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Even though 2021 has ended, my stories from Gujarat will continue for a few more posts. Well, now you know how exciting my trip to Gujarat was! Over the last few posts, I’ve shared my experiences of exploring the Rann Utsav, Tent City, Crafts of Kutch, Rani Ki Vav, to name a few. In this post, I want to share my experience and review of Rann Riders Eco Resort. We stayed here for a night as part of our trip organized by the Ministry of Tourism & Gujarat Tourism.
If you’re interested in the “chronology” of the events, please note that we stayed here before visiting the Rann Utsav tent city. Without any further ado else, let me share my review of Rann Riders Eco Resort.
Little Rann Of Kutch – yes it exists
Most of us know about the Great Rann of Kutch and the White Rann. But do you that there exists a Little Rann of Kutch too! Yes, in fact in one of my earlier posts I mentioned that the entire area of Rann Of Kutch comprises of the area including this Little Rann Of Kutch and the grasslands of Bharindiara.
This is also a salt marshland but spread in a really small geographic area when compared to the White Rann. The region is part of the greater Kutch Biosphere Reserve which is a designated reserve area under the Wildlife and Forest Conservation Act. This is because this region is home to the Indian Wild Ass – known as Khur locally. This small area has towns like Dasada which is about a 3-4 hours drive from the Modhera Sun Temple. The Rann Riders resort is located in Dasada.
Rann Riders Review – stay amidst nature
As per our itinerary, we had reached the Rann Riders resort around dinner time. Since it was dark, plus the network was poor, we didn’t know where we were actually. We were served welcome drinks and guided to our cottages before we had our dinner.
Calm amidst nature
One thing that we all noticed instantly was the silence in the air. The entire place was super silent, with occasional sounds of insects and leaves rustling. (It did get scary at times, especially during the night) The entire resort has plants and trees all over. You will get a feeling that you are literally staying in a forest. Tall trees, nearly cut bushes, plants and flowers across the resort, just what you want to disconnect from the world and connect with nature. In terms of the ambience, full marks to Rann Riders. The Eco Resort surely stands by its name.
Cottages at Rann Riders Eco Resort
Coming to the cottages at Rann Riders Eco Resort, they have a couple of options. You can either choose to stay at a traditional Kutchi house called Bhunga or opt to stay in a more modern yet eco-friendly room.
The traditional Bhunga houses have a large single circular-shaped room with a double bed, & other items. There’s a small walk-in wardrobe in a separate room that leads you to the bathroom. The more modern cottages are like any other hotel room you would have stayed at except the bling bling.
The rooms have latches in form of chains that are hooked to the top of the door. So if you are someone short, you might need some assistance to help you lock/unlock the room. Apart from that most things in the room including the toiletries are done keeping an eye on the sustainability cause.
My Rann Riders Experience
While a few of us had the privilege to stay in a traditional Bhunga, Maharaj had a chance to stay at the modern cottages. The cottage that I stayed in had 3 other rooms. My room had two single beds, a chair, a rack to keep my bag and a tv. There was an attached walk-in wardrobe with a curtain that separated it from the bathroom.
There were also two windows and a door that opens to a small walkway leading to a lake behind the cottage. The lake wasn’t a part of the property and was separated by a fence. Only in the morning, I could open the door and take a stroll outside walking through a canopy of trees.
One thing is that the rooms are super quiet. So along with the sounds of nature, you can also hear if someone in the other room is talking loudly or someone is at the door calling out your name. Apart from that, I loved my small little abode surrounded by tall trees and wild grasses. The sounds & smell of nature early in the morning even before the sun rays peek through the window is bliss.
The only disappointment I had at the Rann Resort is the food. Before I share my experience with you, let me clarify that since we were on a trip, we had breakfast, lunch & dinner buffets. I don’t know if they have a la carte option or other buffet options.
I expected a lot more local food to be present for meals. However, what I got was typical north Indian food. While most of the people would have been fine with it, I expected a little more – at least for lunch and dinner. The breakfast was much better, especially the fresh Guava Juice and Pohe that we had.
Final Verdict
Rann Riders Eco Resort is that perfect place where you want to escape from your mundane life and spend time amidst nature. With barely any mobile network there, Rann Riders are what we all need. The stay options are pretty decent and they have good deals too.
A double room with breakfast costs around ₹7500 for a night and ₹10,000 if you choose all three meals. Considering the location, facilities offered and the rooms, I feel the rates are quite good. Apart from that, they also conduct Wild Ass safaris along with local folk artists performances. I’ll talk more about the Wild Ass Safari in my next blog post. Because I feel that it requires a dedicated blog post of its own.
So that’s about my review and experience of Rann Riders Eco Resort. If you have any questions, please drop them in the comments below, tweet to me at @Atulmaharaj, DM on Instagram or Get In Touch.
Wow it looks great ..we stayed in desert safari