Best of Vizag

Hillocks, Landscapes, Beaches, Caves, Temples make VIZAG Simply Irresistible

Visakhapatnam or Vizag, once a small fishing village, has evolved to become known as Steel City, Port City, City of Destiny, Land of Golden Sands etc. According to local legend, Visakhapatnam is named after the God of Valour 'Visakha'.

Vizag is the second largest city in Andhra Pradesh. Realising the growth potential of the city, the state government is making enormous efforts to position Vizag as an upcoming information technology city, booming industrial centre, busy commercial base and an attractive tourist destination.

LANDMARK

The most prominent landmark of Vizag is the 174 Mt., high Dolphin's Nose, a natural rock structure jutting out into the sea and strikingly resembling the nose of a dolphin.

THE VALLEY

The most exciting part of the trip to Vizag is the journey and visit to the green and pleasant Araku Valley located about 15 km from Borra caves. The four-hour road journey from Visakhapatnam through the beautiful forest and tribal villages is very refreshing. The train journey takes six hours and carries you through the thick woods and a number of tunnels. AP Tourism offers a package tour to Tyda - Borra Caves - Araku Valley. The package includes morning tea, breakfast, and a sumptuous lunch accompanied by 'Dhimsa', the tribal dance.

The AP Tourism's Punnami Hotel at Araku offers modern facilities for comfortable stay.

Araku Valley is a lovely place inhabited by 19 different tribes. While in Araku, one should visit the 'Museum of Habitat' where the tribal lifestyle is exhibited through lifesize figures of tribal men and women shown performing different chores of daily life. The spacious Padmapuram gardens with a variety of fruit trees and log houses and the cascading zilda waterfalls are other attractive points in Araku. About 10 km from the town is the popular tourist spot `Chaparai', a stone looking like a fish tail with the rivulet flowing over it. Araku is a favourite shooting spot for many Telugu cinema producers

THE CAVES

A visit to Vizag is incomplete without a journey to the bewildering Borra caves. Located about 90 km from the city and 20 km before Araku Valley, the caves have spectacular stalactite and stalagmite deposits, which have taken interesting religious and mythological forms. Discovered by William King of Geological Survey of India in 1807, the caves are spread over an area of two square kilometers and at a height of 1400 metres above sea level.

Illuminated by Andhra Pradesh Tourism in different colours, the caves offer a magnificent and marvelous appearance. Borra Caves can be reached either by ghat road or by the Bolangir-Kirbur railway line both meandering through the splendid eastern ghats.

Before reaching Borra Caves one can stop at Tyda village, where an eco-tourism project, 'Jungle Bells', is run jointly by AP Tourism and Forest Department.

TEMPLES

Visakhapatnam also has the distinction of having famous temples around it. The legendary Lord Visakha temple lies submerged somewhere in the sea. However, the most popular shrine is that of Lord Narasimha in Simhachalam, about 16 km from the city. Narasimha (man-lion) is one of the nine 'avataras' of Lord Vishnu. The temple at Simhachalam looks majestic with tall 'gopurams' and richly carved walls.

The 'kalyanamantapam' has beautifully carved pillars and bright coloured 'vahanams'. The sanctum has a high ceiling. The image of the deity in the temple is always covered with a paste of sandalwood, which is removed only one day in a year, that is `akshaya tritiya'. The original deity as it could be seen on this day is an enchanting human form with head of a boar and tail of a lion. The deity here is believed to have rescued `Bhakta Prahalad' by killing `Hiranyakasipa'.

Built by Eastern Ganga ruler, Narasimha, who also built the Sun temple at Konark, the temple at Simhachalam is considered second only to the Lord Venkateshwara temple at Tirumala. The 'prakaram' of the temple is very old with many pillars, which are full of exquisitely carved images of Lord Narasimha and the famous motif of "Tree of Life".

BEACHES

The pristine beaches with golden sands are a great attraction to the visitors. Visakhapatnam with a number of virgin beaches can aptly be called as the land of golden beaches. Ramakrishna Beach is right in the heart of the city with a long stretch of beach road running along the shoreline. A little ahead is the most popular Lawson's Bay beach. Further north along the beach road is the 'Kailasagiri' hill with mammoth statues of Lord Shiva and Parvathi. Also known as Thomas' Folly, this hill is an ideal weekend getaway, with its beautifully landscaped park, light house, waterfalls, art gallery and spectacular view points of the Bay. A ropeway has been laid from the beach road to the top of the hill. Eight kilometres from the city is the Rishikonda beach. Andhra Pradesh tourism has built cosy and comfortable resorts with a bar and restaurant on the hillock, overlooking the sea here. The authorities can make it more enjoyable if the unplanned and polluting settlements along the seashore are shifted. Yarada beach, some 25 km away from the city, is ideal for surfing and swimming.