Neral, town in Maharashtra, India
Neral is a small town in Raigad district, Maharashtra, sitting at the base of the Sahyadri hills between Mumbai and Pune. The town has a central railway station, a main market street, and is bordered by forested slopes on one side and the Ulhas River valley on the other.
Neral grew into a recognized stop on the Great Indian Peninsula Railway during the 19th century, gaining importance as traffic between the coast and the interior increased. The opening of the narrow-gauge line to Matheran in 1907, built under British rule, firmly established the town as a gateway to the hills.
The railway station is a natural meeting point where travelers heading to Matheran and locals going about their day cross paths. Small tea stalls and food carts near the platform give the area a relaxed, everyday rhythm that feels very much like small-town India.
Neral is easy to reach by train from Mumbai, and the journey takes roughly 2 hours on the commuter rail network. From the station, shared taxis and the toy train offer onward connections, but private cars cannot enter Matheran, so it is worth knowing this before you plan the next leg.
The toy train from Neral to Matheran runs at such a low speed that passengers have been known to step off, walk alongside, and board again before the next stop. This is partly by design, since the track climbs steeply through the hills and the engines need to move carefully to stay on course.
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