Goa - India

Goa is one of the most beautiful tourist spot in India. Panaji is the capital of Goa. It is mainly focused by beaches. Konkani is the language which is used to speak by the Goa people. Some people speaks Marathi also. Goa is visited by large number of International and Domestic Tourists every year. Tourists visit Goa in two different climate (Winter and Summer). International Tourists used to visit this place in Winter season, Whereas Domestic tourists from all over India used to visit in Summer season.

Goa is located in tropical zone and also near Arabian Sea, so the climate of Goa is hot and humid for most of the year. The month of summer will be hot and the monsoon rains arrives early June till September every year. Goa has very short winter season start from December to February.

Goa state is divided into two parts. South Goa and North Goa. The main river of Goa state are the Mandovi and the Zuari.



Goa is located between the border of Karnataka and Maharastra State. Tourism is generally focused into coastal area Goa. Every year, 2 million tourists visit Goa. Goa is situated in the coastal area of Arabian sea, so much sea foods will are available there. International tourists (especially from European countries) used to swim and take sun bath. beaches in Goa is around 125 kms. Colva beach is the famous beach in Goa. Sand of Colva beach will be in white colour and so it is known as White sand beach.



Rice with fish curry is the stable food in Goa. Goa people are using coconut and coconut oil for cooking usually. Because, Goa has rich coconut trees.



To reach Panaji, its around 1912 kms far away from New Delhi by roadways and railways. Flights also available to reach the city.



To know more about various cities and tourist spot and its details, click here

The Himalayas - India

The Himalayas is the massive mountain system and it separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau. In Sanskrit, the word Himalaya stands for Snow Home. Hima means Snow and Alaya means Home. The Himalayas which includes Mount Everest (1st Highest peak in the world) and K2 (2nd Highest Peak in the world). It stretches across six countries and they are India, China, Nepal, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bhutan. And some of the worlds major rivers, the Ganga, the Brahmaputra, the Yumuna, the Yangtz and the Indus are rises in the Himalayan mountain. The main Himalayan range runs, west to east, from the Indus river valley to the Brahmaputra river valley, forming an arc 2,400 km long and varies in width 400 km in western and 150 km in eastern. It plays major role in Tourism in India.
Apart from natural heritage, the Himalayas is the religious heritage for Hinduism and Buddhism. Amarnath and Badrinath temples are located in the Himalayas. Swami Vivekananda also founded Mayavathi Ashram nearby Almora in the Himalayas.

Some of the temples in Himalayan Range as follows:-

Amarnath - Natural Ice Shiva Linga Temple
Rishikesh - Lakshmana Temple
Badrinath - Vishnu Temple
Kedarnath - Jyotirlingas
Kailash - Lord Shiva Temple
Sri Hemkund Sahib - Sikh Temple

In Amarnath, Shiva Linga forms naturally in ice for few weeks once in a year. So many pilgrimages will visit this Linga at the time.
For More details about Naturals and Pilgrims in the Himalayas, visit http://www.himalayas.dk/

Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanam - Andhra Pradesh

Tirumala Venkateswara Temple is a famous hindu temple of Lord Venkateswara located in Tirumala in Andhra Pradesh. The temple is build on venkatadri hill, one of the seven hills of tirumala, and hence it is known as "Temple of Seven Hills". The temple is the richest and most visited place of worship in the work. The temple is visited by about 50,000 to 10,000 pilgrims daily. At the time of Bhramotsavam and other special occasions, its about 5,00,000 pilgrims.

History of the Temple:

Thondaiman, a king, is a ruler of Thondaimangalam (South side of Chennai), is believed to have first bulit the temple after visualizing Lord Vishnu in his dream. He bulind the Gopuram and Prakhara, and then he arranged for regular prayers to be conducted in the temple. Later, the Chola dynasty vastly improved the temple and gave rich endowments.

Dharshan:

Tirumala Tirupati devasthanam made queue systems for Dharshan to control crowd. There are some types of queue systems as follows:-

1. Dharma Dharshan - Free of cost (average time takes about 10 hours for Dharshan)
2. Sudharshanam - Rs. 50 per head (average time takes about 3 hours for Dharshan)
3. Nija Pada Dharshanam - Rs. 100 per head (average time takes about 2 hours for Dharshan)
Apart for this, there are separate queue for senior citizens.
And for kalyanam in temple, Rs. 1000

Prasadham:

Tirupati Laddu is the world famous prasadham given by the temple. Recently the trust has taken copy rights Laddu prasadham. Hencu no one can prepare same type. Free meals given by the temple to the pilgrimages.

Travel Routes:

By roads and railways, its around 592 kms far away from hyderabad and from chennai, its around 120 kms. Airlines facilities also available for tirupati in daily basis.

For more details about Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanum and its Dharshan and booking visit http://www.tirumala.org/

Munnar - Kerala

Here is the another loveliest tourist spot in India, Munnar - kerala. Munnar is a town which is located in Idukki District in Kerala, situated in South Western Ghats of India. It is one of the famous tourist spot of kerala. Munnar is a malayalam words Muna and aaru (three and river). The strategic location at the confluence of Muthirappuzha river, Nallathanni river and Kundaly river is Munnar. The area of Munnar is surrounded by huge forests and the climate of the regions remains wet and cool throughout the year. The region of Munnar height varies from 6562 feet to 8530 feet from the sea level. Main cultivation of Munnar is Tea Plantation. These Tea Plants are exports to foreign countries.

Tourist Spots in Munnar as follows,

The Evarikulam National Park Marayoor Forest Chinnar Wildlife Sanctuary Mudapetty Dam

To reach Munnar, its around 198 kms from Alleppey, via Thiruvankulam. We can take a separate cab to reach the destintion. From Coimbatore, its around 250 kms via Alleppey and Thiruvankulam.

For more details about Munnar visit www.munnar.org

Photo galleries of Munnar:
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Valparai - Tamilnadu

Valparai is one of the hill station in Tamilnadu. It is located above 3500 feets from the sea level. The climate of valparai will be very chill. It stands with green spread mountains. The main cultivation of the living people in valparai is Tea and coffee plants. These tea leaves exports to foreign countries also. Topslip forest is one of the highest peak in south india. We can see panther elephants in topslip forest.

Main spots to visit in valparai as follows;-
1. Topslip
2. Aliyar Dam
3. Sholaiyar Dam
4. Nirar Dam
5. Parmbikulam
6. Monkey falls etc.,
If we want to reach valparai, 64 kms drive from pollachi by bus. By train, we can go upto coimbatore. From there roadways is the only possibility to reach valparai.

Buddhist Circuit to be developed in Indian state of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar

Government of India is planning to extensively popularize state of Uttar Pradesh and Bihar while promoting Buddhist tourist circuit. This was inform by Union tourism minister Kumari Selja after a meeting with Uttar Pradesh tourism minister in New Delhi recently.

For more informatio, click: Buddhist Channel

Ooty - Queen of Hill Stations, Tamilnadu

Ooty is also known as Udagamandalam and it is the queen of hill stations in India. Ooty is located in Nilgiris District in Tamilnadu. It is one of the most popular tourist resort in Tamilnadu. It is situated at an altitude of 2,240 meters above sea level. Main Cultivation of ooty is Tea, coffee and vegetables. And also ooty has an addition attraction for the tourists is train journey from Mettupalayam to Udagamandalam. Ooty train commences from kallar and it en-route many hair raising curves and fearful tunnels. While traveling by hill train, you can see tea and coffee estates around the hills. For accommodations, Stars Hotels and Lodges are available in ooty for tourists.

The loveliest spots of ooty are follows:-

Botanical Garden is one of the best tourist attraction place which attract the tourist from all over the world. This garden is spread over 22 hectares ascending the slopes on the hill.

Ooty Lake is located just behind the Central Bus Stand. This lake looks like irregular "L" shape and its for about 2.75 kms distance.

Rose Garden is situated in the heart of ooty town and its laid on 10 acres of land. All types of rose flowers are planted in this garden.

Doddabetta Peak stands at an altitude of 2,623 meters high from sea level. And its located 10 kms far away from ooty town. It is the highest peak in the district.

Mudumalai Wildlife Sanctuary is an adventures spot in nilgiris. Its around 32,155 hectares broad in area. Its locates between Kerala and Karnataka State. Within the sanctuary, there is an elephant camp called Theppakkadu.

Pykara Lake is the clean and scenic lake in between the hills. Its an isolated lake free from pollution. Boating facilities are available here.

Apart from these spot, Avalanche, Emerald Lake, Shooting Spot, Glenmorgan, Kalhatty Water Falls, Ketti Valley View, Mukkurthi Peak are also beautiful locations locates in ooty.
There are various routes to travel ooty.

By airways, have to land in Coimbatore airport and then you can take cab to reach the hills.
By Train, We can reach upto Mettupalayam, then we can catch Hill train or cab.