Cherrapunji – The abode of clouds, the land of beautiful waterfalls and natural caves, and the second wettest place on Earth

After being absolutely smitten by Sikkim‘s pristine beauty and breathtaking landscapes last year, I was longing to see more of North-East India. So I made a plan to visit Meghalaya this April with my friend Sujata. It was a budget trip and we wanted to see as much of Meghalaya as we possibly could in less than 5 days.

Cherrapunji (or Cherrapunjee), locally known as Sohra, is located in the East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya. It was most popularly known as the wettest place on earth, though it has been replaced by nearby Mawsynram now.

As we were on a shoe-string budget, we decided to go on a group tour to Cherrapunji from Shillong, organized by Meghalaya Tourism Department. The tour covers the most popular and easily accessible points in Cherrapunji by bus and is perfect for budget travellers, students, elderly people and also if you have a tight schedule. You can also visit the same places by hiring a private car.

Cherrapunji Sightseeing

Mawkdok Dympep Valley Viewpoint

Mawkdok Valley Viewpoint is located at the start of the Sohra Tourist Circuit. A viewpoint for the Mawkdok Dympep Valley is the Duwan Sing Syiem Bridge, which provides a splendid panoramic view of the Valley.

Ramkrishna Mission Museum houses artifacts related to the culture and heritage of the North East states and is quite interesting. Also, the location is beautiful.

Nohkalikai Falls

Nohkalikai Falls is the tallest plunge waterfall in India and is just spectacular. Its height is 1115 feet (340 metres) and it is the fourth highest waterfall in India and Asia.

But this waterfall has a very tragic legend associated with it. Noh Ka Likai means “the jump of Ka Likai”. According to legends, in a village called Rangjyrteh, upstream from Nohkalikai Falls, a woman named Ka Likai resided. After her husband’s death, Ka Likai was left with her infant daughter with no means of income. In order to sustain herself and raise her child, Ka Likai married a second time for the sake of her daughter. Being a mother to an infant, her daughter needed her constant attention so she could not give her second husband the love he thought he deserved. A jealousy grew in her husband which manifested to hatred towards Ka Likai’s daughter. He killed the infant in cold blood and cooked her flesh after throwing away her severed head and bones to hide all trace of the murder. When Ka Likai returned home, she noticed that her house was empty and nobody was home. A meal had been prepared but she did not find anyone around. She wanted to go look for her daughter but she was too famished from all the labour she had been doing so she ate the meal till she could not eat anymore.
Ka Likai usually had a betel leaf after her meals but she found a severed finger near the place where she usually cut betel leaves. Ka Likai realized what had happened in her absence and went mad with anger and grief. She ran off the edge of the plateau and jumped to her death as she could no longer bear the thought of cannibalizing on her dead daughter unknowingly. The waterfall where she jumped from was named Nohkalikai Falls as a grim reminder of a tragedy that befell an unfortunate woman.

Mawsmai Cave

Meghalaya is home to many natural caves, some of which are among the longest in India and the world. Infact of the ten longest and deepest caves in India, the first nine are in Meghalaya, while the tenth is in Mizoram. There are more than 750 caves in Meghalaya, out of which only 150 have been partially or fully explored.

Mawsmai Cave in Cherrapunji is a major crowd puller. Though the actual cave is quite long, only a 150m section is open for the tourists. The stalactites and stalagmites formations in the cave will leave you spellbound.

Although some openings of the cave are quite large, some are so small that we had to kneel down and bend our heads and occasionally squeeze our bodies through the openings to reach the other side!

In short, if you want to enjoy the thrill of caving here within a short period of time and without too much risk, Mawsmai Cave is a must visit.

Nohsngithiang Falls (or Mawsmai Falls)

Nohsngithiang Falls is a seven-segmented waterfall. It is also called the Seven Sisters Waterfalls as a symbolic representation of the 7 states constituting north-east India. The water falls from a height of 1,033 ft (315 metres) and is the fifth highest waterfall in India and eighth in Asia.

The flow wasn’t much when we visited but we could very well picturize how beautiful this place must look when the water is in full flow, especially during the monsoons.

Mot trop

Mottrop, also known as Khoh Ramhah, is a giant cone shaped rock formation. Legend has it that Khoh Ramhah is a fossilised cone shaped basket of an evil spirit! 

It also overlooks the plains of Bangladesh.

Thangkharang Park

Thangkharang Park is a botanical garden. There is nothing that special about this park, except when you walk till the end of the park and come across this gorgeous view! You can see the lush green valleys and winding roads through the hills from here. Situated very close to Mottrop, it also overlooks the plains of Bangladesh.

Eco Park

Eco Park was built so that tourists can enjoy a panoramic view of the Green Canyons of Cherrapunji and the waterfalls located nearby. There is nothing much to see here but this park is a must visit if you want to fly a drone since its the source of Seven Sisters Falls and you will get great aerial shots of the waterfalls from here.

Travel Tip: If you hire a private car, you can skip the parks and add some other points instead.

We planned to stay the night in Cherrapunji and trek to Nongriat Village the next day, which is popular for living root bridges and natural pools. So we got down at a homestay on our way back.

Cherrapunji or Sohra is a quiet and peaceful town, very different from the busy city of Shillong and we got drawn to its charm as we stepped foot.

Cherrapunji is often referred to as the land of clouds and we kept waiting to be engulfed in clouds throughout the day. So during sunset, this little fluff of clouds in the lap of the hills brought an instant smile to our face!

As we went to bed at night, rain poured in and we let out a happy sigh. Yes, we were in Cherrapunji indeed!

Our short stint in Cherrapunji was definitely fun but one day is just not enough to get to know this beautiful town. There are many lesser known caves and waterfalls that you can visit if you have more time. Mawsawa Falls, Wei Sawdong Falls, Dainthlen Falls, Kynrem Falls, Arwah Cave are just some of those places which I’ll definitely visit next time.

Planning Guide

How To Reach Cherrapunji

• By Train: Meghalaya does not have any railway stations connecting with the rest of the country. Guwahati station (in Assam) is the nearest major railway station. Hire a cab from there to reach Shillong. You can also take a shared cab like we did for Rs. 200 per head (for 10 seater) or Rs. 300 per head (for 4 seater).
• By Air: The nearest airport is Umroi Airport in Shillong but there are only direct flights to Umroi from Kolkata. So it is better to fly to Guwahati Airport from everywhere else and then hire a cab from there to reach Shillong .
• You can either stay in Shillong and visit Cherrapunjee from there like us or hop on a cab to go to Cherrapunjee. Shared cabs are also available from Shillong to Cherrapunjee and cost Rs. 70 per head.

Where To Stay

• Shillong: If you are just going for this local sightseeing in Cherrapunji by bus/car, it’s best to stay in Shillong. Shillong is the perfect base to visit other popular places in Meghalaya as well like Mawlynnong, Dawki, Mawsynram, Krangsuri, Laitlum, etc. Try to stay at Police Bazaar for easier accessibility. Double/twin-bedded rooms in most decent budget hotels cost atleast Rs. 2000 per night. We stayed at OYO Anant Homestay in Police Bazaar.

Check out Booking.com for really great hotel deals. You can also consider booking an Airbnb, especially if you plan to stay for more than 2 nights and get ₹3025 off on your first trip (for new sign-ups only).

• Cherrapunji: If you want to explore more of Cherrapunji or plan to trek to Nongriat like us, stay for a night or more in Cherrapunji. There are quite a few homestays here. We stayed at Kor Shonghait and have high praises for the homestay, especially for the manager Paul who gave us lots of information about Cherrapunji which will definitely help us plan our next trip here and also helped with our booking in Nongriat. Twin-bedded rooms cost between 2000-2500 per night, though we got it much cheaper in Goibibo because of Travel Cash discount. They also have dormitories available.

You can also check out Booking.com for hotels in Cherrapunji.

Best Time To Visit Cherrapunji

• September to May is the ideal time to visit Cherrapunji.
• Avoid the peak monsoon season, especially if you are planning to go trekking and caving.
• Avoid the harsh summer months (April & May) if you plan to visit a lot of waterfalls, because some of them are seasonal and the flow isn’t much in summer. The monsoons are a good time to visit the waterfalls.

Cherrapunji Sightseeing Cost & Other Details

The tour mentioned in this article is organized by the Meghalaya Tourism Department. You have to book it from their Shillong office (located in Police Bazaar) atleast a day before. The rate is Rs. 350 per head for normal deluxe bus. You can also hire a car from the tourism office itself or from any other agency. The rates are Rs. 2700 for Desire, Rs. 3000 for Bolero/Sumo, Rs. 4000 for Innova for Cherrapunji sightseeing.

If you have more time in hand, make sure you explore Cherrapunji to the fullest. Like I mentioned before, what we saw is just a glimpse of Cherrapunji and there are so many more places to see. The best idea is to ask your hotel/homestay manager or any other local to help you out about the lesser known places.

I really hope you enjoyed reading this article and you’ll find the information useful whenever you plan to visit Cherrapunji.

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Happy Travelling! 🙂