it’s a treat for you. Bhalukpong to Tawang is the litmus test for every biker.
2) Majuli
This is a river island surrounded by Brahmaputra river. Evening time boat riding to this place is once in a lifetime experience. You will enjoy this ride if you are a nature lover. At Majuli, you can see Monasteries, experience Mask making and stay at Bamboo huts. These bamboo huts will be a great place to relax and enjoy your leisure time.
3) Cherrapunjee
The most rainy place in the world is calm, beautiful and green all around. I did the Living Root Bridges trek there. The trek from Cherrapunjee to the famous Double Decker Living Root Bridge takes around 3-4 hours. The trek goes downhill through the village of Sohsarat. Two series of steep steps are encountered while trekking downhill. After the steps the path leads you through a forest leading to the Double Decker Living Root Bridge. Pools of turquoise water would make you want to dive in. Understand how years and years of bending and directing the roots, the indigenous people made a bridge by connecting two trees. This was done to combat the menacing monsoons here, so that the people can easily cross over streams.
4) Shillong
Shillong is known as Scotland of the East and rightly so. The place is full of waterfalls all around and is a bliss! Just 12 kilometres out of downtown Shillong is the majestic Elephant Falls. Named after a rock (destroyed in an earthquake) that resembled an elephant, the Elephant Falls is a 3-stepped waterfall. The first one is behind trees and is a broad fall, the second one is a small one, while the third one is the tallest and the biggest.
While in Shillong you can also visit the famous Ward’s Lake and take a boating ride in the small lake around which the park is built. You can also drive to the Shillong Peak which provides majestic views of Shillong and beyond. The Cathedral of Mary Help of Christians is a beautiful Church, pretty close to the Ward’s Lake, deserves a visit.
Visit the most happening and also the most crowded part of Shillong, the Police Bazaar. Bars, restaurants and shops dominate this market place. Sip on a cold brew and listen to the live music bands here. You can also shop for some really cool handicrafts.
The Grand canyon : This is an unexplored place in Shillong. The morning scenic view is a feast to your eyes. It will take 1.30 hours to reach here from main city. Though, we were not able to capture its beauty through lens, we have taken few pics (Refer below). You must experience this yourself. You can also do trekking here.
5) Arunachal Pradesh
The easternmost state of India, Arunachal is everything but mainstream. The forests are still virgin, the streams are still clear, the air is still pure and the people are still humble. Shielded by mighty Himalayan peaks to the north, the mountains turn greener as the elevation falls when one moves further south. Between these mountains lies some of India’s most pristine valleys and forests.
A plethora of different and rare species of flora and fauna are preserved here under the watchful eyes of the conservationist tribes of the region. You never know what you might stumble upon. If Tawang amazes you with the Himalayas, the lakes and a huge monastery, Ziro will humble you with its cultural richness. From the valleys of Dirang to the meadows of Mechuka, Arunachal is a place of dazzling beauty. The Namdapha National Park offers wildlife enthusiasts a chance to witness wildlife in one of the most virgin forests of India. What Arunachal doesn’t offer is mainstream.
6) Kaziranga National Park, Assam
Though Assam is in sharp contrast to the kind of geography you experienced in Meghalaya but the tinge of that beautiful green never leaves you. Bluer skies dotted with white clouds replicate the cultivated land on both sides of the road.This UNESCO World Heritage Site is home to two-thirds of the world’s great one-horned rhinoceroses. It is also claimed to have the highest density of tigers among all the protected areas of the world but the sighting is quite difficult due to the presence of tall elephant grass. Apart from the rhinoceros and the tiger, Kaziranga is home to large breeding populations of elephants, wild water buffalo, and swamp deer. The safari is usually 2 hours long and you are sure to enjoy the beautiful landscape of this park.
7) Pelling, Sikkim
Pelling is a small town in the northeastern Indian state of Sikkim, at the foothills of Mount Khangchendzonga. The late-17th-century Buddhist Sanga Choling Monastery has mountain views. Pemayangtse Monastery features wall paintings, sculptures and a gold-plated statue of Guru Padsambhava. Overlooking a valley, the 17th-century Rabdentse Palace, now in ruins, still has evidence of the king’s bedroom and kitchen.
8) Champhai—beautiful land of the Blue Mountains
Known as the ‘Rice Bowl of Mizoram’, Champhai hill station is situated along the Myanmar hills. With a number of tourist attractions and enchanting surroundings, Champhai gives all a reason to make the most out of their travelto North East. With a pleasant weather and natural settings around, this gateway between Myanmar and India is a perfect haven.
9) Unakoti
Unakoti: It is ‘Shiva’ pilgrimage site and dates back to the 7th – 9th century.
The marvellous rock carvings, murals with their primitive beauty, waterfalls are not to be missed. Unakoti means one less than a crore and it is said that these many rock cut carvings are available here. As per Hindu mythology, when Lord Shiva was going to Kashi along with one crore gods and goddesses he made a night halt at this location. He asked all the gods and goddesses to wake up before dawn to proceed for Kashi.
It is said that in the morning,no one except Shiva woke up. So Lord Shiva set out for Kashi himself cursing the others to become stone images. As a result we have one less than a crore stone images and carvings at Unakoti. These carvings are located at a beautifully landscaped forest area with green vegetation all around which add to the beauty of the carvings. The images found at Unakoti are of two types, namely rock-carved figures and stone images.
Among the rock cut carvings, the central Shiva head and gigantic Ganesha figures deserve special mention. The central Shiva head known as ‘Unakotiswara Kal Bhairava’ is about 30 feet high including an embroidered head-dress which itself is 10 feet high. On each side of the head-dress of the central Shiva, are two full sized female figures – one of Durga standing on a lion and another female figure on the other side. In addition three enormous images of Nandi Bull are found half buried in the ground. There are various other stone as well as rock cut images at Unakoti. Every year a big fair popularly known as ‘Ashokastami Mela’ is held in the month of April here and attracts thousands of pilgrims.
10) Dawki Umngot River
The clean and clear Umgnot is flows very close to the Dawki-Tamabil Border Crossing, gateway to Bangladesh. Dawki is a small economic centre but remains busy due to the hundreds of trucks queuing to cross the border everyday. Umgnot river creates a natural boundary between the Jaintia Hills and Khasi Hills. A single lane suspension bridge over the Umgnot River connects the two districts near Dawki. Dawki Boating Association provides leisure boating services in small boats over the Umngnot river for tourists. The place is also famous among the locals who come to the peaceful river mouth valley to catch fish.
