Beach villas in Mandvi, Kutch

Mandvi is Kutch at its most unhurried. The old port town sits where the Rukmavati river meets the Arabian Sea, and for generations its shipwrights have built wooden dhows by hand on the riverbank — you can still stop and watch them at work. A short drive along the coast brings you to Vijay Vilas Palace, the former summer palace of the Kutch royal family, with sandstone domes and quiet gardens that run towards the sea.

Days here follow the light. Mornings are for a walk on the sand before the sun climbs; afternoons for a long lunch and a nap; evenings for the beach again, when families come out for kites, rides and hot snacks from the stalls. Mandvi is also the home of dabeli, the spiced potato bun that travelled all over Gujarat — try it where it began.

Our two Mandvi villas, Cahaya Beach House and Vaikunth, are about a ten-minute walk from the beach. Both come with breakfast every day, a caretaker at the villa through the day, and room for the whole group to spread out — Cahaya Beach House with its own jacuzzi and home theatre, Vaikunth with a private lawn and a sea-facing bedroom.

Best time to visit: October to March, when days are warm and evenings cool. Winter weekends and the Diwali, Christmas and New Year holidays fill up early, so message us well ahead.

Getting here: Bhuj airport and Bhuj railway station are about an hour's drive from our Mandvi villas. From Mumbai, fly to Bhuj (about 1.5 hours direct). From Ahmedabad it is about 350–390 km / 7–8 hours by road. We can arrange a pickup on advance request (extra charge) — free on direct bookings of 3+ nights.