On Maharashtra’s tranquil Konkan coast is the little village of Velas, which even most maps seem to forget but nature enthusiasts talk about. What sets Velas apart is its link with the Olive Ridley Sea turtles, which come on its shores annually to nest. The villagers here, rather than disrupting the procedure, have adopted conservation and made Velas one of the sweetest eco-tourism tales in India. When you walk along its soft sandy beach, it is not just the waves you notice but the thought that beneath the sand, life is quietly waiting to emerge.
Traveling to Velas is easier than most hidden destinations. It sits around 200 kilometers from Pune and a little further from Mumbai, making it a manageable road trip through winding ghats, small villages, and stretches of greenery that glow after the rains.
The village itself doesn’t have big hotels or resorts and homestays run by local families are the way to experience it. Staying in Velas means sharing home-cooked meals, sitting on verandas where the sea breeze mixes with the smell of fish curries, and getting to know people who have chosen conservation over commercialization. Food here is coastal and comforting fish thalis, coconut-based curries, rice bhakris, and for vegetarians, delicious seasonal vegetables cooked in traditional Konkan styles.
The main draw of Velas is, of course, the turtle hatchlings. If you’re lucky, you can witness baby Olive Ridleys being released into the sea a sight that is as emotional as it is rare. But Velas is more than turtles. You can take excursions to nearby beaches like Anjarle or Harihareshwar, both calmer than their better-known counterparts.
The nearby Bankot Fort provides sea-gazing history, and treks around the green Sahyadri ranges present you with the opportunity to mix and match sea and mountains all in one trip. Birdwatchers will find Velas rewarding too, as migratory species often stop by the village wetlands.
What makes Velas special is how simple it is. Here, days are at a relaxed pace, you rise with the crowing of roosters, walk to the beach where kids play cricket, drink tea while chatting with your host about rural life, and in the evening, see the sun dissolve in the Arabian Sea. It doesn’t attempt to awe with extravagance or large attractions. Rather, Velas invites you in with truth, with the simple pride of a community that determined to preserve instead of to plunder, and with the unusual opportunity to interface with nature at its most fragile and lovely state.
Velas is not a place to visit, it is a recollection that traveling can be transformational, that a tiny village can catalyze sweeping change, and that sometimes the most memorable trips are the ones where you do less, perceive more, and depart with an anecdote in tow.