Alibaug is a small coastal town on the Konkan coast of Maharashtra, about 100 km south of Mumbai and reachable in an hour by ferry across the harbour. It is the headquarters of Raigad district and has become Mumbai's favourite weekend beach escape — a stretch of palm-lined sand, a remarkable sea fort, and a string of villages with old Konkani houses and seafood shacks.
The town takes its name, according to local tradition, from a wealthy seventeenth-century Bene Israeli merchant called Ali, whose mango and coconut groves were known as "Ali's gardens" — Alichi Bagh in Marathi. The fortifications and naval heritage come from the same century: Sarkhel Kanhoji Angre, the naval commander of Shivaji's Maratha Empire, built the offshore Kolaba Fort and operated his fleet from these waters, harrying European shipping for decades.
The town itself is unremarkable, but the surrounding beaches and villages are pleasant in the cooler months. Alibaug Beach is busy on weekends with Mumbai day trippers; the quieter beaches at Kihim, Akshi and Nagaon are better for a swim, and Kashid, further south toward Murud, has whiter sand and clearer water. The water close to town is the muddy brown typical of the Konkan, not the clear blue of Goa, but it is warm and safe and the beaches are wide.
South of Alibaug, two more forts reward the detour. Murud-Janjira, about 55 km down the coast, is the most formidable fort on this stretch of coastline — a Siddi sea fortress that was never captured despite repeated sieges, reached by small boat from Rajapuri jetty. Closer to town, the ruined Portuguese walls of Revdanda Fort sit half-absorbed into a beach and creek-side village, worth a stop if you're already headed toward Murud.