Religious South India
11 Nights / 12 Days
to Religious South India Chennai / Kanchipuram /
Mamallapooram / Tiruvannamalai / Pondicherry / Chidambaram / Tanjore /
Trichy / Madurai / Trivandrum
Day
1: Chennai
Arrive Chennai - the gateway to southern India,
established in 1639 by the East India Company, is one of the oldest cities
of the country. Assistance and transfer to hotel.
After lunch at
hotel, half day sightseeing tour, visiting Gandhi Memorial, Kala Kshetra,
Mylapore temple and Marine beach. Dinner and overnite at hotel.
Day 2: Chennai(Excursion - Tirupathi,154kms/3.5hours) After
breakfast, proceed to Tirupathi. Lunch at local restaurant Tirupathi is a
temple town known for the famous ancient temple of Lord Venkateswara (Lord
of seven hills or Balaji, as he is affectionately known ) on the top of the
860mts high Tirumala hills. The temple of Lord Venkateswara is not only
believed to be amongst the oldest temples in the country, but also the
richest of them all .Legend has it that Lord Venkateswara borrowed money
from the divine treasurer Kubera for his wedding expenses. He is still
paying back this debt which is why the pilgrims donate generously to the
temple funds. In the evening return to Chennai for dinner and overnite stay.
Day 3: Chennai/Kanchipuram/Mamallapooram After
breakfast drive to Kanchipuram ( 76 kms/01.50 hrs ) - is the ancient capital
of the Pallavas famous as a city of 1000 Temples and still has 124 shrines.
The first temple dedicated to Shiva was built in the 7th and 8th century and
has paintings on the walls. Temples of Ekambaswara , Kailasanatha, Sri
Kamakshi and Varadarajaswamy are of interest. Kanchipuram is also famous for
its silks. Lunch at local restaurant and later drive to Mamallapooram and
check in at hotel.
Afternoon visit the city - built in 7th
century, earlier called Mahabalipooram, this ancient Pallava port, is today
the sight of several antique sculptural marvels. In this ancient seaside
town , shrines and huge sculptures cut-out of rocks more than 1200 years
back during the reign of Pallava Kings in the region can be seen. The rock
carvings depicting mythological episodes - of demons, Gods and animals in
battle and others - are truly poems in stone. The only shore temple which
remains here is the spectacular two - spired shrine, unique because it
houses both Lord Shiva and the Lord Vishnu in its sanctum-sanctorum. Dinner
and overnite at hotel.
Day 4:
Mamallapooram/Tiruvannamalai/Pondicherry After breakfast drive to
Tiruvannamallai(112kms/03hrs)- a pilgrim centre with an ancient temple of
Lord Shiva. After lunch at local restaurant, proceed to Pondicherry (131kms/
3.5hrs), which carries a strong whiff of the French presence in India. This
erstwhile French colony on the east coast of South India merged with the
rest of the country in 1954. Legend says that Pondicherry is the place where
St.Agasthaya settled down. Checkin ,dinner and overnite at hotel.
Day 5: Pondicherry After breakfast drive to visit
Aurbindo Ashram, the city of dawn, which is 10kms north of Pondicherry. This
ashram promotes Aurbindo's ideas in bringing about a synthesis of Yoga and
modern science, so as to unite the spirit and matter. After lunch at hotel,
visit Auroville - a unique experiment in international living and in
creating a new environment where men and women of all nationalities live
together in harmony. Dinner and overnite at hotel.
Day 6:
Pondicherry/Chidambaram/Tanjore After breakfast drive to
Chidambaram(65kms/1.5hrs) also called as Thillai, which has the famous
Nataraja temple with the root of the sanctum-sanctorum covered with golden
plates is located in the centre of the town covering an area of 40 acres. In
this temple, postures from the Bharatnatayam form of dance are depicted in
sculpture. Natraja is Lord Shiva as a cosmic dancer. After lunch at local
restaurant, drive to Thanjavur (104kms/03hrs) enroute visiting the Brass
factory at Kumbakonam. Tanjore once the capital of Chola Kings, has the
Brahadeswara temple(or the big temple of God).The temple tower rises to a
height of 15mts from a square base of 29 mts and then tapers off, making a
total of 66mts.Checkin, dinner and overnite at hotel .
Day 7: Tanjore/Trichy(54kms/02hrs)
After breakfast leave for
Trichy, short name of Trichurapalli, situated on the banks of Kaveri River
is a blend of history and tradition as well as pilgrim centre, it is famous
for Ranganath temple at Srirangam. Checkin at hotel. After lunch city tour
visiting Rock fort and its temple at a height of over 23mts. Also visit
Srirangam and Jambukeshwar Temple. Dinner and overnite at hotel.
Day 8: Trichy/Madurai(133kms/3.5hrs) After breakfast proceed
to Madurai and checkin at hotel. The ancient city of Madurai, some 2600
years old is laid out in the banks of river Vaigai as a lotus flower with
the Meenakshi temple in the centre. After lunch city tour visiting -
Meenakshi temple, King Tirumala's Palace, Great tank and Gandhi museum.
Dinner and overnite at hotel.
Day 9:
Madurai(Excursion-Rameshwaram,154kms/04hrs) After breakfast
proceed to Rameshwaram- the most sacred temple town of India is an island
hallowed by the epic Ramayana, where Lord Rama is said to have visited
before going into battle of Srilanka. Legend has it that Lord Rama sent
Hanuman to Mount Kailash to bring a Lingam for worship when he set foot
after defeating Ravana. As Hanuman did not return when the auspicious hour
was approaching, Sita made a sand Lingam so that worship could be performed
in time, which is where the present day Ramanatha Swamy Temple stands close
to sea on the eastern side of the island. One of the twelve Jyotirlingam
shrines is also well known for its magnificent corridors and the massive
sculptured pillars lining them. Lunch at local restaurant. Return to Madurai
for dinner and overnite stay at hotel.
Day 10:
Madurai/Trivandrum ( 329 kms/08.50 hrs ) After breakfast drive to
Trivandrum and check in at hotel. Afternoon at leisure.
Day 11: Trivandrum(Excursion Kanyakumari - 87 kms/02.00 hrs )
After
breakfast proceed for Kanyakumari - is the land's end of India where the
water of the Arabian Sea , the Bay of Bengal and the Indian Ocean meet. An
important pilgrim centre of India , it is famous for the Amman Temples - a
symbol of unity and sanctity - deidicated to the virgin Goddess , Kanya
Kumari. To its South - East lies the famous Vivekananda Rock Memorial , a
blend of all the architectural styles of India. Lunch at local restaurant.
Evening enjoy the beautiful sun set and later return to Trivandrum. Dinner
and overnite at hotel.
Day 12: Tivandrum/ Back Home
After breakfast transfer to airport to connect flight for onward journey.
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