Shrivardhan: Essentials and tips

Getting there:
By bus: The town is about 165 kms from Pune and 185 kms from Mumbai...there are plenty of direct buses from Mumbai and a couple of direct buses from Pune..if you are not able to catch a direct bus from Pune, you can get many buses to Mandgaon from where, again, there are many buses...bus ticket costs about Rs. 250 and takes about 5-6 hours to reach.

By car: It is very convenient to have your own car as there are many places to visit around the town...car journey takes about 4 hours...roads are not in a great state and driver should be advised to keep eyes on the road, no matter how tempting the surrounding scenery is..it is advisable to travel during the day as ghat can be treacherous. There are a couple of gas stations/ petrol pumps available in the town...so you can re-fuel the tank and continue onward or around the town.

Stay:
There are plenty of home-stays in the town and a bed can be hired for as less as Rs. 250 a night...if you are willing to spend, it is possible to get a room with TV, air con etc for Rs. 1000...for a group, it is also possible to rent the entire house ranging between Rs. 2500 to Rs. 5000 a night...most home stays provide food at around Rs. 100 a plate for vegetarians and Rs. 200-Rs. 300 for meat-lovers.

A friend owns a place there, here's the contact info:

Food and drinks:
No denying that the place provides some of the cheapest and best sea food in the country..a ready made decent size fish costs about Rs. 200 per catch...it is possible to buy the fish directly from auction at as low as Rs. 600 for 8-10 fish...make sure to bargain a lot and tradition is to start with 50% of the price offered and settle down at 60% to 70%. The place is such that you do not need alcohol to relax..still if you are keen on drinking, ask around for local Madi..best time to drink Madi is between 8 AM to 11 AM.

Activities and attractions:
There are a number of temples in the town. If you are in a homestay, ask the owner to show around the rich wadi to get the feel of vegetation. The firm sand at beach provides an opportunity for a game of football and cricket, in addition to water sports such as banana rides, jet skis etc. offered by local tourist companies. It may be possible to hire/borrow a cycle to go around the town and find more secret beaches. Hareshwar and Diveagar (more famous attractions) are within 10-15 kms of the town, but if you want to avoid the crowd and experience real konkan, stick to this town or its surrounding area, talk to locals, eat and drink with them.

Buy:
If you have an ice-box, do buy sea food from auction to carry back home. Other specialties include Jack fruit chips, Jack fruit snacks, Kokam drink and spices. There are a few ATMs available in the town, so do not worry about cash...but most people accept only cash and not cards, so be aware of that.