Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat, Haryana

Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
Man on Rope
Craving to spend an evening away from Delhi's Hustle Bustle? An ethnic Rajasthani themed entertainment village is the place you may want to check out. Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat, Haryana, is built on the same concept of Chokhi Dhani, Jaipur, Rajathan, though a bit smaller. Located on NH 1 and couple of hours drive from New Delhi is definitely a fresh welcome for wanderers.


For similar reasons, my wife and me along with our almost two year old son chose to explore this place on a Saturday evening. To avoid weekend traffic, we left at 4 in the noon, bit early but worth the empty roads. As soon as we touched NH 1, the car was ready to fly and with good music, we didn't even realize how the time went by as we reached Chokhi Dhani in Sonipat. It was 6 in the evening and we parked our car. The parking space is huge enough to cater the mass. As we stepped outside, my wife and son were already taking selfies and the session went on and on until I interrupted and reminded them they are not alone.

Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
A Mud House
The place was already crowded as it was weekend and I struggled towards the ticket counter. The ticket includes entry fee and Rajasthani dinner which I was craving for so long. Quick tip: If you are going on a weekend, plan to reach early as they allocate your dinner time as well on first come first serve basis along with the ticket. I was offered to choose from 7:30pm, 9:15pm, 10:30pm dinner slot. 8:15pm dinner slot was already packed. I was glad I had a choice and we chose 9:15pm slot. It was already 6:30pm by then as we got inside and sun was still shining. It felt that we have arrived bit early, but at least we got the right slot for dinner else it would have been too late for us. 

Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
Utensils, Hand Made Mud Utensils, Hand Crafted/Painted Utensils
Photo session continued as we entered while I kept on experimenting with my new DSLR, my wife and son were more than happy to pose. On entrance we were served water and Jaljeera to freshen you up. Entrance looked classy, village themed mud houses, mud made utensils, shelves, toys, handicrafts, pots, everything was just adding up to the ambiance. Since I have been to Jaipur's Chokhi Dhani, which is much better than this one, but this one is pretty good too.

The Landscape
The place offers lot of activity for kids like bullock cart riding, horse riding, camel riding, lot of rides, magic show, puppet show, train ride, tractor ride etc. As we mingled along, I actually felt like I am in the village and felt like a kid as well. We kept on hopping from one stall to another to cover evrything it had to offer. 

Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
The Puppet Show
For grownups as well, there are cultural dance shows from artists all along Rajasthan presenting their best. I am not a folk dance expert, but at least I was able to make out the difference styles of dance they performed. As I was clicking their pictures, I didn't even realize when my wife went on stage to show her moves and dance along with them. The only thing I could do was whistle and clap as loud as I could. 

Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
An Artist
Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
Folk Dance
Post Sunset, the atmosphere felt alive with bulbs turning on and cultural music playing everywhere. It was already 8:00pm by then and we started feeling hungry. We ordered Bhel Puri and Pop Corn while we sat and enjoyed the folk dance. After few minutes, my son went crazy as he saw the giant Ferris wheel. He went along with my wife while I chose to do some photography. It was first time I was using my DSLR outside so tried experimenting various themes and lighting shots. 

Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
Ferris Wheel
I was damn hungry and as clock struck 9:00pm, we went for our dinner in typical Rajasthani style. We removed our shoes and went inside the Air-conditioned hall where they asked us to sit in traditional style and served food with utmost love and dedication. The food served is authentic Rajasthani and is delicious. The best thing is the way they serve the guests in most generous way and force you to try every delicacy they have to offer. Amazing Hospitality!

Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
Rajasthani Thali
Chokhi Dhani, Sonipat
Hospitality, The Dining Area
My stomach was about to burst as we left the dining area. It was already 10:00pm and we decided to leave and come back to the reality, to Delhi. 

10 comments:

  1. seems like a wonderful place... and the food in Chokhi Dhani is always good too :-)
    thanks for sharing...
    Cheers, Archana - www.drishti.co

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Indeed, food is great there and hospitality is amazing too. Cheers!

      Delete
  2. Very nice . You have made a great effort to give an exposure to the urban culture .

    ReplyDelete
  3. Very nice and superb blog. Really very beautiful and amazing blog.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Great Place. There are many more of these resort in many other cities and in diffrent countries. we have visited one in jaipur which is also the first of their many

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Indeed. I enjoy the way they capture the heritage in such places :)

      Delete

Like this post? Say it here!

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...