| i beach is the only privately owned beach in India, | | | | to you as you wallow in the blood-warm tide pool |
| with the property extending right up to the waterline | | | | you have discovered, waiting patiently for you to get |
| Two-and-a-half kilometers of beach all to yourself. A | | | | back and get dry to offer to pour a cup for you. As |
| waiter from the restaurant trudges across the sand, | | | | along as the Mandvi Maharao and his family use their |
| bearing provender. Long pool-chairs, under a thatch | | | | property as they have thus far, their little slice of |
| umbrella. The waves gambol in a few feet away. A | | | | paradise is likely to stay pristine. |
| fairly determined sort of breeze comes in from the | | | | THE INFORMATION |
| west. A chap could get used to this. | | | | GETTING THERE |
| It sits in the middle of the 450 acres of mildly | | | | Bhuj, a title over 60km away, is the nearest airport |
| domesticated jungle that make up the backyard of | | | | and railhead. There is at least one flight in and out |
| Vijay Vilas, the summer retreat of the former rulers | | | | every day, mainly to Mumbai. Two trains connect |
| of Mandvi. Seeing the tent resorts in touristy places, | | | | with Mumbai and other parts of Gujarat. From Bhuj, |
| you will decide that tents made better sense to start | | | | you can take a local bus (roughly half-hour |
| up with, raters tan built-up structures, which require | | | | frequencies), to Mandvi, and ten take a taxi or a |
| lots of paperwork. | | | | rickshaw to the Beach Camp. Or you cold haggle for |
| There is accommodation for 10 pairs of guests at | | | | a taxi, fares are extortionate, higher even that Goa, |
| the moment, so it works out to a comfortable 200 | | | | so you could wind up paying as high as $50 for the |
| metres of beach per couple at peak occupancy, a | | | | trip. Other possible connecting points: Gandhidham, |
| ratio that I have only seen in one beach in Goa and | | | | 90km, Rajkot, 250, km: Ahmedabad, 450km. |
| one other nearer home. (And no, I’m not | | | | THE CAMP |
| telling you where either of them are.) Since | | | | The tariffs at the 10 tents currently available at the |
| it’s an eight-kilometer drive to Mandvi, which | | | | camp are $150 per night for two people, with |
| in turn is many miles away from the rest of the | | | | breakfast, lunch and dinner. Packages are also |
| world, you’re not going to get Anjuna levels | | | | available. The standard package, which is for three |
| of madding crowd any time soon. | | | | days and two nights and includes all meals, costs |
| The camp consists 10 tents in a clearing, each | | | | $120 from Monday to Thursday. On weekends, public |
| sleeping two, a sand dune and a line of scrub and | | | | holidays and the Christmas/New Year week, the rate |
| tress separating them from the beach and protecting | | | | goes up to $150 for a couple. |
| them from the worst of the weather. Each one is | | | | WHAT TO SEE & DO |
| set on its own concrete plinth, a little sit-out in the | | | | The Places is open for guided tours during the day. |
| front, with a couple of dinky camel-leather deck | | | | You can also take walks, or camel or horse rides, on |
| chairs. Te styling is reminiscent of royal expedition | | | | the beach or within the woodland around the camp, |
| tents of yore: scalloped edges, carved finials atop the | | | | effectively a private sanctuary, with plenty of |
| tent poles, awning over the entrance. One looks | | | | birds-flamingo in the right season, partridge, |
| around automatically for men on horseback returning | | | | peacocks- and if you’re lucky, nilgai, chinkara |
| from the shikaar or from a battle. | | | | and jackals. |
| A quibble: considering the vast acreage available, | | | | The management will make arrangements for you if |
| they’re set rather too close to each other, | | | | you want to make day trips from the camp. The Lala |
| with the support ropes of neighbouring tents | | | | Bustard Sanctuary is 74km north of the camp, where |
| overlapping. Given canvas walls, it might get noisy | | | | you can see the Indian Bustard, an endangered |
| when the place is fully booked. | | | | species, and the rare Lesser Florican. You may also |
| The tents are triple-layered, a candy striped inner | | | | see gazelles, foxes, jackals, wolves, and of course a |
| tent, over that a thicker outer, and over it all, a | | | | wealth of bird life. |
| waterproof roof. It keeps the rainout very well, and | | | | For the devout, the 72-jijalaya Jain complex at |
| the lack of natural ventilation is more than | | | | Badreshwar, the Jain temples at Naliya and Tera, the |
| compensated for with a high power air-conditioner. | | | | Hindu sore temple of Kotshwar and Narayan Sarovar, |
| Inside, a coir-carpeted floor, twin beds, bedside tables | | | | and the Lakpath Gurudwara are within striking |
| with a small storage space, carved wood chairs, and | | | | distance. The Bhuj-Mandvi area is god for shopping |
| a writing table. The chairs are nice-looking; Lighting is | | | | for the exquisite Kutchi embroidered textiles and |
| a couple of lamps beside the beds. AT the back, | | | | other handicrafts. |
| behind the flap, is a largish titled, walled bathroom, its | | | | Mandvi is a big boat-building centre, and on your way |
| roof an extension of you tent. Electricity and water | | | | in, you cross a creek where you can see massive |
| are on 24 hours. | | | | wooden boats being built from the ground up. |
| Meals are delivered to your tent, or you can amble | | | | WHEN TO GO |
| over to the thatched roof restaurant that looks out | | | | Gujarat gets some pretty extreme doses of the |
| on to the beach. The restaurant claims to serve | | | | monsoon, so, while the place is breathtakingly |
| India, Continental and Chinese, and local specialties. | | | | beautiful and pleasant in the rains, you could wind up |
| Overall, the place does itself a disservice with its | | | | stranded if transport succumbs to the weather. And, |
| branding: it calls itself a luxury beach camp, which | | | | though the water deepens very gradually, the |
| raises expectations way too much. It is, no doubt, | | | | current is strong, and the water, the choppy and |
| very comfortable, (ACs and proper plumbing in the | | | | brown, summer gets extreme too” over 40C |
| tent, woohoo!) and gives fair value for your money, | | | | in the day, peak season December to March, When |
| Dismiss the claim of luxury and take the place for | | | | the westerner come in search of sunbathing. The |
| what it is, and you have a pretty unique getaway. | | | | water is calm and blue then-so management says, |
| The service is excellent-polite, attentive, and eager | | | | and the photographs l’ve seen agree-and |
| to cater to personal preferences, quick to | | | | it’s cool. In fact nigh temperatures in |
| acknowledge, and compensate for, shortcomings. | | | | December can go as low as 7C so take thick pajama. |
| And the location, the location. | | | | Did you find this article useful? For more useful tips, |
| Item: A waiter making the long walk from the | | | | hints, guide and points, to ponder pertaining to |
| restaurant with a tray of tea and toast, waving out | | | | traveling, do please browse at our websites. |