Saputara

Saputara, in the Dang district of south Gujarat, is the state's only hill station — a cool, forested plateau set at about 1,000 metres in the Sahyadri (Western Ghats) where Gujarat meets Maharashtra.

• Its name means "Abode of Serpents" in the local tongue, drawn from the winding Sarpaganga river that coils through the valley like a snake and from the serpent-worship traditions of the indigenous Dang tribal communities.
• Saputara was developed as a planned hill resort after Independence, and it remains delightfully low-key compared with the crowded hill stations further north: a single lake town of gardens, viewpoints, and forest trails that fills with Gujarati families escaping the plains heat.
• The centrepiece is Saputara Lake, a calm landscaped reservoir at the heart of town offering pedal- and row-boating, ringed by walking paths and a musical fountain.
• The Sunset Point (Gandhi Shikhar), reached by an aerial ropeway, gives a sweeping panorama over the Dang valleys at dusk; the Sunrise Point (Valley View) is its dawn counterpart.
• The Gira Waterfalls (about 50 km away near Waghai) thunder spectacularly in the monsoon, the Artist Village and the Dang Darbar tribal fair showcase Warli-style art and Dangi folk dance, and the Vansda National Park and Purna Sanctuary protect the surrounding moist-deciduous forest.
• The Saputara Monsoon Festival (July-September) celebrates the season when the hills turn emerald and the waterfalls peak.
• Echo Point, the Step Garden and Rose Garden, the tribal museum, and the hilltop Hatgad fort just across the Maharashtra border fill out an unhurried two-day visit.
• For vegetarian travellers, Saputara is naturally easy — the food is predominantly Gujarati and Maharashtrian vegetarian, with Gujarati thali, nagli (ragi) rotla and Dang tribal preparations, sweetcorn, vada pav, and hot chai at the lakeside stalls.
• The best season runs October to June for clear weather, with a distinct monsoon-tourism season (July-September) for travellers who want the green, waterfall-rich landscape.