Experience Real Wilderness
Authentic off-track Adventure
Set in a clearing amidst 100 acres of untouched forests in Uttrakhand is a 80 year old house...
... a couple of hours away from Nainital in the South Gola range of Himalayas, with stunning views of Nanda Devi and the surrounding peaks on clear days.
Chestnut House, built in 1933 by a Sanskrit scholar for his Polish doctor wife pining for the cool climes of her country has now been converted into a warm homestay...
Cloudshops
Elevate Your Creativity
Nestled among swirling mists and ancient oaks, Jilling Terraces now offers immersive experiences for personal transformation. These high-altitude creative workshops and retreats invite you to explore your artistic potential where earth meets sky.
Echoes of our November 2023 Cloudshop: "Soundscape: Nature in Music." Watch as four brilliant musicians from India, the Netherlands and France blend their artistry with Jilling's inspiration.
Led by master craftspeople and visionary artists, each Cloudshop is a journey of discovery, set against the awe-inspiring backdrop of the Himalayas. Whether you're drawn to the textures of traditional textiles, the flavors of reimagined cuisine, or the rhythms of mountain-inspired poetry, our Cloudshops offer a canvas as vast as the horizon. Join us where the clouds whisper inspiration, and let your creativity soar to new heights.
Explore your Stay at Jilling Terraces
Rooms with Stories, Views with Wonder
Nestled among whispering pines and ancient oaks, our accommodations are sanctuaries of Himalayan charm, each with its own tale to tell. From cozy rooms that touch the clouds to secluded cottages embraced by the forest, every space offers a unique experience of mountain living.
At Chestnut House, our main lodge, discover two ground-floor suites Buransh and Utish with cozy ante rooms, and two first-floor double rooms Kafal and Padam overlooking mountain views. For more seclusion, choose Ringol Cottage with its unique bamboo ceiling, Oak Cottage nestled among its namesake trees, or our traditional Kumaoni Farm house. Each space, named after local flora, offers its own Himalayan charm and story.
Start From Here...Choose your room
Padam
The gorgeous Himalayan wild cherry tree is the inspiration for this room. Mesmeric when in bloom with its delicate flowers, this room aspires for the same delicacy in its impact. This compact room on the first floor offers supremely magnificent views of the Himalayas, lounge on the bed let nature roll over you, sip masala chai, read, think or just drift - let the peace and silence sink in.
Buransh
The scarlet hued suite is named after the rhododendron flower that peeps out between the thick canopy of oak trees heralding the advent of spring. Moving from scarlet to a madder red hues the suite has a traditional fireplace a king size bed and a comfortable ante room with an extra bed and a study table – enough space if one wants to set up home for a few days to read, write or watch nature work its magic in the mountains. This opens out onto the verandah with fireplaces where one can enjoy the outdoors without being chilled.
Kafal
The bay berry or box myrtle, this tangy sweet wild berry is a favourite with all kids. This room tucked away on one side of the house is a haven for the late risers and those taking a break from any sounds of civilization. One can breathe in the essence of the mountains – simply throw open the windows on two sides of the bed and feel the mountains roll up next to you.
Utish
The local alder tree with a burnished bronze bark gives this room its quintessential character. The wood of the tree has been ingeniously used as towel stands, toilet paper holders and wedges for mirrors all over the nooks of the house. Done in shades of indigo this majestic suite has an ante room too – perfect for a small family to play a raucous game of monopoly or work out a 1000 piece puzzle from the collection in the living room. It opens out to the verandah on the ground floor and has a patch garden at the back.
Ringol
The self sufficient cottage is named after the resilient dwarf bamboo, traditionally harvested from oak forests and crafted by locals into utilitarian goods. Here we use it as the unique ceiling under the tin roofs.
Sit on the day bed in the living area, toss up your favourite salad or make green tea in the pantry area, or have a midnight hot chocolate, sit around the 4 seater dining table and write a poem or discuss the nuances of home schooling – enough space to do what you please. Then clamber up to the loft bed space and watch the moon rise and wind its way through the sky and peek in from each of the 4 windows. Step out into the verandha in the morning with your book and drift…. The world can wait.
Oak
Our darling Oak Cottage is now open for long stays! Come down the path from ChestnutHouse and find it tucked away between oak trees. Walk into a living room that doubles up into a balcony, pantry and dining room, then step into the spacious bedroom with an ensuite bathroom. Awaken to raucous bird song, open the french windows to watch clouds from your bed, answer emails on the study table, carry a tiffin down from the main house for lunch on the dining table, curl up on the couch with a book, brew yourself a pot of green tea to sip from the comfort of our old cane chairs, help weed the private garden out back, and revel in the peace and privacy of your own home in the "hills".
The Farm
The Farm is a charming traditional Kumaoni house adapted for modern living with a bedroom, living room kitchen, and a bath with a central courtyard that is the heart of the cottage ..Nestled amidst terraced slopes and clear skies; it retains some of the core features such as low sloping roofs with skylight cut-outs , mud n slaked lime walls, cow dung, and mud-plastered floors and an angithi in each room. The house is made from chiseled granite, mud plaster, local wood, and balli / tatktas salvaged from the old house that has stood the test of time since 1943.
Important: It is a 15-minute walk from the main house and a 10-minute walk from the oak cottage.
The walls and floor are washed n tamped with mud plaster and cow dung. It keeps the place cool in summers and warm in winters and also keeps insects at bay. There is a charming fireplace in each room and a 360-degree view of mountains n forests from all sides
This house is for those who derive pleasure from being amidst pure nature, natural materials, and the hands of local masons n carpenters. This is the aesthetic of real India and functions beautifully for many a man n woman
We hope to bring to you all a part of their life n living and if there is anyone out there wanting to shed excessive trappings and be one with earth n mud n stone n wood; this is where your feet should take you.
A self sufficient cycle - like olden times
Harking back to a balanced eco system where the hunter gatherer lived purely off the land, here at the Terraces , not the hunting but the sourcing of raw vegetables and fruits is done from local farmers and the cycle of nature’s bounty shows on our tables.
Like a large family, everyone staying at the Terraces gathers at the generously sized living room with its unique oak and pine wood table to partake of most meals… order up a banquet, have a candle lit dinner in one corner, a casual brunch or a salad and pasta lunch...
A self sufficient cycle - like olden times, harking back to a balanced eco system where the hunter gatherer lived purely off the land, here at the Terraces, not the hunting but the sourcing of raw vegetables and fruits is done from local farmers and the cycle of nature’s bounty shows on our tables
Order up a banquet, have a candle lit dinner in one corner, , a casual brunch or a salad and pasta lunch... ...or just have it set up in the great outdoors, under the kaphal tree
Enjoy Mountain Spring Waters and Fresh Local Produce
Experience Unbound Wilderness
Explore the region using Jilling Itinerries
Travel Planner
A moderate 1 hour 30 minute trek up from Matial through - large conifers, thick oaks, luscious rhododendrons, a stray horse chestnut, laden peaches, plums and apple trees lining the path...
Unless you are a fitness buff, after a point the heart pounds, the cheeks are aflame and your breath comes in short harsh gasps – the invigorating walk up to Chestnut House is something memories are made of...
Parking the car at a village (Matial) along the main road and walking up to a quaint peaceful destination crossing seasonal waterfalls, maybe chancing upon a grumpy porcupine or a snuffling, greedy wild boar along the path gives our travellers many holiday stories to take back home. A rosy cheeked village kid or a hardy gentle yokel may cross your path, normally what happens is that one follow the guide upto the house in awed silence, overwhelmed by the landscape all around. a few of us just need to concentrate on keeping our breath and foot step steady.
The guides will carry all your luggage up and give you a break half way up, with tea from a flask or nimbu pani, while you catch your breathe!
Hike up to Jilling from Matial village
Our Guests' Stories
Discover the magic of Jilling through the words of those who've experienced it. Our Google reviews are a tapestry of real adventures, inspirations, and transformations. See why our guests call Jilling Terraces a Himalayan haven of creativity and peace.
Chestnut House Guidelines
Our beautiful heritage home is perched up on a mountain in the midst of luscious mixed forests. Here we find barking deer, sambar deer, yellow-throated martens, Himalayan palm civets, the occasional leopard and black bear, as well as an enormous diversity of plant, bird and insect life. Our lodge is for those guests who can appreciate the luxury of a hot bath and delicious home-cooked meals, while being in the lap of Nature. Jilling Terraces also boasts spectacular sunsets, and on clear days, the magnificent Nanda Devi massif and her sister peaks are visible from the house.
It is our endeavour to respect our environment and our team, while providing you with a memorable experience. In view of our lovely but remote setting, all guests are requested to famliarise themselves with our guidelines:
Chestnut House in Jan 2020
Hike from Matial to Jilling Terraces
There is no direct road to Chestnut House. Depending on your fitness, it can take between 45 minutes to 2 hours to climb up to the house. A member of our team will meet you at the roadhead in Matial and guide you along the trail.
Checkin
Check-in timings are from noon to 6 p.m. We do not accept late check-ins as it is inadvisable to walk the trail after dark, so please plan your travel accordingly.
Jilling Terraces Jan 2020
Meal Plan
Your room tariff includes three meals as well as tea service twice a day. Any extra orders will be charged accordingly. Our kitchen staff whip up a wonderful variety of snacks, from pakodas to momos, so be sure to place your orders an hour in advance.
Dinner is served at 8 p.m. and our kitchen closes at 10 p.m. sharp. Our staff members come from the neighbouring villages of Panyali and Kanarkha that are about an hour away. After they serve you they have a long walk home, so please be respectful of these timings.
Don’t leave Plastics behind!
Plastic packaging is inevitable in our world. However, there is no waste management system in this area. Please carry minimal plastic materials with you to Chestnut House. You are expected to take such materials, whether biscuit packets or shampoo bottles, back with you and dispose of them responsibly in the plains. Our mountains and forests are beautiful, and we intend to keep them free of plastic pollution.
Bonfires
The allure of a bonfire on a mountain getaway is charming, however mindlessly burning wood is not. At Chestnut House we only light bonfires in the severely cold weeks between December and February. Wood for this is collected and stockpiled from our estate through the year. Please do not request a bonfire during other months, it is simply not cold enough to warrant it, and we hate to disappoint you.
Plan for Weather
The weather at Jilling can be temperamental and the closest market is quite some distance away. Be sure to carry a torch, raincoat, organic insect repellent, personal medicines, toiletries, closed shoes, a water bottle, binoculars, and chargers for your electronic items with you.
Environmental Care
We are endeavouring to become a low-impact operation that is kind to the environment. In this interest, bed linens and towels will only be changed on your request, the use of chemical cleaning agents has been minimised, and water is used judiciously.
Himalayan Produce
At Chestnut House, we are delighted to stock a small selection of products from Kilmora, a section 8 company set up to provide sustainable livelihoods to farmers and artisans in rural Kumaon. Please consider purchasing something to support local communities. You can find these products in the cabinet in our dining room.
Snapshots from @jillingterraces
