Hotel Sonar Bangla Mandarmoni is a great option for family staycation around Kolkata.
A weekend with family,means fun,food and relaxation. But after the COVID problem,things changed.
When we decided to travel with family for Christmas 2020 we were scared.COVID vaccine was still not here and we were traveling with a kid and a senior citizen. We followed all these rules while traveling.
We decided to look for a property by the sea. We would travel by road. No stops .Not too far.
The result of the search was Hotel Sonar Bangla Mandarmoni. Unfortunately, the direct booking number yielded little result while booking. But Make My Trip was very helpful and we booked two rooms quickly.
The day of travel was 25th December.
Travel plan was like this-
Only family
Car AC off ,windows open.
Carried food and tea in flasks .
Plenty of sanitizers and wipes.
Everyone wearing a N95 mask ,including our driver, because in the car no chance of social distancing.
It was lovely starting off on a fresh bright wintery Kolkata morning.
The Christmas spirit was obvious in the long snaking queues towards second Hooghly bridge and Kona expressway .
Horrible jam. Work was being done at the Uluberia flyover. We reached Mandarmoni at 1.45 pm after starting at 8.30 am. Not too bad considering the traffic jams.
First look at Hotel sonar Bangla ,you catch a view of the silvery sea glittering in the sunshine.Its right at the end of the driveway and looks absolutely enchanting.
On checking at the reception we were surprised to find our rooms in two separate buildings. But were changed on request after checking availability. That was a big help.
The housekeeping people were very helpful and told us about the option of ordering meals indoors for safety reason.But breakfast would be buffet ,which again you could take up to your room to eat if you wanted.
The beautiful blue pool looked inviting, but even now the Corona situation was dicey so we skipped the pool, decided to have lunch, and head to the beach.
The lunch was delicious. Prawn curry, crab curry, rice dal, aloo bhaja,mixed veg.Not many options for sweet dishes. We skipped. Changing fast we rushed to the beach with sunscreen splattered slippers on and camera ready.
The cool breeze welcomed us back to the world exactly a year after our last holiday. Several rounds of sweet coconut water, baby coconut flesh kept us happy splashing on the beach till the tide started rising.
The COVID pandemic made the crowd sparse but we were happy that way and when the music started the entire family grooved to blow away the blues of the pandemic.
We decided to sit on the beach front promenade and order our tea.The sea breeze does strange things for our appetite and we ordered chicken kebab, fish kabab and tandoori chicken with two rounds of tea.It was Christmas eve and this was ordered directly from the live barbecue counter.
Dinner was skipped because we ended up ordering most of the item from the live counter.
All the travel sea air and dancing made us hit the sack early.
The next morning we woke at the crack of dawn to enjoy the morning sea breeze and catch breakfast before the crowds.
The fresh sea breeze made us forget everything except a feeling of thankfulness for being healthy and being with family.
The breakfast buffet was arranged in a big banquet hall adjacent to the pool .For unknown reason the doors and windows of the entire place was crowded and social distancing during taking off the mask for eating would be impossible.
The waiters at this time were looking tired and less than happy.Quickly carrying a platter of breakfast for mother we started carrying our own plates to the cool double levels eating area overlooking the pool.The choice meant we were climbing up and down a short flight of stairs every time we needed seconds or refill.That definitely stops over eating.
Breakfast was okay ,the other meals being way better .
Given an option I would opt for only a la carte meals there.But for breakfast that was not an option then.
The Christmas day was spent being lazy ,with family game of ludo,snakes and ladders, badminton, running race, silly poems and dancing to songs we never heard
Dinner was again from the live counter and this time we also ordered butter Naan to avoid confusion about eating for dinner.
It was an all in all.The entire trip was spent clicking pictures .
Next day we set back for Kolkata after breakfast planning an another staycation soon.
Lunch at Shere punjab was going to be impossible. The crowds on weekends were beyond crazy and everyone wanted to eat there .Mask was not a common sighting.
That left two options.Staying hungry or trying to get it packed .Luckily the second option was available .
Naan and mutton curry made for lip-smacking meal in the parking lot as the hubby and brother in law gathered food .
Making good time we reached Kolkata in record time.
The first trip after lockdown lifted.