Rankala Lake Kolhapur

Rankala Lake Kolhapur

Kolhapur Travel Blog

Rankala Lake is second most famous place to visit in Kolhapur City after Mahalaxmi Temple.

View of Rankala Lake Kolhapur

Rankala Lake is situated in center of Kolhapur city and hardly 2 km from Mahalaxmi Temple. Better you take auto-rickshaw from Temple which will cost you around 30-40 rs. You can also prefer to walk which will take around 10-15 mins to reach here.

You can visit Rankala Lake anytime in a day, maybe its early morning time to watch sun rise along with bird watching or relaxed evening to watch beautiful sun-set.

We went there by walking around 4.30 pm. There was still less crowd there and there was time to watch sunset so we decided to roam around.

Information about Rankala Lake in Marathi

Rankala Lake is very well maintained and large in area. There is “Padpath udyan (Garden)” developed by Municipal Corporation along the side of lake. You can walk over there or just relax.

View of Rankala Lake side Garden - Padpath udyan (Garden)

There are also games activities for kids to play in the garden. Perfect place for jogging, yoga or just relaxing in cold breeze. Recently Open Gym is also developed here.

Kids Play Area Near Rankala Lake Kolhapur

Beautiful Fort made near Rankala Lake Kolhapur

SandhyaMath  : There is also a temple inside the lake of Lord Shiva. There is sculpture of Nandi (the bull) also present in temple. It’s said that it moves about distance of single wheat grain toward the lake and back again daily. One has go through water to reach the lake. Water is at high level specially in and after monsoon is over. There is a statue of lord Ganesha inside this temple which can be visited only during summer when water level in the lake is quite low. This place is also called as “SandhyaMath”.

SandhyaMath - Old Lord Shiva Temple in Rankala Lake - Kolhapur

Rankala Lake is also a great place for Bird watching in October to Jan. Various types of bird can be seen from here and a great place for Bird lovers. We were also lucky to see some birds around garden and inside lake over here.
For bird lovers to get best Bird watching, you will have to come early in the morning when crowd is less where you will see different types of birds.

Bird Watching at Rankala Lake Kolhapur

Bird Watching at Rankala Lake Kolhapur

There are many boating types option available at Rankala Lake like speed boat, pedal boat or ferry boat.They are also available at different seating capacity like 2 person, 4 person and 8 person seating capacity.

Entry to Boating at Rankala Lake Kolhapur

We took Self driving boating option where we have to drive boat with the help of pedals. They also provide us Life jackets. Driving in boat during evening time is really enjoyable. Boat riding charges are Rs 100/- for 30 minutes.

Boating at Rankala Lake Kolhapur

During boating we also get Sun-set view along with clod breeze which was amazing. We went outside the boat by the time it was 7 pm and dark.

Chowpaty around lake:  In evening time you will find lot of hawkers selling Bhel-puri, Ragada patis , roasted corns and lot of tasty snacks including ice-creams.

Chowpaty at Rankala Lake Kolhapur

When we came back from boat there were lot of crowd now who were walking and some were just seating. Many food lovers were enjoying snacks over there.
Since we were hungry and tried due to pedal boat, We also tried bhel from one of stall which was just awesome. Darshni Pav bhaji is also famous from here. Do try that as well when you visit.

Famous  Raja Bhau Bhel at Rankala Lake Kolhapur

Now, It was already 8 pm by the time we finished boating and eating the snacks. We decided to sit for 10-15 minutes on the wall of lake where we could see amazing night view of Kolhapur City.

Night View of Rankala Lake Kolhapur

While leaving the place, we also come across Shalini Palace. Just opposite to Lake there is “Shalini Palace” which is one of the heritage Palace in Kolhapur. It is not open to public for some time but you can marvel the palace architecture from outside.

View of Shalini Palace Kolhapur in Evening

There is also large D-Mart opened opposite to Rankala Lake which adds more importance to Rankala Lake. Lot of people were doing grocery shopping from there.
We took auto-rickshaw from there and left for the home.

Location Map

Quick Tips if you are planning to Visit Rankala Lake :

• Parking at Rankala Lake: Not available. You can park at road side at your own risk.

• Lake Timings : Anytime in a day but best time is in the evening.

• Entry Fee: No entry fee.

Happy Traveling !

Go Back

#Kolhapur Travel Blog