From ₹549 horse riding to ₹3,200 golf: Gurgaon resident says city has waterlogging, traffic and bad air, but offers a side most don’t know about

Gurgaon is often discussed online for its waterlogging, poor air quality, traffic jams and the chaos around Cyber Hub during peak hours. But a social media post by a Gurgaon resident of 11 years has offered a very different take on the city, highlighting the unusually wide range of outdoor activities available within a short drive. The post argues that Gurgaon’s biggest advantage is not one particular sports facility or attraction, but the sheer density of options available across the city and its surrounding areas.

“Here is what almost nobody says about this city,” the resident wrote before listing a range of activities, from horse riding and shooting to golf, climbing, athletics and karting.

Horse riding and shooting lessons

For those looking to try something different, the post points to horse riding facilities in Gurgaon, including Janak Equestrian in Sector 67. It claimed that introductory horse riding lessons can start at around ₹549.



Shooting is another option. The post mentioned Prime 10X in Sector 94, where a first shooting lesson is listed at ₹999. According to the post, the session includes an air pistol or air rifle, pellets and coaching, with the facility open to people above the age of 10.

These activities are not necessarily the first things people associate with Gurgaon. Yet they are among the options the resident says can be accessed without having to be part of an exclusive club.

Athletics and cricket facilities

For conventional sports, Gurgaon also has larger public facilities.Tau Devi Lal Stadium in Sector 38 has a 400-metre synthetic athletics track with 10 lanes. The same sporting complex also includes a cricket ground used for Haryana-level cricket.

The city and its surrounding areas also have several large cricket and football grounds that can be booked in advance by groups, according to the post.

That makes the options useful not only for individual fitness enthusiasts but also for people looking to organise games with friends or colleagues.

Golf without a club membership

Golf, usually considered an expensive and membership-driven sport, also gets a mention.

The post highlighted Karma Lakelands, which has an 18-hole golf course and allows weekday walk-ins at a quoted price of ₹3,200. It also pointed to a driving range in Sector 59 where people can practise for a few hundred rupees.

For someone who wants to try golf without committing to a club membership, such pay-and-play options can make the sport considerably more accessible.

A climbing destination few Gurgaon residents know about

He said one of the more unusual points in the post was Dhauj, located around 50 minutes from Gurgaon. The area is known for its natural rock formations and traditional climbing routes. The resident claimed there are more than 270 such routes, with the area following a no-bolt approach.

For those who prefer indoor climbing, the post also mentioned rock-climbing options around MG Road.

Dhauj, however, is a more specialised destination and is likely to appeal primarily to people who already have climbing experience or are looking to learn the sport with appropriate guidance and safety equipment.

A 392-acre green space in the middle of the city

The Aravalli Biodiversity Park was another major highlight. Spread across about 392 acres of restored mining land, the park is around 15 minutes from MG Road and offers a large open space for walking, running and birdwatching. The post mentioned a 3.5-km jogging track and 185 recorded bird species.

The park's transformation is particularly notable because the land was once degraded by mining. It has since emerged as one of Gurgaon’s prominent green spaces.

The resident also pointed out that the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) recognised it as India's first Other Effective Area-Based Conservation Measure (OECM) site in 2022.

Karting, 4x4 driving and more

For people looking for something more adrenaline-fuelled, the list does not end with traditional sports. Karting options are available from around ₹600, according to the post. It also mentioned a 4x4 off-road track at Bandhwari featuring 25 obstacles.

Alongside these activities, Gurgaon has a growing range of facilities for swimming, badminton, tennis, table tennis, pickleball and padel.

The resident's broader point was about accessibility. Many of these facilities, the post claimed, are within roughly 10 minutes of home, while most of the more specialised outdoor activities can be reached within around 30 minutes.

‘This city gets enough bad light online’

The post began with a familiar admission. The Gurgaon resident said they had lived in the city for 11 years and had made the same jokes that many others make about waterlogging, November pollution and Cyber Hub traffic at 6 pm.

But after years of living there, they felt Gurgaon receives enough negative attention online. The argument is not that the city's problems do not exist. Rather, it is that they can sometimes overshadow another side of Gurgaon, one where residents have access to an unusually broad mix of sporting, recreational and outdoor activities without necessarily needing an expensive club membership.

Whether Gurgaon can claim to offer more outdoor options than every other Indian city is difficult to establish. But the list does underline a feature of the National Capital Region's urban landscape: within a relatively compact radius, residents can move from synthetic athletics tracks and golf courses to biodiversity parks, climbing sites and off-road trails.

For a city better known for glass office towers, highways and traffic jams, that is a side worth talking about too.