Sterling Panchgani

Set in the Satara district of Maharashtra at roughly 1,300 metres in the Sahyadri range, this Western Ghats hill station is named for the five villages, Dandeghar, Godavali, Ambral, Khingar, and Taighat, that once ringed its slopes, and remains one of the most searched places to visit near Mahabaleshwar. Developed as a British summer retreat in the 1860s under superintendent John Chesson, it grew into a genteel hill town of colonial-era bungalows, convent boarding schools, and health resorts, prized even then for a climate mild enough to visit through most of the year.

Its signature draw is Table Land, a vast volcanic plateau ranked among Asia's largest, offering horse rides and sweeping views over the Krishna Valley. A cluster of viewpoints nearby, including Parsi Point and Sydney Point, look out over the Dhom Dam, Kamalgad Fort, and the town of Wai, while Rajpuri Caves and the Devrai Art Village add a cultural stop to the itinerary. The destination sits about 21 km from Mahabaleshwar and around 108 km from Pune, and is often paired with a trip to the Kaas Plateau, a UNESCO World Heritage wildflower reserve that blooms each monsoon.

Come strawberry season, roadside stalls and the well-known Mapro Garden sell fresh berries, jams, and crushes grown across the surrounding slopes, giving the hills their other well-earned reputation. Whether it's a plateau sunrise, a fort trek, or simply a quiet stretch of pine-lined roads, the twin hill stations reward an unhurried pace over a checklist of sights.

Our Resort(s) at PANCHGANI

Sterling Panchgani