Urban Indian
Akshi Beach: My travels are for the photography, for the curiosity to explore a new location, for a break from the monotony of daily life and nowadays even for business. My sojourns take me to different places – from large cities to small towns. But my most memorable experiences are invariably in small, isolated locations – the so called hidden gems. Akshi Beach is one such place: A small, idyllic Konkan village right next to the Arabian sea.
 Early morning at Akshi Beach on the Konkan coast around Pune |
Beautiful coconut and betel nut trees looming over the narrow streets, clamouring for space next to the jackfruit trees. Banana plants grown in beautiful vegetable gardens supplemented by small wells in the backyard. Akshi Beach, a stone’s throw away from its glamorous neighbour Alibaug doesn’t have much to offer to the busy traveller. But for anyone looking for some peace, quiet and solitude, Akshi beach is where serenity reigns.
Akshi has a nice beach front covered with causarina trees. A few bed and breakfast places along the narrow street lead to the beach. The Akshi beach is a beautiful white sand beach. The beach has very shallow waters and one can enjoy walking on the shoreline watching the beautiful sunsets in solitude. The quiet beach at Akshi can also provide the perfect setting for a small group of friends to party with a small camp fire. During the day time, there are a few stalls which dot the beach.
 Brinjals at Akshi Beach homestay |
Akshi is also considered to be a very good place for bird watching and bird photography. Akshi can also be used as a base location to explore the nearby beach at Kashid and the superb sea fort at Murud – Janjira. But we would suggest that you go to Akshi for enjoying the slow pace of life in the village. While Alibaug is the larger city with more options for stay as well as transport to explore the Konkan coast, Akshi is the place to come when you want to unwind after a hectic week.
We went to Akshi for a leisurely weekend and lived in a small bed and breakfast homestay strolling on the beach with all the time in the world, having fresh home cooked food served three times a day and enjoying the beautiful orange black sunsets on the beach. We were served food cooked from the vegetables plucked straight from their vegetable garden. Here is one snap of their superb brinjals.
 Evening at Akshi Beach on the Konkan coast around Pune |
How to reach Akshi Beach:
Akshi is at a distance of around 100 kms from Mumbai and 140 kms from Pune and is easily accessible from Alibaug which can be accessed by ferry or through land from Mumbai. Regular buses also run all the way to Akshi village from Mumbai as well as Pune. Please check out the MSRTC timetable on its website for further details about the bus timings as there arent too many buses leaving for Akshi from Pune. Travelling by a bus which goes through the lush green towns and villages along the Konkan coast is a wonderful experience.
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hi janit,
planning to go to akshi this long weekend of april,
if u could give me more details on the bed n breakfast place u stayed, tariff, and how far from beach.
planning to take a ferry to alibaug and then akshi, any idea on distance
thanks
r
aRUN
Hi Arun,
Thanks for visiting the blog.
Akshi will be hot this weekend for sure. We went there during Holi some 3 years back and ventured outside the house only in the evening and morning. That said, if you have an AC vehicle, it can really ease things.
Answering your questions:
To access the BnB place we visited, just ask for Akshi beach. Most rented vehicles, Vikrams and even the State Transport bus will drop you there. The lane connecting the bus stand to the beach is dotted by many BnBs. Mine cost us around 2k for 2 days inclusive of 3 home cooked meals a day and it was less than 1 km from the beach.
From Alibaug to Akshi beach is not very far off (maximum half an hour) and you will find Vikrams and State Trasport buses to take you to Akshi.