Mount Abu – The only hill station in the state of Rajasthan

Mount Abu Rajasthan

What comes to your mind when you hear about Rajasthan? Sand and desert? Right? Believe me, there’s more than that. It’s just the North West part of the state that has some part in the desert, otherwise rest of state has a significant number of lakes, rivers, mountains, flora, and fauna etc.

view from Guru Shikhar Mount Abu Rajasthan

View from Guru Shikhar Mount Abu Rajasthan

Also to your interest, there is a hill station as well. Mount Abu – Located in the Aravalli Range in Sirohi district is the only hill station of the state and is sometimes referred as “An oasis in the desert”. It is one of the most popular weekend gateways for the people of Rajasthan, Gujarat and other parts of the country.

Honeymoon point Mount Abu Rajasthan

Honeymoon’s Point Mount Abu Rajasthan

How to reach Mount Abu

The cheapest and the most preferred way to reach Mount Abu is via railways and state transport bus. The nearest railhead is Abu Road which is nearly 27 kms from the town. Abu road is well-connected to major Indian cities (New Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur, Ahmedabad, Pune etc.) via railways. For train bookings visit IRCTC.

From Abu road railway station, bus stand is a 5-minute walk. Regular buses ply to Mount Abu from the bus stand (frequency 1 bus/hour). Also, you can opt for a direct state transport bus from the nearby cities like Ahmedabad, Udaipur, Jodhpur, Jaipur etc. to reach Mount Abu.

How to reach Mount Abu Rajasthan

Getting around Mount Abu

Any place can be best explored by walking!! Most of the must see places in Mount Abu are at a walkable distance. Guru Shikhar and Achalgadh are few kms from the town center and can be visited by asking lift from tour buses going the same way. In my case, a traffic policeman helped me by stopping a bus and asking the driver to take me there.

Nakki lake Mount Abu Rajasthan

Nakki Lake Mount Abu Rajasthan

My journey to Mount Abu Rajasthan (1 day – INR 650 in total)

Mount Abu is just about 3 hours drive from my hometown (Udaipur). I was wondering what had kept me away from visiting such a famous place for so long. Also, I was curious to know that what it had on offer, which brings thousands of tourists every year from all over the world to this hill station.

I took the first bus in the morning from Udaipur which was at 5:00 am (INR 165). Udaipur to Mount Abu is around 160 kms and it generally takes around 3 hours to reach the same. The route is quite scenic especially in the monsoon season and the freshness in the air will replenish your energy levels.

Mount Abu Rajasthan

Mount Abu Rajasthan 

On reaching Mount Abu, the first thing I felt that there was a sudden drop in temperature as compared to Udaipur. The weather was very pleasant as you expect from a hill station.

This is how I traversed to cover the must see places in a day.

Nakki Lake

It is one of the most important tourist attraction in Mount Abu. There is a bit of history behind the lake. It is believed that the lake was dug out overnight from Nails (Nakh) by Rasia Balam in order to complete King’s challenge, so he can marry king’s daughter. View of the sun setting over the lake is mesmerizing. 

Nakki lake Mount Abu Rajasthan

Nakki Lake Mount Abu Rajasthan

Toad Rock

Situated south of Nakki Lake, it compromises of a huge rock which looks like a toad. Climbing about 100-125 steps to reach the top is worthwhile. View of the Nakki lake and surrounding area is breathtaking from here. I would highly recommend this place.

Toad rock Mount Abu Rajasthan

Toad Rock Mount Abu Rajasthan

Arbuda Devi

It is situated 3 kms from the town center and can be reached by crawling through a small opening into the cave. It is dedicated to the Goddess Durga. The temple has many beautiful statues and is worth an effort climbing about 300 steps to reach the same.

on way to Arbuda Devi Temple

Caves at Arbuda Devi Mount Abu

Dilwara Jain Temples

Located around 3 kms from the main market of Mount Abu, Dilwara Jain temples is one of the most beautiful Jain pilgrimage sites in the world. Its extraordinary architecture and intricate marble carvings will leave you dumbstruck. Elephants were used to transport marbles as there were no transport vehicles at that time. The exteriors of the temple were made simple in order to avoid the attention of invaders.

Photography is strictly prohibited and people wearing shorts are not allowed.

Trevor’s Tank

It is around 5 kms from Mount Abu main market area, on the way to Guru Shikhar. The last stretch of the road which leads to the tank is unpaved. The entry fee is Rs 30 per person. You need to be lucky to see a crocodile in the tank. The place is surrounded by lush green mountains which make it worthwhile to visit.

Trevor's Tank Mount Abu Rajasthan

Trevor’s Tank Mount Abu Rajasthan

Achal Gadh

Achal Gadh is 10 Kms from the main Mount Abu town. It is surrounded by massive battlement walls. The famous Achleshwar Temple is in the fort premises.

Achalgarh Fort Mount Abu Rajasthan

Achal Garh Fort Mount Abu Rajasthan

Guru Shikhar

Located around 16 kms from Mount Abu, it is the highest point of the Aravalli range (5650 feet). You need to climb around 200 steps to reach the top where there is a small temple and also an observatory. The views of the Mount Abu city and green valley from the top are breathtaking.

Guru Shikhar Mount Abu Rajasthan

Guru Shikhar Mount Abu Rajasthan

Sunset Point

It is one of the most popular viewpoints in Mount Abu and so bit crowded. You can enjoy the site of the orange colored sun setting behind the Aravalli Hill Ranges. Be sure to reach the place much before the sunset time, to find a good spot for yourself.

Sunset point Mount Abu Rajasthan

Sunset Point Mount Abu Rajasthan

Best time to visit Mount Abu Rajasthan

The weather is pleasant throughout the year except for few months of the summer season (May- July). I would suggest you go in monsoon season and months just after monsoon as the valley is lush green with some breathtaking views.

Food options

The few eat outs options I would suggest are

Jodhpur Bhojanalaya: Located just near to the taxi stand, it is the perfect place if you want to enjoy the local Rajasthani food. Few menu items to try: Daal-batti, Lasun chatni, Rajasthan tikdi, Kadi tikdi.

Up N Above café’ Shikibo: the best place to spend some peaceful time having amazing coffee and sandwich.

Nakki lake Mount Abu Rajasthan

Nakki  Lake Mount Abu Rajasthan

Stay options in Mount Abu

Sorry, I didn’t explore the stay option, as my hometown(Udaipur) is quite close to Mount Abu and I took a night bus to reach back to my hometown.

onacheaptrip

Just what I didn’t like about Mount Abu is that it was heavily crowded. May be the long weekend was the reason for the same. But let me tell you that it has nothing to do with the overall beauty of this place. The town is an amazing gift by nature. I would definitely visit the hill station again, maybe on a weekday, in hope that it would be less crowded, so I can enrich myself with the true essence of the place.

Do follow me on Instagram as I am regularly posting travel posts and stories over there. Also, you can message me on Instagram if you want to join me on my next trip.

Are you looking for some essential travel gear? Check out my post on What’s in my Backpack.

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10 thoughts on “Mount Abu – The only hill station in the state of Rajasthan

  1. Hey Abhishek,
    Clear and crisp information on Mount Abu. Its really a perfect weekend escape.

    Checkout my latest cinematic video on Mount Abu showcasing Stunning footages of famous places of the only hill station of Rajasthan (link below).

    I’ll be super glad if this video can increase the shine of this post by including it within post.. Do let me know your thoughts

    https://youtu.be/3M5b9Zae1Iw

    Cheers,
    Mehul Acharya
    From Aerial India

  2. very well written. I am planing a family trip(around 20 members) for 4N/4D to Udaipur + Mount Abu. However since both the places seem to be so beautiful it is really hard for me to split time between these 2 cities. Any help would be appreciated 🙂

    1. Thank you. You can start with Mount Abu, explore it for a day and stay there. Next day you can explore the left out places and head to Udaipur. Next 3 nights at Udaipur and take a day trip to Kumbalgarh and return back to Udaipur.

  3. Visited few years ago after 25 years and you are correct that the place has become crowded and a bit more commercial. You didn’t visit Honeymoon point!!! May be kept it for future??

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