Tirupati
Haven for Pilgrimage
Tirupati Tourism
Located in Chittoor district in Andhra Pradesh, Tirupati is one of the oldest cities of India and an important pilgrimage destination for Hindus. The main attraction of Tirupati is the Sri Venkateswara Temple pilgrim site, this is where you will find the rush of tourist and devotees lining up the streets to have the blessings of their God. The city is famous for its temple has other attractions like The Sri Kalahasti temple, Sri Govindarajaswami Temple, the Kondandarama Temple, the Parashurameshwara Temple, and the ISKCON temple. The naturally formed rock formation arch can be found in Silathoranam at the Tirumala Hills is a wonderful site to visit. The holy city celebrates all major Hindu Festivals and is a sight to behold during these times. The architecture of the temple and idols will help you understand the ancient ways of building, the city itself is a blend of art and culture with colourfull shops selling every idol of Hindu Gods with handmade artifacts. Sri Venkateswara Zoological Park, located in Tirupati is Asia’s second largest Zoo and is built on the theme of Hindu Mythology. Tirupati has a tropical climate and the best time to visit it is from September to February.
Culture
The spiritual city of Andhra Pradesh, Tirupati celebrates every Hindu festival like Sankranti, Ugadi, Kartik Poornima, Deepavali etc. that can be experienced, but few of the festivals stand aside that will make the trip worthy of our time, Srivari Brahmotsava is an event of nine days, celebrated between the month of September – October that attracts lakhs of devotees and tourist from all over India. There are processions held during the festival, where the deities are escorted around the city. Chakra Snanam is another festival held in Padmavathi Temple, where a huge number of devotees come to get a dip in the holy water of a tank behind the temple. Tirupati Ganga Jatara is a week-long carnival held during the month of May in Tirupati, worshipping the Goddess Gangamma. During Gokulashtami, the ISKCON temple celebrates by illuminating lights and offering prayers to Sri Krishna, the celebration also includes Utlotsavam, Kirtana, and Parayanam.
Top things do in Tirupati
1. Swami Pushkarini Lake
10 kilometres from city centre2. Chittoor
3. Sri Varahaswami Temple
10 kilometres from city centre4. Sri Padmavathi Ammavari Temple
4 kilometres from city centre5. Sri Venkateswara Dhyana Vignan Mandiram
10 kilometres from city centre6. Vedadri Narasimha Swamy Temple
10 kilometres from city centre7. Sri Venkateswara Temple
10 kilometres from city centre8. Nellore
0 kilometres from city centre9. Sri Venugopalaswami Temple
3 kilometres from city centre10. TTD gardens
4 kilometres from city centre11. Silathoranam
11 kilometres from city centre12. City Shopping
220 kilometres from city centre
How to reach
Tirupati also known as the “Spiritual Capital of Andhra Pradesh” is one of the holiest places for Hindus. There are a number of options to reach the city and for sightseeing. Hotels can be easily booked online from various websites.
How to Reach by Flight
Renigunta is the nearest airport located around 15 k.m. from Tirupati. Flights from Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangaluru, and Vishakapatnam are connected to it. Tickets need to be booked early to avoid high rates.
How to Reach by Train
Tirupati Railway Station is a major railway station and trains can be boarded to the holy city from anywhere in India. There are special trains available during festive seasons. For taking the best easy direct route, one should check the Tirupati Train timetable for the timings and avail the best.
How to Reach by Bus
Tirupati Central Bus Station is the chief bus terminus for Tirupati and is well connected with the major cities of South India like Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Bangalore, Chennai, and Vishakhapatnam. Few of the services for Tirupati visit by bus are SRS Travels, VRL Travels, Komitla etc. The APSRTC and KSRTC are recommended for a better and less expensive journey.
How to Reach by Road
Tirupati is well-connected by state highways and national highways such as NH71, NH140, and NH716 so the travelers can have a refreshing and smooth drive.
How to travel within
Tirupati has car rental companies like Clear Car Rentals, TaxiGuide and Savaari that provide different types of cars at a reasonable rate, depending upon the number of people to reach Tirupati without any hassle. You can also hire them for sightseeing inside the city.
Cuisine
Being a fact that Tirupati was once in Tamil Nadu, the cuisine here is a mixed culture of Telegu and Tamil Food. The generous use of chili, peanuts and five spices with coconut milk, tomato and tamarind can be found in curries and vegetables. Rice is the staple food with lentils can be found commonly in the restaurants at the city. Andhra Pradesh has a large number of dishes in Vegetarian and Non-Vegetarian sector, but being the sacred city of Hindus, Tirupati only practices Vegetarian Food inside the city. The people who visit the temple finds it very auspicious to eat the temple food that is served in coconut leaves which involves curd rice, tamarind rice, sweet pongal, murukku, dosa, payasam etc. The most famous local sweet dish in Tirupati is ‘Sweet Rice’ and the huge ‘Laddus’ that everyone gets from Tirupati Balaji as prasadam.
- Panther’s Multicuisine Restaurant
- Lasa Multicuisine Restaurant
- Green Park Multicuisine Restaurant
- Hotel Bliss
- Zodiac Multicuisine Restaurant
Tirupati Itinerary
Day 1: Arriving at Chennai Airport/Railway Station we can directly get into a cab or a pre-book one and start our road journey to Nellore which will take around 3 hr. Reaching there we can get check-in into the hotel and get refreshed and a light lunch and start our day by exploring the temples and the historical famous Bara Shaheed Dargah. Getting back at night and having dinner early, will restore our energy for the next day.
Day 2: Checking out from Nellore and reaching Chittoor in the early morning will help us to see every temple and monument of our choice, Shopping in the streets of Chittoor is a joyful event. Eating lunch in a local restaurant will make us enjoy the cuisines of the South. In the Evening we can start our journey to Tirupati which will take us around 2 hrs to reach and another few minutes to check into the hotel in the city. Dinner can be done in the various restaurants available there.
Day 3: Morning in a divine place fills our lungs with an air of holiness, having a bath in Pushkarini Lake we can start our tour of the holy city from the main temple Sri Venkateswara and end it with Venugapalaswami Temple. Besides temples, TTD Gardens and Sri Venkateswara Dhyana Vignan Mandiram museum is worthy of our time. A few minutes away from the natural form arch Silathoranam is a landscape never to miss. Spending the day and night roaming and shopping around the city will finish our trip to Tirupati.