Keerti K - Elementary Pilot

Bangalore, India

Me and my husband took an Elementary Pilot Paragliding Course with Nirvana Adventures. I must say that this was the best experience of my life. WE loved the Native Place guesthouse.T Tis place is beautiful and the home cooked meals were good too. Being away from town overlooking the lake also meant that there was no cell reception but they provided internet so no worries. At the beginning I was scared and wanted to quit but the instructors and our dear host boosted my confidence and to my surprise by the end of the EP course I was loving it. The instructors were very good. They kept an eye on each and every detail safety wise. I would love to go back again and again. Thank you, flynirvana, for providing us with the experience of a lifetime.

Abhishek Nandrekar - Club Pilot

Mumbai, India

I chose NIRVANA Adventures because of their flexible schedule that catered to our busy lives and I am so glad we did! Sanjay and Astrid owner of Nirvana are incredible! All the trainers are patient, knowledgeable and fun to learn from. The structure of their teaching focuses on an individual, helping them progress at their own pace and comfort level. I never felt pressured I was always encouraged and entertained. My trust in their teaching grew instantly and I was able to focus my mind on developing skills. We started with ground handling kiting on a flat field, progressed our launches on a small hill and finally a launch from Shinde, Shelar Hill . It was an amazing journey and we were able to have our high flights on the day of training. Highly recommend Nirvana School to anybody who is looking for a fun and safe place to learn paragliding.

I seriously can’t say enough great things about FlyNirvana, So many friendly and interesting people they are all addicted and passionate about paragliding . They all supported the learning process and consideration for safety. Their accommodation, Native Place Guesthouse one can explore the beautiful nature. The instructors are flexible. If you’re looking for a bit of a vacation while you learn, I’d recommend camping and immersing yourself. The community is good for the soul. The people, the pilots lounge, the open natural air , the night time around the campfire, and the beautiful lake are all a great part of the experience.

They have a true desire to teach you to fly safely without pressure in a very progressive logical way. Thanks Ravi , Sandeep, Vinod , Bond and all the other pilots who offered up the support and encouragement. I salute you all!

Great instructors with a lot of personal attention, highly recommend.

Really great learning experience and a great place to take up flying !

Jaunty Sanmukhani – Club Pilot

Pune, India

I fell in love with the Native Place at first glance so much so that I go there every opportunity I get. It’s a perfect get away from the busy Mumbai city life where you can just sit, relax and make Paragliding your passion.

I learnt to fly all up to the Club Pilot level and bought a wing soon after! Excepting a few months during the monsoons, the weather is stable and perfect for a beginner to learn this sport anytime of the year!

All the instructors are very professional and patient in their approach where they ease you into the theory, techniques and skills required to get up and fly on your own. They really understand your skill level be it a beginner or a pro and guide your way up!

With the occasional swim in the lake, BBQ nights, sleepy hammocks under the trees, delicious homemade food and meeting such amazing people you’d feel relaxed and get a sense of accomplishment in learning the beautiful sport.

Rajendra Kumar – Club Pilot

Dhaka, Bangladesh

I learnt to fly with Nirvana Adventures and am a hobby pilot with my own wing today.

Stay: Native Place is a home away from home not only for me but also for the countless other pilots who have trained here and fly with Nirvana regularly every year. The friendly faces and camaraderie the pilots share make every trip memorable. For some like me who don’t even live in India, an annual trip to Native Place is a must almost like an yearly pilgrimage. The place is so beautiful and tranquil. The Rao family has nurtured this place with so much love, attention, and care that transformed this lakeside place into a paradise! It’s in perfect harmony with nature while offering all the comforts a modern man may require. As true to its motto, once you arrive at Native Place you surely and truly will find Peace, Bliss, and Happiness

Training: There is no better school to learn Paragliding than Nirvana! The instructors are well-trained, knowledgeable and professional. While they are friendly, they never compromise on their duty. They constantly evaluate your progress and never fail to make you feel at ease. They are a passionate group who are in this field purely because of their zeal for flying. With every interaction one can feel their excitement and passion. With Sanjay at the helm, Ravi as senior instructor, and a host of teachers, Nirvana is the perfect place to learn paragliding and continue improving one’s skills.

XC Course: I was lucky to participate in the FlyNirvana 2018 Thermalling XC course with Ajay Sir. This was a once-in-a-lifetime experience for many of us! We thoroughly enjoyed the course with our piloting knowledge and skills improving vastly. The course was designed for us recreational pilots who fly occasionally and each of us has successfully achieved our individual targets – such was the quality of instruction. We flew higher and further than ever before while ensuring no unnecessary risks are taken and ensuring we don’t over exceed our comfort zones or skill levels. XC Course is highly recommended for future pilots if ever there is another opportunity as such.

Mark Hepburn – Club Pilot

UK

I had done only 3 days of my EP (Elementary Pilot Course) course before the English winter kicked in and spoilt my fun. I had been planning to take some time out to go backpacking around India and Nepal and after reading ‘SkyWings Magazine’ and visiting the Nirvana website and being suitably impressed decided to take the opportunity to train abroad as part of my stay.

I intended to stay with Nirvana Adventures for 2 weeks to do the Elementary Pilot and Club Pilot Courses. I have enjoyed my stay here so much I have extended my stay for another week. And if I get time and I will try I would like to come back here at the end of my stay in India to do more flying (I have till the end of April)

Sanjay and Astrid Rao are great hosts very hospitable and quickly make you feel at home.

The accommodation is excellent and is of the same standard you would expect to find in any European holiday resort say Spain or Greece, proper English lavatories and showers no holes in the ground for toilets here. Hot water is readily available as water is pumped out of the reservoir to a massive tank on the roof which is solar heated. The house is huge and is a fine piece of architecture in a fantastic setting by a huge reservoir which is fine for swimming and when you are not flying the hammock is a great place to relax. The food is served in buffet style and there is more than enough to go around I have been known to go back for third helpings! All the food is bought locally at the market and is fresh as can be and organic too.

I have been here 2 weeks now and wanted to start pretty much from scratch after my long break through the winter started off with 2 days ground handling to get back in the swing of things then numerous top to bottoms then onto soaring and to date I have clocked just under 7 hours airtime in 2 weeks (most of this in the last week as my first week was spent mainly ground handling and top to bottoms).

The instructors are excellent they have lots of experience of the sites and weather and are very safety conscious and professional, pre-flight checks etc. Their love of the sport is genuine, they are very patient and observant and quickly point out mistakes or improvements you can make be it ground handling or flying, and after my 2-hour 5 min flight yesterday Ravi was as chuffed as I was.

I would recommend Nirvana to anyone who would like to learn to fly or even more experienced pilots I believe there is potential for cross country flying. Tower hill has a road up to it and is a short walk (about 10 mins) across the top to get to the take-off area. Shelar Hill another site is about a 20 min walk but the kids from the local village will carry your wing for a small fee. You just choose someone to be your porter for the duration of your stay they also pack your wing up for you after landing and they do a good job of it too…I would recommend that anyone visiting brings a camelback and sun hat these are a must the days can get very hot but the evenings are amazingly cool with a fresh breeze which is very nice.

Sanjay also arranged for me transport from the airport in Bombay to Nirvana I had a driver waiting with a sign with my name on, this takes about 2.5 – 3 hours.

When the conditions have been really good which is most days, we have been going out twice a day about 8.00 in the morning returning at about 11.00-12.00 then going back out at 4.00- 7.00

Jatin Patni - Intermediate Pilot

Mumbai, India

The best experiences of my life – I recently did the EP course with fly nirvana and saying that everything was amazing and fantastic would be an understatement. I loved everything about it, the stay in such a serene and beautiful location, the lake, the weather, the instructors especially were amazing, Sandip and Vinod sir are really amazing and experienced mentors, at the Native Place Guesthouse Mangesh Da and Tanaji took care of all our needs very sweetly. The whole experience was enthralling with a sense of calmness. I found the stay amazingly calm and inspiring.

I am completely hooked and plan to be a regular at the native place now.

I loved the Native Place Guesthouse and invited my family to spend the weekend there with me. I have some amazing feedback from my parents They were amazed at the calmness and serenity of the place, the simplicity of the people around, the awesome service by Tanaji and other kitchen staff. They were really happy that there were no televisions which helped us connect with each other and nature.My dad loved the food and the gardens and the lake. My mom loved having tea on the terrace with all of us, enjoying the sunset. My sister loved reading by the lake.

I really appreciate the initiative of Sanjay sir and Astrid mam, and am glad that visionary people like them are there as a blessing for people like me.

I look forward to a lot of fun filled experiences with fly nirvana team.