Some said “Think again” while some called us outright CRAZY. We were on a road trip through Himachal Pradesh, with our two month old baby and it was our first road trip with the baby.
Himachal Pradesh is a mountainous state in India and is located in Western Himalayas. This state is naturally blessed with beautiful landscapes and due to the difficult terrain had been shielded away from mass tourism for many decades. Due to the hilly terrains, many roads in the valley are still considered most difficult and dangerous to drives through.
We had planned to divide our Dharamsala to Chamba stretch into three parts – Dalhousie, Khajjiar and Chamba valley. Based on our success at each milestone, we would decide to travel more. Since this was our first road trip with the baby, we were extremely flexible and had set expectations. Our sister’s family had also joined us in another car to make this a fun family trip.
We started from Dharamshala early morning, towards Dalhousie through NH154 with a plan to stop at Nurpur. Dalhousie, a quiet and serene hill station, was established in 1854 by the British as a relaxing summer destination. The town is still frequented by people living in nearby cities and is a famous holiday spot during summer vacations.
Nurpur Tales
After about two hours of drive, through which the baby was happily dozing luckily 😉 we stopped at Nurpur for breakfast. This small town is not very touristy though has a beautiful fort, which is in ruins and is famous for Brij Raj Bihari temple inside the fort. Brij Raj Bihari temple is said to be the only temple where Lord Krishna and Meera are worshipped together. The Nagni maata temple dedicated to the goddess of snakes, is believed to have magic in it’s water that heals snake bites.
The town Nurpur is said to be named after the Mughal empress Nur Jehan, wife of Emperor Jahangir. As per the folk tales, it is believed that Nur Jehan on her visit to this town was so enchanted by the natural beauty of the place, that she declared her desire to settle down in this place. The locals however did not want mughal interference and tried changing her mind by telling her about a local disease that can affect her beauty. The queen decided to travel back. Later the town’s name was changed to Nurpur in honor of the queen who fell in love with the place.
Dalhousie’s colonial charm
We drove for another two hours from Nurpur to Dalhousie. The drive is uphill so if you are travelling with kids, do take short breaks to kill the motion sickness. As we started nearing Dalhousie, we realised the place is extremely quiet and there are hardly any vehicles on the road. The locals generally walk down the hilly roads, thus saving the natural beauty of the mountains. As you drive higher up, you will notice the dense cover of pine and deodar trees around you. You will come across occasional bungalows, some temples or boarding schools but by large Dalhousie is as quaint and away from the hustle bustle as possible. The town is well planned with colonial style bungalows with a backdrop of snow capped peaks of the Himalayas. Many of these heritage bungalows have been converted into resorts and homestays and are perfect for a relaxing stay.
Our hotel was away from the main town with the perfect mountain view. The rooms were grand and with the baby, happily cooing away in the bed, I settled in with a book for the next couple of hours.
In the evening, we headed to mall road. Yes like every hill station, Dalhousie also has a mall road. It’s a small stretch of road with shops, restaurants and hotels. A bit crowded in the evening, you can shop local handicrafts and clothes. There is a Tibetan market which was jewellery, winter clothes and accessories. Soon it started getting cloudy, and we had an early dinner and called it a night.
Kalatop Wildlife Forest
The next day, we started towards Khajjiar. On the way we stopped at Kalatop wildlife forest and enjoyed the view and the calmness. You can either trek through the forest to the guest house or take your vehicle there. The entry fees is INR 250 for a vehicle and since we did not want to walk much in the cold with the baby, we opted for the drive. While we did not see any wild animals, we were told Himalayan bears are sighted in deeper woods. This guest house has become popular after the Bollywood movie “Lootera” was filmed here.
A little ahead, there is a way leading to Daikund peak, which is the highest peak in Dalhousie and offers 360 degree views of the Himalayan valley. At the top is the Pohlani Mata Devi Temple which is almost a 2 hour trek from the start point. As per folktales, the goddess from this position keeps an eye on the whole valley and protects it from witches. Also they say that you should not stay back after dark, as the place is haunted. A very interesting story, but we did not attempt the trek this time. You can also trek from here to Khajjiar.
Khajjiar – Mini Switzerland of India
It took us a little longer to reach Khajjiar as we had a flat tire episode. As the men changed the tires, the baby had all the attention from the cousins and after a quick photo session we continued on our way.
Khajjiar is a beautiful stretch of green grassland with a lake in between, surrounded by deodar trees. While we did find some shades of brown as well, words cannot describe the feeling of being amidst such natural beauty under the sapphire blue sky.
Khajjiar has something for everyone. You can do paragliding or Zorbing or horse-riding. A popular activity with kids is to get pictures clicked with rabbits. We spent a couple of hours in Khajjiar and then checked in our homestay there.
Even during summers, the nights can be quite cold so do make sure you carry some warm clothes specially for kids.
Chamba Valley
Chamba is a picturesque little town in the Himalayan valley with Ravi river passing through it. It’s known for the Gaddi festival – Minjar Mela (held in August) that has been celebrated every year since 10th century. Chamba valley has many ancient temples with very interesting folktales associated to them. The most famous are the Lakshmi Narayan temple, Chamunda Devi and Sui Mata temple.
The Chougan ground in the centre of town is the heart of this town, surrounded by the market and admin buildings. We explored the town and then drove on for another hour to reach a small village known as Gagla.
We stayed overnight in Gagla and then returned back to Dalhousie in the morning. The river was by our side for most of the drive back what a pleasant companion it made!
In Dalhousie, we visited St John Church which is a British protestant church built in 1863. We then headed to Chamera lake for some boating to entertain the kids. The boating was a refreshing experience.
We did a bit of shopping in Gandhi chowk and had an early dinner. As we finished dinner, suddenly there were clouds everywhere and a light drizzle started. Like most hill stations, this is a common thing in Dalhousie and you should be always prepared. We rushed back to our hotel and called it a night.
In the morning, we headed back to Dharamshala with a bunch of amazing memories from this adventure and dreams of our next one with our new travel buddy.
Are you going on a road trip with your baby? Read our survival guide for road trip with a baby.
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Nice Article, Keep posting the same!!!
marvelous blog post. I love it. All the photographs are amazing. I would love to visit Himachal Pradesh soon. Wanna find out about the trending events & festivals of India. Check out Adotrip.
Himachal is one of my favorite places to visit and I’ve been to so many of the places you have mentioned in this post. The treks are a bit tough at some places and living around these places involves a lot of walking, so kudos to you for visiting all these places with a kid.
HImachal is straight out of a fairy land. I believe to explore regions like Himachal, it’s best done on a road trip. Kudos to you for successfully attempting a road trip with a baby.
Himachal is indeed a wonderland of India. Travelling through the state one feels as if one has walked straight into the pages of a fairy tale book. A road trip is really the best way to experience the beauty f the place. Travelling with kids and that too a baby is always challenging but has its own moments of pleasure too. Nice to see that the kids are being exposed to travel quite early. My favourite place here is Khajjar which is so beautiful.
Your baby is gorgeous! Very brave of you to go on a road trip with such a young baby. Using the milestones to determine how much further you went sounds smart. I loved reading about the folktales and legends from some of the places you visited – they’re so interesting!
Thanks Joe. We love traveling so we just continued traveling but of course, we do everything possible to accommodate our baby’s needs.
Gorgeous place!! There is just a certain beauty to places that has not been taken over by tourism and it is indeed a joy to appreciate the charm of the place in its most natural state! Kudos to you for making this challenging trip with a baby!!
Thanks Claire! I am in love with such natural hideouts too. It’s a shame a lot of pristine places are getting spoilt by mass tourism.
What a stunning area. Love that you are taking your little one, probably the easiest time to travel as they do a lot of sleeping.
Haha, now that he is a little older, I can totally relate to what you are saying, Alison.
I imagine road trip is exactly the right kind of trip with a very small one, as you can handle nappy changes and feeding at your own timetable (or rather baby’s timetable) and still enjoy all the sights. Himachal Pradash looks beautiful mix of sites and scenery.
I agree with you Kavita. We find road trips and the flexibility to travel at our own pace, most favorable while traveling with our son.
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Looks so beautiful! And that is quite the undertaking for bringing the littles too!
It is… Thanks for stopping by Nicolle.
You remind me of the mum who went on a trip around the world utilising her maternity break! …
You are brave 🙂
Thanks Rohini. I also did exactly that. This trip was just the beginning. More stories coming up. Stay tuned 🙂
Wow! Who knew that India has a place like that. So different from what most people know. I was from a country in the tropics (hot and humid)..We we have a place called “Little America”- cool breeze with pine trees.
India has a whole lot of amazing places. I hope you do plan a trip soon, Felicia.
I loved the Photographs! Such a beautiful place to explore. I love going on road-trips with our kids too!
Thanks. It’s fun travelling with kids, isn’t it!
What a beautiful post, especially the pictures. They are breathtaking indeed. You little one is very cute. Loved reading the post. I’ve a plan to visit Himachal stretch sometime this year. Let’s see if I can make it. Thanks for sharing 😊
Thanks Sham…We are also planning another trip in March 🙂 There is so much to see in Himachal. Would love to hear back about your trip and let me know if you need any help in planning 🙂
what an amazing adventure and our so brave to do it with a little one!
Thanks for your kind words Miriam
This looks like a dream place! Thanks for sharing the pics, I can dream of visiting now 🙂
If you’ll visit Finland, I’ll be happy to act as a guide 🙂
Thanks Paola. I would love to visit Finland someday and meet you 🙂
Gorgeous! I would love to visit Himachal Pradesh someday. Maybe I won’t be able to make it with a 9 month old, but when he’s probably five or six!
You will love it here…Do let me know if you do think about visiting, We can help you plan your trip.
Wow that a lovely scenic view of Himachal Pradesh…Totally cool of you travelling with a baby as even i have done it once and found it comfortable than travelling with her as a toddler
Thanks Neha. I think every phase has it’s own challenges 🙂
Those pictures and places are breathtaking! I have always wanted to travel with my kids, but they hate the car so much even a drive to the grocery store is sheer insanity.
You guys were very lucky with such a happy calm little one!
I agree, car drives can be stressful for the little ones sometimes. Baby steps, let them ease in and then give it a shot 😉
What a beautiful place! It looks so relaxing and peaceful.. You are so brave taking your baby all over!! It seems so stressful!
Thanks Brittney! All for love of travel 🙂
Amazing Pujarini! This is my inspiration of the day! To travel with a kid has can have its own challenges and to be doing that is one great plunge! It is very well written as well! 🙂 Keep it up!
Thanks Nidhi for your kind words! You made my day 🙂
What a beautiful place! You’re brave to travel with so many kids, especially ones so young. I dread just going to a doctor’s appointment with them by myself! Kudos!
I totally get it! We realised through the trip that it’s possible and if you have a travel partner it’s so much easier.