Gone Fishing Cottages — Hotel in Himachal Pradesh

My family and I visited Tirthan Valley for the first time in June 2024. We love being in the mountains, but getting there is always rough. Between the traffic, some scenic stops, and a lunch break at the excellent Café Suket, we found ourselves 8 hours into our trip, driving down a pitch-dark gravel road which Google Maps assured us led to Gone Fishing Cottages (GFC). As we came around the final bend, we suddenly saw a glow up ahead — and like some golden oasis in the desert of the night, GFC’s gates appeared. We were welcomed with a refreshing glass of jaljeera, and as the efficient staff showed us to our rooms, our worries began melting away.

GFC’s rooms are spacious, very clean, and decorated with a unique blend of in-house artistry and curated finds brought back from the travels of our lovely hosts, Dimple aunty and Uppi uncle. The comfortable beds, water heaters in each room guaranteeing a hot shower, high-quality toiletries from the hosts’ own Farm Essentials label, and wood-cabin ambience put us immediately at ease. We followed this up with a delicious dinner from GFC’s excellent kitchen, and after a short stroll in the bracing, cool air, sank into a deep sleep.

The next day revealed more of GFC’s property — built along a slope, it is full of charming little nooks with more tasteful decor, a variety of blooming flowers, birds chirping in their nests, and great places to just sit and enjoy the moment. This layout allows for a great mix of privacy and social engagement, and a pleasant space to wander even without stepping out of the gate. The buffet breakfasts were nourishing and delicious, with several on-order items available too, all of which struck a great balance between restaurant-style flavour/variety and home-style heartiness. GFC’s menu is very likely the most expansive in the area, and still almost every item is excellent — we loved trying things like siddu (with the incredible ghee Dimple aunty sources locally), Himachali dishes like lingri, trout, and dhaam, a wonderful range of salads, and GFC’s special walnut chicken (absolute must-try!)

In addition to the built environment, Dimple aunty has managed to foster a great sense of community at GFC — we met so many interesting and warm people among the other guests, and post-dinner hangouts that turned into musical jam sessions really completed the quintessential pahaadon-ka-trip experience. GFC is also committed to enriching the local economy and ecology — I talked extensively to Dimple aunty about her hiring exclusively local staff, implementing solutions for clean energy and waste-reduction, and organising initiatives that benefit local communities. Though I’m not much of a dog person, if you are you’ll love the resident dogs too. At aunty’s own residence, her work caring for injured animals is inspiring — she tends to a rotating cast of kites, angora rabbits, owls, and other local creatures, which you might be lucky enough to see if you ask nicely. Unfortunately, being so close to nature means the occasional encounter with a big spider — but given how calming everything else at GFC was, this was a chance to retrain my arachnophobia a bit :)

An excellent feature of GFC is you don’t necessarily need to get in a car to go explore Tirthan Valley — there are a number of great hikes around the property itself (check out AllTrails app for recommendations). The entry to the Great Himalayan National Park and scenic spots on the way are not far either. Request the GFC kitchen for some packed meals if you want to enjoy a picnic in nature. And when you’re tired and sore from hiking, there’s a natural cold-water stream and pool right outside the gate!

All-in-all, Dimple aunty and her team’s exceptional care and attention to detail made our stay one of our most memorable hospitality experiences in memory. Finding a travel-home that’s as instantly comforting as GFC is a rare, rare delight. I can’t recommend Gone Fishing Cottages enough — whatever duration you’re planning to book for, add two days to your itinerary: you won’t...

Gone Fishing Cottages! Remember this name when planning a trip to Tirthan. Because its one of the best places to stay at when in this region.

Located in the valley, at a very convenient distance from Jibhi, Jalori pass, Gushaini and Banjaar, this is a beautiful resort, hotel and a homestay all rolled into one. Its not too close to civilization, which lends peace and tranquility to the place and its not too far off either so as to be inconvenient.

We stayed here for 4 nights - booked through a travel agent. Our flight to Chandigarh was delayed by a couple of hours and hence, we reached at GFC at around 10pm instead of the expected 8pm. Nikhil from GFC kept calling us for our whereabouts and checking on us if we needed any help reaching there. We were welcomed by a warm bonfire piping hot dinner at 10 in the night - on a winter night when it gets freezing cold and gets pitch dark at 6 in the evening. And, these were just the signs of what was to follow.

The rooms are really well equipped with the basic necessities and amenities. The random knickknacks places in the rooms, and across the property, lend a very warm and welcoming charm. We were placed in #105 which was in a cottage with 3 rooms and a common dining / bar area. The dining area had the basic stuff placed right there - a microwave oven, cutlery, a kettle and a refrigerator. The room also has additional blankets to keep us warm. The beds were also equipped with electric bed warmers - an absolute necessity during winters. They also have a TV with Tata Sky connection, but it would be seldom used, considering that the property offers much better options to spend your time.

The bathrooms have an in-house brand of cosmetic products - they are organic and smell really nice. Worth giving a try. We had some issues with running hot water during our stay (we were given buckets of hot water in the mornings to address this). Also, there was some problem with the electricity supply, but we were informed that this was a common issue across the valley.

There are several sit-outs within the property where you can soak in the sun, have a small bon fire or just chill outdoors. These areas are decorated with really cute little souvenirs and other such stuff.

The food served everyday, including the breakfast, was made to order, from mostly local ingredients and materials. The kitchen staff made suggestions of what local delicacies to try - a special mention for the Siddu (a local variety of momos) and Jhol kadhi with rice. Food was always served piping hot and with a smile on the face, always with the insistence we have experienced several times, as Gujarati hosts and guests.

The owner of the property, Uppi, was also staying at the same time as we were, and he was really helpful not just with making suggestions of what places to visit, but he also ended up making the phone calls to get the car and guide to pick us up. He also hosted us at his room on one of the evenings, sharing his travel related and other experiences. I'm sure the warmth and welcoming nature of the staff at the property has been derived from the owner himself.

Its really the small things that matter, and it showed when one of the didis (the local women who take care of the property) actually got for us a few large pine cones - that we were casually discussing about collecting from the nearby forest a day back.

Also, special thanks to the kitchen staff - Raju and Rinku - for taking great care of us during our entire stay.

Would love to visit this place again. 110%...

I stayed at Gone Fishing Cottages in second week of April 2024 for a total of 2 nights. We were two single travelers ( myself and my uncle aged 59 ) who stayed in two rooms in one cottage itself. Having done some research on several properties around the area of Gushaini, I was drawn to this particular property based on the extremely high reviews of various other travelers and boy was I not disappointed !

Gone fishing cottages lived up to all the expectations and went even beyond ! Here is a detailed review on various aspects during our stay to help you decide and conclude that this is indeed the property you must choose during your stay at Tirthan.

Rooms & Bathrooms :- very spacious, well decorated, CLEAN NEAT AND HIGENIC comfortable beds with bed heaters. Same can be said about the bathrooms with heated water shower as per international standards. Our cottage also had a common area, a cute library and a kitchen along with a fridge ! Felt more like a home away from home. Full marks here.

Food:- breakfast was the best part. Apart from the usual Parantha, omelette and poha which is served ALL OVER HIMACHAL we also had unique options such as upma, pancakes, cakes, juices, fruits etc. Served in buffet style. By far the best breakfast I have had in any of the properties during my 11 day visit around Himachal. The dinner was also very tasty ( comprehensive menu ) consisting of local cuisine with some delicious home made pickles adding that extra taste ! Breakfast was served in a closed indoor area while dinner served in an outside area with heaters on request. A break from the usually monotony of having breakfast and dinner at the same place. They also served warm buttered popcorn for dinner which I absolutely loved in the cold April evenings. Loved the food !

Location :- A 5 to 7 minute walk from from river but well nestled in the valley with wonderful surrounding views. Don’t let the fact that the property is “not located” turn you off. All other aspects such as food, friendliness of staff, attention to detail by owners, room standards, all well make up for it. After all a pleasant 7 minute walk in the valleys of the Himalayas never did anyone any harm.

Common areas :- very tastefully decorated which gives you a warm and comfortable feeling. As mentioned before in the rooms, the place is like a home away from home and those who “ arrive as guests, leave as friends”.

The most important and crucial part of this property however which I have saved for last would be the owners of this property Ms. Dimple and her husband who go the extra mile to make all their guests stay as comfortable and memorable as possible.

Right from the booking process till the time I left, from arranging guides to giving us information about the area, both the owners were amazing ! Heck, even after a tiring day of hiking to the GHNP gate, Ms. Dimple arranged for a foot massager for my aged Uncle ! It is because of this attention to detail by the owners that this property is what is is today and enjoys the high ranking it rightly deserves with almsot all bookings agencies.

During my future visits to Tirthan I will most certainly be staying here again and can recommend this property to others with utmost...