Palace Belvedere, Nainital

The large placid Naini Lake is cocooned within a 360 degree swoop of steep hills around it. The Palace Belvedere, once the summer retreat of the Rajas of Awagarh looks down on this spectacular view. Built in 1987 by Raja Balwant Singh OBE, CIE of Awagarh in 1897, a century of family history still echoes in the walls of the palace, and in the many relics and mementoes of that era in this heritage hotel that is run with all the graciousness of past royalty. The pristine beauty of Nainital, the largest hill settlement in the Kumaon region of the Himalayas, enthralled the early visitors, leading to its swift adoption as a favoured hill station by the British. Its popularity never waned and it continues to captivate large numbers of tourists to date.

As per legend, Shiva's consort Sati consigned herself to the sacrificial fire when her father Daksha slighted her lord. A grief-stricken Shiva danced the tandav with her lifeless body till Vishnu cut her body into pieces and scattered them far and wide. The places where they landed became the revered shaktipeethas. Sati's eyes, or 'naina', they say, landed at Nainital thus giving the place its name and the local reigning deity, Naina Devi. In ancient times the lake was also know as the Tri-rishi Sarovar or the lake of the three saints, namely Atri, Pulastya and Pulaha.It would appear that Nainital first came to the notice of the British in the latter part of the 19th century under the auspices of  sugar merchant P. Barron. Enchanted by the pristine lake and the surrounding forests on the overhanging hills, he built a house named Pilgrim's Cottage and brought a sailboat with him. Other colonial villas and promenades sprang up rapidly, and the United Provinces set up their summer capital administrative offices here. The older parts of Nainital still retain colonial vestiges, including sprawling bungalows, public schools, church and the British cemetery. At 1,938 metres, Nainital enjoys extremely pleasant temperatures in summer though winters are very cold. It initial popularity continued to grow and tourists throng to this hill town though it obviously no longer has the quality of untouched, unspoilt beauty and seclusion that attracted the first settlers.

Nainital, the largest hill settlement in the Kumaon region of the Himalayas, is 40 km from the railhead of Kathgodam in the plans and its spectacular location and activity hubs draw a large number of visitors. There are many other attractive spots of beauty and interest in the vicinity, which makes Nainital a good base or a good beginning point depending on how far and wide you wish to travel in the Kumaon.

Indian, Chinese and Continental cuisine are served