Work + Vacation | Workation in Old Manali – Himachal Pradesh, India
Working from Mountains in Old Manali
After being boxed up in Jabalpur for the better part of 2020, I decided to move to the Himalayas earlier in October 2020 for 2 weeks, which turned out to be one of the best things I did in 2020! Yes, it took 2-3 days to get used to the mountain life and schedule, but once I got the hang of it, I was able to get my creative juices flowing, which was much needed, as I literally felt saturated boxed up in the four corners of our house in Jabalpur.
While the majority of my time was spent getting as much work done as possible, I was able to enjoy the vibes in Old Manali. Here are some of the things I did / experienced during my work-cation in Manali, which would interest you as well:
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Working in the Mountains
Manali has turned out to be one amazing destination to work, especially because one gets to wake up to the views of the mighty Himalayas, and the sounds of the water gushing in the river Beas, that flows through Manali and Old Manali.
Not only are there a lot of quaint boutique home-stays offering lucrative deals for long term Work From Home (WFH) bookings, there are plenty of amazing Hostels as well, in Old Manali offering economical long stay packages and all the infrastructure one needs to Work from Mountains.
And as mostly everyone who is staying in these hostels these days, is working remotely, the atmosphere created is quite conducive to get the productive and creative juices flowing.
P.S – Don’t forget to check out to pack these 17 items if you Plan to Work from the Mountains.
Cafe Hopping
If you are a foodie like me, you won’t be disappointed in Manali! Be it hogging on piping hot momos, or slurping on a sumptuous quantity of Thukpa, or trying out the Himachali Thali or sticking to the basics – maggi, paranthas, dal , roti, sabzi, chawal – you won’t be disappointed !
Not only this, you can even find Israeli, Thai, Continental cuisine in the many cafes dotting the riverside in Old Manali.
Yes, I followed all safety precautions, such as having our masks on at all times, sanitising our hands before and after meals, and maintaining social distancing. The silver lining was that I was able to make contactless payments at all the cafes, with the help of my SimplySAVE SBI Credit Card, and got rewarded every time.
If you weren’t aware, one of the USP’s of the SimplySAVE SBI Card is getting 10 Reward points for every INR 100 spent on dining, movies, departmental stores and grocery spends.
Go Local
2020 has been hard on everyone, especially the locals in cities like Manali that are dependent on tourists for their livelihood.
And now that the temperatures have started to dip, it only makes sense to go and shop for locally produced woollen clothes, from the locals itself.
Not only are they dirt cheap as compared to the offerings from any normal brands, they are quite comfortable and warm as well, and worth every buck spent.
Please note, that even if you purchase something for as less as INR 100-200, the amount might not mean the world to people like you and me, who are based out in the cities, but it goes a long way to help the livelihoods of these locals.
Starting from Woollen Gloves and Socks, I ended up buying a woollen cap & a jacket.
Spontaneous Treks and Hikes
There are plenty of spontaneous hikes and treks that one can do on a Staycation in Manali or when Working from Home in Manali – which is one of the most significant Post Pandemic Travel Trend !
To start off with, I recommend doing the Jogini Waterfall trek (a 3 km trek from Vashisht Temple) or the Lama Dugh Trek or The Bhrigu Lake Trek.
Other popular treks that one can opt for are the Hampta Pass Trek, Chandrakhani Pass Trek, Beas Kund Trek and the Deo Tibba Trek among others, most of which are among some of the Best Treks in the Himalayas.
Drive to Sissu and Beyond via Atal Tunnel
Atal Tunnel aka Rohtang Tunnel, built under the Rohtang Pass, that took around 10 years to be fully operational, has become the famous attraction for everyone who is visiting Manali.
At a length of 9.02 kms, Atal Tunnel is the longest tunnel above 10,000 feet, and cuts the travel time between Manali and Leh by around 3-4 hours. You enter the tunnel in Manali and end up in Sissu in the Lahul and Spiti District. And the very fact that you can travel from Manali to Sissu in 15-20 minutes via the Atal Tunnel is what has attracted tourists and travellers to visit Manali in 2020.
The importance of Atal Tunnel is that now, strategically important areas like Ladakh, and Lahul-Spiti are connected to Manali all year long.
This was just the tip of the iceberg, but the experience of Working from the Mountains for 3 weeks, was what I needed to recharge and get my productivity back.
I hope you enjoyed reading about the Top 5 Things I Did in Old Manali . Don’t forget to Pin this Travel Resource featuring 5 of the Best Things to do in Old Manali while Working from Mountains, for the future and share with others.
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