There is a version of the Kumaon hills that most tourists never find. Not Nainital with its weekend crowds and boat queues. Not Mukteshwar on a busy Sunday.
Ramgarh, sitting quietly at 1,789 metres between the two, surrounded by fruit orchards that have been producing peaches and plums since before anyone thought to put the town on a map. Rabindranath Tagore came here and wrote parts of Gitanjali. The Himalayan range appears on clear mornings in a way that makes people stop mid-sentence. The places to visit in Ramgarh don't announce themselves. They reward the people who slow down enough to find them.
13 kilometres from Ramgarh. A Shiva temple at 2,286 metres on a ridge with Himalayan views stretching from Nanda Devi to Trishul on a clear morning. The Chauli Ki Jali rock outcrop near the temple is the specific reason to go, natural rock formation at the edge of the ridge, vertical drop on one side, valley below. Go before 9 am. The light over the range at that hour is the version worth seeing. The town itself has good cafes without losing the quiet that makes this part of Kumaon worth visiting.
Ten minutes from Ramgarh by road. The ashram of Neem Karoli Baba on the Kosi River bank, in a gorge between the hills. Steve Jobs came in the 1970s. Mark Zuckerberg came later on Jobs' advice. The ashram doesn't charge entry and doesn't have a tourist infrastructure, which is part of why it works the way it does. On a regular day it's quiet in a way the more publicised pilgrimage sites rarely are. Worth a morning specifically rather than a passing visit on the way to somewhere else.
35 to 40 kilometres out. Naini Lake, the Mall Road, the cable car up to Snow View. Most people visiting Ramgarh include Nainital as a day trip, the drive through the Kumaon hills between the two is part of the experience. Go on a weekday. Weekend Nainital is a different place from weekday Nainital and if the crowds are what you came to the hills to avoid, the timing matters.
Bhimtal is about 30 kilometres from Ramgarh. Larger lake than Naini, island aquarium in the middle, significantly fewer people. Sattal is seven interconnected lakes in a forest setting, one of the better birding spots in the Kumaon region. Both work as day trips, and both feel like the version of Kumaon that Nainital used to be before it became what it is now.
The fruit orchards are worth walking through rather than driving past. In summer, May through July, depending on the fruit, the peach and plum trees are in full production. Some orchards allow visitors to walk through and buy directly. The smell and the visual of a working orchard in the Kumaon hills is specific to this part of Uttarakhand and doesn't get the attention it deserves.
The house where Rabindranath Tagore stayed, Gäetanachala and Samsad, still stands in Ramgarh. He wrote parts of Gitanjali here.
For anyone interested in literary heritage alongside the hill scenery, that adds a specific layer to the town that most Kumaon destinations don't have.
Foxoso Aamari Resort sits on the Bhowali-Mukteshwar Road, surrounded by orchards, forests, and valley views. Around 22 rooms and 3 Sky Villas across Garden View, Pool View, Himalayan View, and Executive categories. Large windows, balconies facing the valley, wooden hill-style interiors, modern fittings. Tea and coffee in the room, TV, Wi-Fi, seating areas. The Himalayan View rooms are the ones worth booking specifically, the range visible on a clear morning from those balconies is the reason to have chosen Ramgarh over anywhere else.
The property is:
This location puts most of the tourist spots in the surrounding Kumaon within 30 to 45 minutes.
The restaurant does Indian, Chinese, Continental. BBQ dinners are the thing that gets mentioned consistently, outdoor, fire-lit, valley below, the kind of dinner that works for a romantic evening or a group that doesn't want to be inside. Bar and lounge for evenings that don't require going anywhere.
Additionally, the property also offers a swimming pool, spa, sauna, gym, yoga and meditation, indoor games, bonfire and outdoor seating, conference hall, and banquet space.
Nature walks and birdwatching on the property. Jeep safaris arranged through the resort. Stargazing on clear nights, the light pollution at this altitude is low enough that the sky is worth looking at properly.
Works best for couples, families wanting quiet, workations, digital detox stays, and small weddings where the setting does more work than any decoration could. Not the right property for party groups or fast-paced sightseeing.
The places to visit in Ramgarh and the surrounding hills reward slow travel. A morning in Mukteshwar, an afternoon at Kainchi Dham, an evening by the bonfire. That's the itinerary this part of Kumaon is built for, and Foxoso Aamari Resort is built around the same idea.
The Ramgarh fruit orchards for a walk rather than a drive-past. Tagore's house, where parts of Gitanjali were written, still stands in town.
Options range from basic guesthouses to boutique resorts. Foxoso Aamari Resort on the Bhowali-Mukteshwar Road is the most complete, Multiple rooms and 3 Sky Villas, pool, spa, restaurant, BBQ dinners, bonfire, Himalayan views.
About 13 kilometres. Under 30 minutes by road.
Drive slowly, the hills between the two are worth it.
The fruit orchards, walking through working peach and plum orchards in summer is specific to this part of Kumaon.
Tagore's house is a literary heritage site most Uttarakhand visitors never find.
Multiple rooms and 3 Sky Villas, valley-facing balconies, multi-cuisine restaurant, BBQ dinners, bar and lounge, pool, spa, gym, yoga, bonfire, nature walks, jeep safaris, stargazing, conference hall, airport transfers.
Yes. Pool, bonfire, nature walks, indoor games at the resort.
Easy hill walks rather than serious treks. Enough on the property that not every day needs to involve leaving.
About 40 kilometres, roughly an hour by road.
Foxoso Aamari Resort arranges transfers on request, sort it before arrival.
