A hill station is a touristic town located at a higher elevation than the nearby plain or valley. The English term was originally used mostly in colonial Asia, but also in Africa (albeit rarely), for towns founded by European colonialists as refuges from the summer heat as historian Dane Kennedy observes about the Indian context, "the hill station (...) was seen as an exclusive British preserve: here it was possible to render the Indian into an outsider".Kennedy, Dane. The Magic Mountains: Hill Stations and the British Raj. Berkeley: University of California Press, c1996 1996. , http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft396nb1sf/ The term is still used in present day, particularly in India, which has the largest number of hill stations, most are situated at an altitude of approximately .

History

In South Asia

Hill stations in

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance in South Asia. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one form or another ...

were established for a variety of reasons. One of the first reasons in the early 1800s, was for the place to act as a

sanitorium A sanatorium (from Latin ''wikt:sanare, sānāre'' 'to heal'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, is a historic name for a Hospital#Specialized, specialised hospital for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments, and convalescence. Sa ...

for the ailing family members of British officials. After the rebellion of 1857, the British "sought further distance from what they saw as a disease-ridden land by scapingto the

Himalayas The Himalayas, or Himalaya ( ), is a mountain range in Asia, separating the plains of the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. The range has some of the Earth's highest peaks, including the highest, Mount Everest. More than list of h ...

in the north". Other factors included anxieties about the dangers of life in India, among them "fear of degeneration brought on by too long residence in a debilitating land". The hill stations were meant to reproduce the home country, illustrated in Lord Lytton's statement about Ootacamund in the 1870s as having "such beautiful English rain, such delicious English mud."

Shimla Shimla, also known as Simla ( the official name until 1972), is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared the summer capital of British India. After independence, the city ...

was officially made the "summer capital of India" in the 1860s and hill stations "served as vital centres of political and military power, especially after the 1857 revolt." As noted by Indian historian Vinay Lal, hill stations in India also served "as spaces for the colonial structuring of a segregational and ontological divide between Indians and Europeans, and as institutional sites of imperial power." William Dalrymple wrote that "The viceroy was the spider at the heart of Simla's web: From his chambers in Viceregal Lodge, he pulled the strings of an empire that stretched from Rangoon in the east to Aden in the west." Meanwhile Judith T Kenny observed that "the hill station as a landscape type tied to nineteenth-century discourses of imperialism and climate. Both discourses serve as evidence of a belief in racial difference and, thereby, the imperial hill station reflected and reinforced a framework of meaning that influenced European views of the non-western world in general." The historian of Himalayan cultures Shekhar Pathak speaking about the development of hill stations like

Mussoorie Mussoorie () is a hill station and a municipal board, in Dehradun city in the Dehradun district of the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is about from the state capital of Dehradun and north of the national capital of New Delhi. The hil ...

noted that "the needs of this (European) elite created colonies in Dehradun of Indians to cater to them." This "exclusive, clean, and secure social space – known as an enclave – for white Europeans ... evolved to become the seats of government and foci of elite social activity", and created racial distinctions which perpetuated British colonial power and oppression as Nandini Bhattacharya notes. Dane Kennedy observed that "the hill station, then, was seen as an exclusive British preserve: here it was possible to render the Indian into an outsider". Kennedy, following Monika Bührlein, identifies three stages in the evolution of hill stations in India: high refuge, high refuge to hill station, and hill station to town. The first settlements started in the 1820s, primarily as sanitoria. In the 1840s and 1850s, there was a wave of new hill stations, with the main impetus being "places to rest and recuperate from the arduous life on the plains". In the second half of the 19th century, there was a period of consolidation with few new hill stations. In the final phase, "hill stations reached their zenith in the late nineteenth century. The political importance of the official stations was underscored by the inauguration of large and costly public-building projects." The concept of hill station has been used loosely in India (and more broadly South Asia) since the mid-20th century to qualify any town or settlement in mountainous areas, which attempt to expand its local economy toward tourism, or have been invested by recent mass tourism practices.

Kullu Kullu () is a municipal council town that serves as the administrative headquarters of the Kullu district of the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is located on the banks of the Beas River in the Kullu Valley about north of the airport ...

and Manali in the Indian state of

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

, are two example of that misuse of ''Hill Station'' or more accurately deviation of its meaning. These two historical settlements existed prior to the British, and haven't been specially frequented by them or even extensively modified or shaped by them. However, the rise of internal domestic tourism in India from the eighties and the subsequent reproduction of Hill Station practice by urban middle-class Indians contributed to the labelling of these two localities as ''Hill Stations''.

Munnar Munnar () is a town located in the Idukki district of the southwestern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kerala. Munnar is situated at around above mean sea level, in the Western Ghats mountain range. This ancient plantat ...

, a settlement in the state of

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

whose economy is primarily based on tea cultivation and processing, as well as plantation agriculture, is another example of a hill town transformed by contemporaneous tourism practices as a hill station.

List of hill stations

Africa

Antsirabe Antsirabe () also known as Ville d'eau is the list of cities in Madagascar, third largest city in Madagascar and the capital of the Vakinankaratra region, with a population of 265,018 in 2014. In Madagascar, Antsirabe is known for its relatively ...

, Madagascar * Ifrane, Morocco * Jos, Nigeria *

Fort Portal Fort Portal formerly Kabarole () is a city located in the Western Region, Uganda, Western Region of Uganda. It is the seat of both Kabarole District and historically of the Tooro Kingdom. Etymology Fort Portal was named after British Diplomac ...

, Uganda

Americas

* Petropolis, Brazil *

Campos do Jordão Campos do Jordão () is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in southeastern Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of Vale do Paraíba e Litoral Norte. The population is 52,405 (2020 est.) in an area of . The city is situated above ...

, Brazil *

Monteverde Monteverde is the twelfth Cantons of Costa Rica, canton of the Puntarenas Province, Puntarenas Provinces of Costa Rica, province of Costa Rica, located in the Cordillera de Tilarán (Tilarán range). Roughly a four-hour drive from the Costa Rica ...

, Costa Rica * Beech Mountain, North Carolina, United States * Sky Valley, Georgia, United States *

Big Bear Lake, California Big Bear Lake is a city in San Bernardino County, California, located in the San Bernardino Mountains along the south shore of Big Bear Lake, and surrounded by the San Bernardino National Forest. The city is about northeast of the city of San ...

, United States * Cloudcroft, New Mexico, United States * Summerhaven, Arizona, United States

Asia

Bangladesh

* Sajek Valley *

Bandarban Bandarban is a small town in Chittagong Division, Bangladesh. It is the headquarters of Bandarban District. It is located on the Sangu River. Demographics According to the 2022 Bangladesh census, Bandarban city had a population of 54,450 and ...

* Jaflong * Khagrachari * Moulvibazar * Rangamati * Sreemangal

Hong Kong

Victoria Peak Victoria Peak ( zh, t=太平山, j=taai3 ping4 saan1) is a hill on the western half of Hong Kong Island. It is also known as Mount Austin, and locally as The Peak only generally. With an elevation of , it is the tallest hill on Hong Kong Isla ...

* Sunset Peak

India

Hundreds of hill stations are located in India. The most popular hill stations in India include: Nainital on a warm summer evening

* Devigol, Jammu and Kashmir * Achabal, Jammu and Kashmir * Amarkantak, Madhya Pradesh * Ambanad Hills, Kerala * Amboli, Maharashtra *

Almora Almora ( Kumaoni: ') is a municipal corporation and a cantonment town in the state of Uttarakhand, India. It is the administrative headquarters of Almora district. Almora is located on a ridge at the southern edge of the Kumaon Hills of the ...

, Uttarakhand * Araku Valley, Andhra Pradesh * Aritar, Sikkim * Aru, Jammu and Kashmir *

Askot Askot or Askote is a small Himalayan town in Pithoragarh district of Uttarakhand in India. It is the part of Kanalichhina development Block and Didihat Tehsil. The place is also famous for the Askot Musk Deer Sanctuary dedicated to the conservat ...

, Uttarakhand * Auli, Uttarakhand * Baba Budan giri, Karnataka * Badrinath, Uttarakhand * Baltal, Jammu and Kashmir * Barog, Himachal Pradesh * Berinag, Uttarakhand *

Bhaderwah Bhaderwah or Bhadarwah (also ''Bhaderwah Valley'') is a town, tehsil, and sub-district in the Doda district of Jammu Division of Jammu and Kashmir (union territory), Jammu and Kashmir, India. Bhaderwah Valley is famous for its beauty, nature. B ...

, Jammu and Kashmir * Bhowali, Uttarakhand * Chail, Himachal Pradesh * Chakrata, Uttarakhand * Chamba, Himachal Pradesh * Champhai, Mizoram *

Chaukori Chaukori is a hill station in the Pithoragarh district set among the lofty peaks of the western Himalayan Range in the Kumaon Division of Uttarakhand, India. To its north is Tibet and to its south is Terai. The Mahakali River, running along its ...

, Uttarakhand * Cherrapunjee, Meghalaya * Chikhaldara, Maharashtra * Chitkul, Himachal Pradesh * Coonoor, Tamil Nadu * Daksum, Jammu and Kashmir * Dalhousie, Himachal Pradesh * Daringbadi,

Odisha Odisha (), formerly Orissa (List of renamed places in India, the official name until 2011), is a States and union territories of India, state located in East India, Eastern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by ar ...

Darjeeling Darjeeling (, , ) is a city in the northernmost region of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal. Located in the Eastern Himalayas, it has an average elevation of . To the west of Darjeeling lies the Koshi Pr ...

, West Bengal * Dawki, Meghalaya * Diskit,

Ladakh Ladakh () is a region administered by India as a union territory and constitutes an eastern portion of the larger Kashmir region that has been the subject of a Kashmir#Kashmir dispute, dispute between India and Pakistan since 1947 and India an ...

* Doodhpathri, Jammu and Kashmir *

Dhanaulti Dhanaulti is a quiet hill station at an elevation of 2286 meters above sea level, it offers panoramic views of the lofty Himalayas. Situated in the foothills of the Garhwal Himalaya, Garhwal Himalayan range located from New Tehri, the district ...

, Uttarakhand * Dharamkot, Himachal Pradesh * Dharchula, Uttarakhand * Dras,

* Dzuluk, Sikkim * Dzüko Valley, Nagaland and

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

Gairsain Gairsain () is a town in Chamoli district of the Indian state of Uttarakhand near state's summer capital Bhararisain. A town and Nagar Panchayat, Gairsain is situated at the eastern edge of the vast Dudhatoli mountain range, and is located in ...

, Uttarakhand *

Gangtok Gangtok (, ) is the capital and the most populous city of the Indian state of Sikkim. The seat of East Sikkim district, eponymous district, Gangtok is in the eastern Himalayas, Himalayan range, at an elevation of . The city's population of 100 ...

, Sikkim * Ghum, West Bengal *

Gulmarg Gulmarg (), known as Gulmarag (; in Kashmiri language, Kashmiri), is a town, hill station, tourist destination, skiing destination, and a notified area committee in the Baramulla district of the northern Kashmir Valley of the Indian union terri ...

, Jammu and Kashmir * Geyzing, Sikkim * Haflong, Assam * Hemkund Sahib, Uttarakhand * Hmuifang, Mizoram * Kalpa, Himachal Pradesh * Jogindernagar, Himachal Pradesh * Jogimatti, Karnataka * Joshimath, Uttarakhand *

Kalimpong Kalimpong is a town and the headquarters of an eponymous district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located at an average elevation of . The town is the headquarters of the Kalimpong district. The region comes under Gorkhaland Territo ...

, West Bengal * Katra, Jammu and Kashmir *

Kangra, Himachal Pradesh Kangra is a city and a municipal council in Kangra district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Himachal Pradesh. It is also known as ''Nagarkot''. Meaning of Kangra Kangri word in Ladakh/Lahaul means snow on top of moun ...

Kargil Kargil or Kargyil is a City in Indian-administered Ladakh in the disputed Kashmir region. The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the WP:TERTIARY, tert ...

Karzok Karzok or Korzok (at an altitude of 14,995 ft or 4,570 m to 15,075 ft or 4,595 m above sea level), on the northwestern shores of the Tso Moriri lake, is a village in the Rupshu region and Community development block in India, block of ...

Kedarnath Kedarnath is a town and Nagar Panchayat in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand, India, known primarily for the Kedarnath Temple. It is approximately 86.5 kilometres from Rudraprayag, the district headquarters. Kedarnath is the most remote ...

, Uttarakhand * Keylong, Himachal Pradesh *

Khajjiar Khajjiar is a hill station near the town of Chamba, Himachal Pradesh, Chamba in Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh, India. Located approximately from Dalhousie, India, Dalhousie, it lies on a small plateau about 2,000 meters (6,500 feet) above ...

, Himachal Pradesh * Kodaikanal, Tamil Nadu * Kolli Hills, Tamil Nadu *

Kotagiri Kotagiri is a hill station and a municipality in the Nilgiris district of the India, Indian state, Tamil Nadu. The Nilgiri hills have been the traditional home of the "Kota" tribes. The name 'Kota-giri' itself means 'mountains of the kotas'. ...

, Tamil Nadu *

Kohima Kohima (; Tenyidie: Kewhira ()) is the capital of the North East Indian state of Nagaland. With a resident population of almost 100,000, it is the second largest city in the state. Kohima constitutes both a district and a municipality. The m ...

, Nagaland * Kokernag, Jammu and Kashmir * Khandala, Maharashtra * Kufri, Himachal Pradesh *

, Himachal Pradesh *

Kurseong Kurseong (, ) is a town and a municipality in Darjeeling district in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the headquarters of the Kurseong subdivision. Located at an altitude of , Kurseong is from Darjeeling and has a pleasant climate throu ...

, West Bengal * Lachen, Sikkim * Lachung, Sikkim * Lansdowne, Uttarakhand * Lava, West Bengal *

Leh Leh () is a city in Indian-administered Ladakh in the Kashmir#Kashmir_dispute, disputed Kashmir region. The application of the term "administered" to the various regions of Kashmir and a mention of the Kashmir dispute is supported by the WP:TE ...

* Lonavala, Maharashtra * Lolegaon, West Bengal * Lunglei, Mizoram * Mahabaleshwar, Maharashtra * Mainpat, Chhattisgarh *

Matheran Matheran is a partially automobile free hill station and a municipal council in the Karjat, Karjat taluka of the Raigad district located in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Maharashtra. Matheran is part of the Mumbai Metropo ...

, Maharashtra *

Manali, Himachal Pradesh Manali () is a resort town, near Kullu town in Kullu district in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It is situated in the northern end of the Kullu Valley, formed by the Beas River. The town is located in the Kullu district, approximately ...

Mawsynram Mawsynram () is a town in the East Khasi Hills district of Meghalaya state in Northeastern India, 69 kilometres from Shillong, the state capital. Mawsynram receives the highest rainfall in India. It is reportedly the wettest place on Earth, ...

, Meghalaya * McLeod Ganj, Himachal Pradesh * Meghamalai, Tamil Nadu *

Mirik Mirik is a small town and a Notified Area of Darjeeling district in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Mirik subdivision. The name ''Mirik'' comes from the Lepcha words ''Mir-Yok'' meaning "place burnt by fire". ...

, West Bengal * Mount Abu, Rajasthan * Murgo,

, Kerala * Munsiyari, Uttarakhand *

, Uttarakhand *

Nainital Nainital (Kumaoni language, Kumaoni: ''Naintāl''; ) is a town and headquarters of Nainital district of Kumaon division, Uttarakhand, India. It is the judicial capital of Uttarakhand, the Uttarakhand High Court, High Court of the state being ...

, Uttarakhand * Narkanda, Himachal Pradesh * New Tehri, Uttarakhand * Ooty (Udhagamandalam), Tamil Nadu * Pachmarhi, Madhya Pradesh * Palampur, Himachal Pradesh * Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir * Patnitop, Jammu and Kashmir *

Pauri Pauri is a town and a municipal board in Pauri Garhwal district in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Uttarakhand. Pauri is the seat of the Divisional Commissioner of the Garhwal Division. Geography Pauri is located at . It i ...

, Uttarakhand * Pelling, Sikkim * Pfütsero, Nagaland *

Pithoragarh Pithoragarh ( Kumaoni: ''Pithor'garh'') is a Himalayan town with a Municipal corporation in Pithoragarh district in the Indian state of Uttarakhand. It is the largest hill town in Uttarakhand. Etymology "The district is named after its hea ...

, Uttarakhand * Ramgarh, Uttarakhand * Ranikhet, Uttarakhand * Reckong Peo, Himachal Pradesh *

Reiek Reiek is a mountain and tourist spot 29 km from Aizawl, Mizoram, India. It rests at an elevation of 1,465 metres overlooking Aizawl and offers a view of the surrounding valleys and hills. On a clear day, the plains of Bangladesh can be see ...

, Mizoram * Rishyap, West Bengal *

Samsing Samsing is a small hill village and tourist spot in the Matiali (community development block), Malbazar subdivision of Jalpaiguri district of West Bengal situated at an elevation of 3000 ft in the foothills in between Jalpaiguri and Dar ...

, West Bengal * Saputara, Gujarat *

Shillong Shillong (, ) is a hill station and the capital of Meghalaya, a Indian state, state in northeastern India. It is the headquarters of the East Khasi Hills district. Shillong is the list of most populous cities in India, 330th most populous city ...

, Meghalaya *

, Himachal Pradesh * Sonamarg, Jammu and Kashmir * Soordelu Hill Station, Kerala * Tawang, Arunachal Pradesh *

Thekkady Thekkady () in Idukki district is a town near Periyar National Park, an important tourist attraction in the Kerala States and territories of India, state of India. The name Thekkady is derived from the word "thekku" which means teak and "adi ...

, Kerala * Triund, Himachal Pradesh * Tosa Maidan, Jammu and Kashmir * Topslip, Tamil Nadu * Turtuk,

Uttarkashi Uttarkashi is a town and the headquarters of Uttarkashi district in Uttarakhand, India. Geography Uttarkashi is located at . It has an average elevation of . Demographics India census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is t ...

, Uttarakhand * Valparai, Tamil Nadu * Vagamon, Kerala * Verinag, Jammu and Kashmir * Wilson Hills, Gujarat *

Yercaud Yercaud, also spelt Erkad, is a town and hill station in Salem District in Tamil Nadu, India. Located in Servarayan Hills in the Eastern Ghats, it is situated at an altitude of . History Stone-age implements have been found near an ancient s ...

Tamil Nadu * Yelagiri Tamil Nadu * Yusmarg, Jammu and Kashmir * Yuksom, Sikkim * Yumthang Valley of Flowers, Yumthang, Sikkim

Indonesia

* Garut in, West Java * Sukabumi in West Java * Puncak in West Java * Batu (city), Batu in East Java * Tretes in East Java * Kaliurang in Central Java * Munduk in Bali * Bedugul in Bali * Berastagi in North Sumatra * Kuningan in West Java * Lembang in West Java * Baturaden in Central Java * Wonosobo in Central Java * Tawangmangu in Central Java * Bandungan, Semarang in Central Java * Ciater in West Java * Ciwidey in West Java * Bukittinggi in West Sumatra * Padang Panjang in West Sumatra * Sawahlunto in West Sumatra * Solok in West Sumatra * Payakumbuh in West Sumatra * Takengon in Aceh * Tomohon in North Sulawesi * Tana Toraja in South Sulawesi * Malino, Indonesia, Malino in South Sulawesi * Pangalengan in West Java * Salatiga in Central Java

Iraq

* Shaqlawa * Amadiya, Amedi * Rawanduz * Sulaymaniyah * Batifa

Israel

* Metula * Safed

Japan

* Hakone * Karuizawa * Nikkō * Lake Chūzenji

Jordan

*A few suburbs in Amman: **Ashrafiyah, Amman, Al-Ashrafiya **Jabal Amman

Malaysia

*Bukit Larut *Bukit Tinggi, Pahang, Bukit Tinggi *Cameron Highlands *Fraser's Hill *Kundasang *Penang Hill

Myanmar

* Kalaw * Pyin Oo Lwin * Taunggyi * Thandaung

Nepal

* Pokhara * Namche Bazaar * Bandipur * Dhulikhel * Tansen, Nepal, Tansen * Nagarkot * Kakani * Prithbinarayan, Gorkha Bazaar * Daman, Nepal, Daman * Dharan, Nepal, Dharan * Dhankuta * Ilam, Nepal, Illam * Sarangkot * Baglung * Resunga * Kunde, Nepal, Kunde * Khumjung * Lukla * Tengboche * Phortse * Bhimeshwar * Besisahar * Sandhikharka * Tamghas * Jomsom * Phidim * Phungling * Fikal * Bhedetar * Dunai, Nepal

Pakistan

Philippines

* Baguio * Salvador Benedicto, Negros Occidental, Salvador Benedicto * Mambukal * Tagaytay * Sagada * Malaybalay

Sri Lanka

* Nuwara Eliya

Syria

* Bloudan * Masyaf * Qadmous * Zabadani * Madaya, Syria, Madaya

Uzbekistan

* Chimgan

Vietnam

* Da Lat * Sa Pa (town), Sa Pa * Tam Đảo National Park, Tam Đảo * Bà Nà Hills * Bạch Mã National Park

Oceania

Australia

=Victoria

= * Mount Macedon * Harrietville, Victoria, Harrietville

=South Australia

= * Mount Gambier * Adelaide Hills

=Queensland

= * Toowoomba * Merewether * The Gap, Queensland, The Gap * Chapel Hill, Queensland, Chapel Hill * Bardon, Queensland, Bardon * Ferny Grove, Queensland, Ferny Grove * Buderim * New Auckland * Mount Archer, Queensland (Rockhampton Region), Mount Archer

=Western Australia

= * Lesmurdie, Western Australia, Lesmurdie * Kalamunda * Jarrahdale * Bedfordale, Western Australia, Bedfordale

=New South Wales

= * Blue Mountains (New South Wales), Blue Mountains * Mount Pleasant, New South Wales, Mount Pleasant * Woonona, New South Wales, Woonoona * Kariong * Illawarra escarpment (Stanwell Tops) * Prospect Hill (New South Wales), Prospect Hill (Pemulwuy, New South Wales, Pemulwuy) * Terrey Hills * Berowra Heights

References

Bibliography

* Crossette, Barbara. ''The Great Hill Stations of Asia''. . * Kennedy, Dane
''The Magic Mountains: Hill Stations and the British Raj''
Berkeley: University of California Press, 1996. , .

External links

* * {{Authority control Hill stations, * Hill and mountain resorts Types of towns History of European colonialism