It was my 4th wedding anniversary, and I was looking to visit a hill station to celebrate it along with my husband and my one-year-old daughter. Lonavala seemed an ideal destination to visit as it is between Mumbai and Pune and the travel time to Lonavala as a hill station is very less compared to any other hill station in the Southern or Northern parts of India. In this post I will detail everything about how I travelled with my baby girl, the stay, food, commute, places to visit in Lonavala, things to do in Lonavala, best time to visit Lonavala and everything in between.
The distance between Mumbai and Lonavala is 83 km. It takes roughly about 2 hours to reach Lonavala from Mumbai.
I boarded 22944 – Indore – Daund SF Express from Mumbai to Lonavala.
There are 18 trains that operate between Mumbai to Pune via Lonavala every day. Below are few recommendations if you want to board a train to Lonavala from Mumbai
| Train name | Travel time | Departure time |
| 22105 – Indrayani SF Express | 2h 18m | 5:40 AM |
| 22944 – Indore – Daund SF Express | 1h 42m | 6:00 AM |
| Pune Intercity SF Express | 2h 8m | 6:40 AM |
| 18520 – Visakhapatnam Express | 2h 18m | 6:55 AM |
| 11301 – Udyan Express | 2h 23m | 8:10 AM |
| 22159 – MGR Chennai Central SF Express | 2h 23m | 12.45 PM |
| 17613 – Hazur Sahib Nanded Express | 1h 41m | 4:00 PM |
If you live in Mumbai or Pune or any place within 300 km radius and if you love to drive, then I’d suggest you drive down to Lonavala. You can enjoy the scenic drive to the enchanting Sahyadri range at your own pace.
There are multiple buses that ply every day between Mumbai and Lonavala. If you book via Redbus then the first bus, that you will get, will start at 3.30 PM.
- I carried a boiled and cooled down milk pouch in a frozen bag just in case she wanted to drink milk while travelling to and within Lonavala
- Sweaters and socks if you travel during the winter
- I carried shoes as my baby started walking
- Quick food mix which enables me to make a millet koozh (kanji), oats, homemade ground rice dal mixture for a quick meal anywhere
- Stay at a place which gives access to a kitchen
- Diapers, decomposable baby wipes, some cold pressed coconut oil as a moisturizer and rash cream
- Toys like stacking cups which save space
- Few tiny books to read
Stay for a group
If you are a group of friends or family or colleagues who are planning to spend time together in Lonavala then it is ideal to rent a villa for yourself when in Lonavala. Most of the villas have a pool and a kitchen and the accomodation cost can also be shared.
Stay for a couple
In case you are just a couple then you have various options, from budget hotels to 5 star resorts like Fariyas in Lonavala.
Stay for a nuclear family
In case you are a couple travelling with a baby or kids then I’d suggest you opt for a homestay as it gives your child more comfort and an option to have homecooked meal for both you and them. I chose to stay at a homestay that I booked via Airbnb.
Other recommendations
It is also recommended you stay near the railway station or bus stand if public transport was your choice of commute while reaching Lonavala. Staying within the town gives you an option to explore the town and its market. I preferred to stay within the town.
Offbeat Stay Suggestions
In case you have a car and want to stay away in offbeat places then you can choose any place of stay between Lonavala and Kamshet. You can also consider staying near major attractions like Karla Caves, Lohagad Fort and Pawna Lake.
Read also: Darjeeling Exclusive Travel Guide and Things To Do
I visited Lonavala in Dec and I’d suggest you to also visit between Oct – Feb as the stay will be pleasant. I overpacked myself with jackets but it wasn’t required.
If you are an adventure junkie then monsoon between July – Sep is when you should visit Lonavala. There are many small treks to do but it can get slippery because of the rainfall.
Lonavala is extremely hot during summers between March – June and it is better to avoid visiting during this time.
Since I had access to the kitchen in the homestay where I stayed, making food for my baby was easy. The hosts were kind enough to prepare food for us as well at nominal cost.
There are many restaurants available if you are in the town and you get umpteen options from Continental food to Indian food.
You should definitely try Chikkis and Fudges from Cooper’s Fudge and from Maganlal & Sons.
Note: There are so many Maganlal’s in Lonavala. The original one is big and has their script written in blue as per the below picture.
Karla and Bhaje Caves
There are many 2nd century BC Buddhist caves located in and around Lonavala. The most famous ones out of them are Karla and Bhaje Caves.
The top choice of anyone visiting Lonavala would be Karla and Bhaje caves. They are 2 separate caves located 7 km from each other.
I didn’t get a chance to visit as I was not sure of trekking the steep hill to the caves with a baby. If you have a bigger kid or if you are just couples, friends or colleagues who are visiting then I’d suggest you check this place out. There is also a very nice waterfall near Bhaje Caves.
Below are the pictures from the caves
Karla Caves
Bhaje Caves
Lohagad Fort
Lohagad fort was constructed in 10th century AD by the rulers of Lohtamia dynasty. The fort was captured by different rulers during different centuries. It was finally captured by Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in 17th century.
Trekking Lohagad Fort with my baby girl was one of the most memorable experiences in Lonavala. Since my husband and I are long time trekkers, we had a comfortable trek up and down the fort with our baby in 45 minutes. The hike up is very much doable when you know where to keep your feet.
Note: Please beware of the monkeys there. Never ever dare to open your bag to drink water or have snacks when monkeys are around you. If you do they will chase you till the top of the fort. It is also recommended for you to not wear bright clothes or carry bright colored bags which will attract monkeys.
Pawna Lake
If you are interested in boating or if you like to do any water sports then you can visit Pawna lake. It takes a small diversion from Lonavala to Lohagad fort to reach Pawna lake. When we visited Pawna lake, we noticed tents put up around the lake for tourist camping. There are also homestays that you can opt to stay near the lake for an offbeat stay experience away from the main town of Lonavala.
Overhyped places which are least maintained
Tiger’s point and Lion’s point
Tiger’s point and Lion’s point are very good examples of overtourism and tourists overcrowding places. All I could see here were people and garbage. There were street food vendors who were asking us to have food and to sit only in red chair/green chair/blue chair etc.. because every chair color indicated that the tourists will buy food only from those particular set of people with a particular chair color.
Bhushi Dam
All I saw in Bhushi Dam was garbage in December. It is worth visiting only during monsoon, at least the water clears out the garbage.
We were told that, Lonavala lake is a private lake owned by Tata group of companies. It is worth visiting this lake only in monsoon as when I visited in Dec 2025.
- Rajmachi view point, Khandala
- Rajmachi trek
- Bhaje Waterfall
- Bedse Caves
- Visapur Fort
- Kundalika Valley
- Devkund Waterfall Trek
- Sudhagad Fort
- Thanale/Nadsur Buddhist Caves
Read also: Exploring Rishikesh – 2 Days in The Himalayan Foothills
Beautiful read, giving all the details about Lonavala.
Thanks Avanish! Lonavala has a lot of hiking places which you should give it a try.