How To Reach Ganpatipule

Ganpatipule is a little town located on the western coast, on the shores of the Arabian Sea. The town is situated in the Ratnagiri district of the Konkan region of Maharashtra. The city of Chiplun lies to the north of Ganpatipule, while the coastal town itself lies about 20 km away from the city of Ratnagiri. The capital city of Mumbai is about 375 km north of Ganpatipule.

The little coastal town is known for its beautiful beaches and temples and is developing into a popular weekend tourist destination for holiday makers and pilgrims alike. The town is a very simple one, with a charming rusticity that appeals just as much as the beaches do.

The most preferred way to reach Ganpatipule is a drive to the beach town.

Travelling to Ratnagiri by air will commence by early 2020 with commercial flights to the Chipi Airport at Sindhudurg in Ratnagiri that will cater to flights from Mumbai, Pune and Nashik as well as the Ratnagiri Airport that will cater to flights from Mumbai.

At present the nearest airports are Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport at Mumbai (352 km) and Pune International Airport (335 km). Both airports cater to domestic flights from most Indian cities and international flights to cities like Kuala Lampur, Singapore, Hong Kong and Dubai. You could hire a cab or board a bus from either of these cities to Ganpatipule.

Ratnagiri Railway Station, which is one of the chief railway stations of the Konkan railways, is the nearest by train to Ganpatipule. The station is a modernized one with escalators and elevators and updated waiting rooms and cafeterias.

Ratnagiri Railway station has trains chugging in from cities like New Delhi, Mangalore, Ernakulam, Mumbai, Jamnagar, Coimbatore, Amritsar, Vasco da Gama et al. The station has a good number of trains that connect the South of India and Goa to the cities of the North and provides an ample choice of trains. From the railway station you could hire a cab to Ganpatipule (30 km).

There are private as well as state run MSRTC buses from Mumbai, Kolhapur, Mahabaleshwar, Ratnagiri, Pune, Chiplun and Pimpri Chinchawad and seasonal buses from Panjim. The coastal town is well connected by roads to major cities like Pune and Mumbai and tourists often prefer a long drive to Ganpatipule from these cities.

If you are travelling by bus, you have the options of choosing from a regular to an air conditioned or Volvo air conditioned multi-axle semi sleeper buses to Ganpatipule. The roads from Mumbai to Ganpatipule are a breeze to drive through and although it takes about 6-7 hours of drive, tourists prefer driving to the beach town, with pit stops in between.

The town is a small one and it will do pretty well for you to take a stroll round town. There are frequent buses from Ratnagiri that can be used to hop on and off. The resort, if you are staying in one, could arrange for a cab for a day’s sightseeing. There are places where you could hire scooters, bicycles or motorbikes for a ride across town. There are quite a number of beaches scattered about the tiny town's coastline and its a lovely experience to ride a bicycle near the beaches, to feel the salty spray on the face.

There are plenty of local auto rickshaws and you could hire one for a day. Most tourists hire a tuk tuk for longer trips too, including a visit to Ratnagiri that’s just about 20 km away from Ganpatipule.