My chauffer arrived at Vapi railway station well before my train chugged in. This consistent quality of punctuality is what I admire about the staff at Kamat Hotels (India) Limited. This time I chose to stay at Lotus Resort Silvassa. The USP of the resort is its high standard of hospitality, quality of food (the staff prides itself on being number 1 in Silvassa since the last 27 years as far as food and beverages is concerned) and central location on the banks of the Damanganga River in front of the stone carved Swaminarayan Temple.
The resort spread across 5 acres has a total of 49 rooms which comprise of 32 deluxe A/C rooms and 17 super deluxe A/C rooms which offer all the required state of the art amenities including Wi-Fi. Arun Jaisinghani, General Manager, Lotus Resort Silvassa adds, “Other facilities at our resort include a swimming pool, children’s play area, travel desk, doctor on call, laundry, indoor games of table tennis, carom and chess and outdoor games of badminton and volleyball. We have an indoor conference hall that can accommodate 110 guests and an open air poolside venue for 400-500 guests for any banquet function including wedding and pre wedding celebrations.”
I enjoyed dining at the river side facing Kamats Ni Wadi restaurant watching the Damanganga River flow gently by. Kamats Ni Wadi is well known for its Punjabi, Chinese and South Indian cuisine while The Little Chef is a cozy A/C restaurant. Savour cheese corn kebab, veg crispy, veg 65, chicken tang tikling, reshmi kebab, chicken tawa kebab, tandoori gobi, chicken patiala, veg nawabi handi, chef’s special veg, dum biryani and gadbad ice cream at Kamats Ni Wadi and The Little Chef restaurants. If you love alcohol, then Lotus Resort Silvassa is exactly where you should be headed as liquor is very reasonably priced. It is almost 50% less than all over Maharashtra.
The resort has tied up with Shanthy Theeram, an ayurvedic treatment center affiliated to P.S. Varier’s Arya Vaidyasala, Kottakkal, Kerala to offer rejuvenation massages, lymphatic massages, synchronized abhyangam, couples massages and extended therapies. I opted for a 90 minutes lymphatic massage done with ayurvedic oil. Long strokes done by the therapist regulated my circulatory and nervous systems. The therapy is inclusive of a head to toe massage. I was given a face pack made of herbal powders. After application of a herbal body wrap, steam is given in the traditional steam chamber. The herbal body wrap is made of a combination of natural ingredients including Bengal gram flour which removes dead skin and acts as a soap substitute.
The travel desk planned my sightseeing itinerary in such a way that I got to visit all the attractions of Silvassa. It was exactly what I was looking for. I started with the Nakshatra Garden which is sub divided into nakshatra van, raashi van, grah van and a medicinal plant section. Adjacent to Nakshatra Garden is the Vandhara Garden while the Tirupati Balaji Temple has idols of Balaji, Ganpati, Karthikeya, Saraswati Devi, Padmawati Devi, Hanuman, a Shivling and Navgraha. Bollywood movies like Phool Aur Kaante, Mohra, Jaan Tere Naam and Haqiqat have been shot in Vanganga Lake Garden. Bhojpuri movies are now shot here.
Next I headed to the Tribal Museum whose exhibits are a mix of tribal masks which are carved out of a single piece of wood and decorated with bamboo strips and coloured paper, ornaments, musical instruments and hunting equipment. It also has a small handicraft center where warli art on canvas, showpieces and knick knacks made of bamboo are sold. Next to the Tribal Museum is the Silvassa Art Galley inaugurated in 2009 where apart from paintings you can view different warli art. In front is the Church of Our Lady of Piety of 1897 which depicts the last supper on one wall. The Vasona Lion safari and Satmaliya Deer Park will appeal to kids.
The resort is also a convenient stay option to club both Daman and Silvassa as a weekend getaway. If the black sand Devka Beach has shacks, the Jampore Beach has horse and camel rides. Fisherman’s beach is the other beach in Daman. Don’t miss the interiors of Church of Bom Jesus and Chapel of Our Lady of Rosario located inside the Moti Daman Fort. The Moti Daman Fort also houses the Pargola Garden, house of Portuguese poet Bockage (which is closed), the ruins of Dominican Monastery and important administrative buildings.
The glass studded Somnath Mahadev Temple, Our lady of Angustias Chapel, Church of Our Lady of Remedios and Fort of St. Jerome in Nani Daman are other attractions. The Old Municipal Market in Daman sells imported chocolates, a range of mobile phones, clothes and accessories.
Lotus Resort Silvassa
Naroli Road, Dadra & Nagar Haveli – 396230
Tel.: (0260)2640431/2640454
Mobile No.:+91-8469739567/ 9727718845
Fax.: (0260)2640582
E-Mail : gmsilvassa@lotusresorthotels.com/ salessilvassa@lotusresorthotels.com
Khursheed Dinshaw
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This seems like a perfect option to me! I am travelling to this place two months from now with my family and wanted to stay somewhere without breaking my bank. Thanks!
most welcome Pinky. have a good trip to Silvassa.