Searching a Homestay in Shangarh – Staying at a Local Home

Traveling to a place located remotely brings a lot of challenges. Will you get a good place to stay? Will you get good food to eat? Will there be proper WiFi and electricity services? How good will be the transport/cab services? And a lot of other such doubts. When I visited Shangarh for the first time, I did face difficulty. I searched for a nice, budget-friendly homestay in Shangarh and found that there weren’t many options. Accommodation in Shangarh became an issue and since I was traveling unplanned, I hadn’t pre-booked anything or I had no idea of prices there.

So it was back in 2019 in October when Himachal Pradesh had started to experience extreme cold and while I was on my way to Shangarh from Sainj, I could see patches of snow on the way. And you need nice, warm accommodation in areas like Shangarh. Unlike other places I have visited, there isn’t much to do here. So this is a perfect place if you want to spend some time in the lap of nature. It’s green (white in snowfall). It is mostly silent and tranquil. So, you will love it if you are looking for isolation. However, now you have multiple options when it comes to homestay in Shangarh.

During my second visit, there were multiple stay options in Shangarh. Several local homestays have opened their gates and Zostel too has opened its homestay in Shangarh. So, you don’t have to bother about it. Book a room online or come and explore the options; that’s all up to you. You will find something. Now you also have good cafes like Café Stories n More so that’s also a wonderful thing because when I visited Shangarh in 2019, there weren’t many options and only local cafes were there.

I Spent Two Nights in an Unnamed Homestay in Shangarhd

When I visited Shangarh in July end in 2021, it wasn’t a good time. It was the peak of the monsoon and it was raining continuously every day, creating a lot of natural disturbances such as landslides, roadblocks, etc. I had already spent four days in Shangarh and it was still raining. So I was in my homestay most of the time. However, as I mentioned there isn’t much to explore in the village. Yes, there are several things nearby such as Barshangarh Waterfall which is located some 3km away. You can hike to nearby villages. There are nice trekking options from this village.

I spent two days at Snowline Homestay in Shangarh and from there I moved to the homestay run by Café Stories n More. I was supposed to stay for a day only but due to rain, I had to extend my stay. However, the following day too I couldn’t move out and was left with no choice but to stay in the village. Unfortunately, the homestay was booked for the next day, and I started to search for homestay options in Shangarh. I found some but at a distance from the village. Also, I was looking for a budget homestay in Shangarh. I wasn’t doing a luxury journey.

There wasn’t any hostel in Shangarh and Zostel was still under construction. That was the only hostel option in Shangarh at that time. I am not sure if there are other hostel options available in Shangarh. Anyways, I took a short walk to Mountain View Café and had a word with Negi bhaiya who runs the café. He told me that there was a homestay next to the café which was under construction. He would talk to the owner and ask if something could be arranged. After some time, he told me that he had arranged a room in that person’s home. There’s a room on the ground floor and the family lives on the top floor. I checked the room. It was a nice, wooden room with a queen-sized bed, nice warm blankets, new pillows, a table, and two chairs. The room had a small temple of the local deity and it had some peculiar smell. The ground floor had two or three rooms, the rest of which looked like storerooms. Sacks of freshly farm harvested garlic, onion and other crops were placed outside that was giving this peculiar smell.

I Stayed at a Local Home in Shangarh

Negi bhaiya finalized the room for me in 800 rupees per night which sounded reasonable to me. Moreover, I was getting to stay with the locals. I had stayed in a homestay in Shangarh and it was the time to try something different. While I was staying at Snowline Homestay in Shangarh, it wasn’t anything different however, that was a well-structured homestay. But this one was a room in the owner’s home. This was my first experience staying like this. I hadn’t stayed like this before. The home was largely made up of wood and had low floor ceilings. The upper floor was accessible through a wooden ladder. The room was nice however, the washroom was located outside. It was a complete ‘local’ experience to me to stay like this in Shangarh.

Read Here – Checklist of Trekking Essentials

The first night I had dinner at Mountain View Café where Negi bhaiya had cooked aloo gobhi ki sabzi, roti along with Siddu, a local Himachali dish. I could see two small kids along with a toddler in the home. It was already night so I couldn’t get to interact much with the owner and other family members. The home was located near the café by the roadside. The owner was constructing a homestay next to his home and he gave me a tour of the property. The homestay was in its final stages. The rooms were spacious and well furnished with attached washrooms. I loved the space the rooms had. The room of Snowline Homestay was comparatively smaller than this.

Read Here – Devta Ground Shangarh

The owner had grown lots of plants, flowers, etc. in front of the home. There were giant trees of apple and pear. Also, they had farming land. The night was dark and full of stars. I even managed to click some stars which looked incredibly beautiful. You will have to increase the brightness of your phone to see the stars in the photographs.

A Morning with Songs of Birds and Local Food

The next morning when I woke up, the blue sky had clouds and the mountains looked hazy due to misty fog suspended in the air. The birds had started their morning songs, hopping from one tree to the other. The home was based on a platform that was almost 5ft above the ground from the front side. After having freshened up, I was offered breakfast. Aloo paratha with a local pickle Lingadi. Pardon me, I have no idea what that meant but it tasted delicious. The flavor was something I hadn’t tasted before in my life. Sitting at the door of the room, enjoying my aloo paratha with soft songs on the Bluetooth speaker, it was something I was missing on this trip.

Read Here – Shangchul Mahadev Mandir Shangarh

 The trees had several birds, singing and dancing around. One of the birds posed as a model for me and I took some ‘proud-worthy’ shots considering I am not much of a bird photographer; not even close to pro-level photography. I don’t even remember which lens it was; I had only borrowed the camera to click photos on this trip. I had almost started to drizzle by that time. After spending nearly three hours there, I went back to the room, put my devices on charging, and went to take shower. And then moved to the café. From there, I went to the waterfall which unfortunately I couldn’t visit. Though I did click several photographs on the way.

Well, I was supposed to stay at this place for one night only but I loved the vibes and the local charm so much that I extended my stay for one more night. I spoke with Negi bhaiya and told him my plan of staying one more day. I met with the kids and clicked several photographs with them. With nothing much to do in my mind, I just listened to music while staring at the enchanting views outside. The weather was foggy and I had washed some of my clothes (the first time after 5 days) and that was also a reason I extended my stay.

Staying at a home in Shangarh was an experience I was longing for a long time. When I saw wooden homes walking moving to the homestay, I wished if I could get to stay in any of these homes. I didn’t get that much of a homely feel in the homestay in Shangarh where I stayed however staying there was something I wished for. The vibes were raw and the same as what I expected. So, it was quite an experience.