Best places to stay in Meghalaya
While looking for hotels or stay options in Meghalaya, it is important to first keep in mind that apart from Shillong which is the capital city, no other city has numerous stay options. Other cities in Meghalaya are Cherrapunji, Mawlynnong, Dawki and Jowai. Even in Shillong, staying in city centre may be very expensive considering the facilities the accommodation may provide. While Cherrapunji is a little more developed with regards to accommodation options it offers, the remaining cities do not offer as many options to stay. The budget ones are just basic with hardly any facility. Due to the demand and supply gap plus hotels having a deal with tour operators, the prices shoot up extensively during the peak seasons. We are providing a detailed information on best places to find stay/hotels in Meghalaya:
Shillong
Shillong is the capital city and hence it has numerous stay options in every area. However, the main area to stay is the central market area or the Police Bazaar. This area is dotted with a number of stay options from 5-star hotels to homestays. Even an average stay is very expensive here. The starting price was ₹3,500 for a cramped unventilated room even in an off-road hotel in this place. You will find mid budget stays a little off of this central area in places like Laitmukhrah-quite busy area with many hotels, shops and restaurants, Cantt- near to some of the sightseeing spots and affordable hotels, Golf links- This is a bit far from the central area but has most budget stays. You can easily find ₹1,500-2,500 rooms in a hotel or homestays.
Important note
While there may be very good affordable stay options here, you should bear a few things in your mind before booking any:
- The roads in Shillong are quite narrow like any other hilly city. The traffic is very congested any time of the day. During evenings it becomes utmost difficult to move around in a vehicle. It takes at least half an hour to move 1 km in peak traffic.
- Some sections of the uphill roads can be steep. Walking can be exhausting. Even a one-kilometer casual walk becomes a cardio workout. If you book a room by seeing its location on a google map and assuming you can walk to a particular location, think twice, as it is not accounting for the elevation.
Now, in the light of above two factors, you may book a place a little away if you plan to have a car at your disposal. If you are staying on the outskirts, visit the market area along with your city sightseeing. If you think that you can visit the market after coming to Shillong from a day trip while living on the outskirts, you will be wasting your time. We tried going to the market while coming from Laitlum canyon. We entered Shillong by 5:30 PM but arrived at the central area only by 7:30 PM!
Cherrapunji
Cherrapunji or Sohra is a resort town in Meghalaya. The view of the hills and clouds descending on them from your window/balcony is the default requirement of a tourist in Cherrapunji. Resorts are available in limited numbers in different areas of Cherrapunji like Mawsmai, Eco Park Road, Nohsngthiang (7-sisters waterfall) or even along the Sohra-Shella road. If you can afford a ₹4,000-5000 room stay, we would suggest booking a 3-star resort in any of the aforementioned areas. This is the location where you will spend most of your trip. So choose something comfortable and with good facilities.
If not, try going for homestays or lodges. They are very affordable and are situated in similar locations. There are not many restaurants in Cherrapunji where you can dine at all times. Mostly there are shacks and local cafes that open only during the daytime or close very early in the evening. So, if you are staying in a homestay you will have to make your own arrangements. Resorts mostly have their own restaurants which also cater to outside guests. They may be one option if you are staying near one. Try booking early as most of the resorts are in arrangement with tour operators and get booked soon. Prices may become unreasonable very near to the booking dates. On spot booking is also one option but it may not be available during peak season.
Mawlynnong
Mawlynnong is a village in south Meghalaya. It is known as the cleanest village in Asia. Ever since it became a tourist spot in Meghalaya, many homestays are being built near the village. The village itself has many homes that have started offering homestays for that local experience. It is a reasonable place to spend a night. If you stay here, you get enough time to explore tourist spots on the way. There are many restaurants around the village so food will not be a problem. Also, the rooms are quite affordable in the village. A room may range between ₹800-2,000. Although facilities may be bare minimum. There are some better homestays just outside the village but the price increases as the facility and services increase.
Dawki
Dawki is a convenient stop for a night over while coming from Cherrapunji. There are a quite a few good stay options here and finding one won’t be difficult. There are many 3-4 bedded homestays and a few good hotels and lodges. However, in peak season it becomes difficult to find a stay in budget as availability runs out fast. Since, infrastructure is not very well developed, there are not many hotels in most parts of Meghalaya. If you leave your stay bookings until the time you arrive, there is a good chance you will have to adjust with a less than average accommodation for an inflated price. We had a similar experience during our trip which we have mentioned in this post.
Jowai
Jowai is a quaint town in the West Jaintia Hills district. It has less population and urbanisation than Shillong. But, since, it is a district headquarter, it is fairly developed with enough facilities to stay comfortably. You will find numerous affordable homestays, holiday rentals and good hotels as well. There is good amount of café and restaurants also, if you stay in town. It costs around ₹2000-2500 for a nice room with all basic facilities.
On our trip we booked good affordable hotels wherever possible. We do not like to spend much on stays as we would be spending most of our day outside. However, we pay attention to the hotel’s locations, cleanliness and facilities. Here we have provided a detailed review of the places we stayed in.