South India is the heaven for the tourists who look for the perfect mix of everything including hill stations, beaches, backwaters, historical monuments, wildlife sanctuaries, waterfalls and more. Let us not forget the temples. South India is known for magnificent temples where you can explore different culture, tradition and architectural wonders in the designs and structures. At present most of the people within the country and beyond the borders love to be part of South India tour that exclusively covers important temples.
Introduction to Temple Tour in South India
The important temple destinations of South India temple tour include Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, and Pondicherry. All of these states hold amazing temples that stays the stories of culture, tradition, and life of people dating back to several years. Visit to temple really worth if you are interested to know about ancient culture, tradition, excellent stones works, works with wood, amazing paintings, architectural excellence and more. Most of the ancient temples are made of stones and the words are not enough to describe the calmness, peace and divine atmosphere you experience in each of the temples.
Kerala Temples
If you prefer an exclusive tour of Kerala, then you have several temples to select from in almost all the districts in the state. There are temples near backwaters, in hills, in cities, Fort temples and more. But most of the tourists plan south Indian temple tour including almost all of the states in the region. If you are on the same, one of the most important temples to visit in Kerala is Sri Padmanabhaswamy Temple in the capital city of Kerala, Trivandrum. The temple is situated in the heart of the city near KSRTC Bust Stand at East Fort. The Lord Mahavishnu is the presiding deity and is reclined on the serpent called ‘Anantha’. For this reason, the city is also called as ‘Ananthapuri’. Architectural work of this temple is famous and The Ottakkalmandapam which means hall made from a single stone is an important attraction. At present this temple could be the richest temple in the world and is known for treasures of gold, emeralds, diamonds, etc.
Tamil Nadu Temples
Tamil Nadu is the home to architecturally magnificent temples. Almost all of the temples will have tall gopurams (monumental gatehouse tower) that make the tourists to really get wonder about the construction. Almost all of the famous temples will have gopurams on all four sides. You can find the famous temples in the places of Kanchipuram, Mahabalipuram, Trichy, Tanjore, Madurai, Rameswaram and Kanyakumari.
Mahabalipuram is an amazing destination to visit to watch a beautiful beach. The shore temple stands as an excellent tourist spot to visit than a temple. Greenfield filled with grass is really beautiful and it is really stunning to watch the beach from the temple.
Rameswaram and Madurai are temples are known for their architectural works and are famous for “Ayiramkalmandapam” (the hall made with thousand pillars). In Madurai temple, it is said that each of the pillars produces different sounds of sapthaswaras (seven musical notes) when knocked on it. Rameswaram temple stands near the sea and is an excellent place to engage in ancestral ceremonies.
Tanjore is one of the biggest Lord Shiva temples with the huge tomb and where it is said that you can’t see the shadow and Trichy temple stands in the top of the hill situated in the centre of the city. Kanyakumari temple situates in the meeting point of three oceans and you can watch sunset and sunrise here. This is one of the temples that most of the tourists never like to miss in Tamil Nadu.
Karnataka Temples
Karnataka is not as rich in famous temples as it is in Tamil Nadu. But still, there are famous temples including Sravanabelagola, Udupi, Mookambika, Murudeswar Temple, etc. Mookambika Temple is made with Kerala style architecture and is the temple famous to celebrate Navarathri (festival of nine days) and is the ideal location for Vidyarambham (first learning of children).
Murudeswar is one of the famous temples built on the cost of Arabian Sea on Kanduka Hill. This temple has the second highest statute of Lord Shiva in the world. You can get the excellent views of the ocean from the temple and it is really breath-taking.
Andhra Pradesh Temples
Some of the amazing architectural marvels in the state include the Charminar, the Golkonda Fort, the Buddha Statue, etc. Important temple destinations include Tirupathi and Puttaparthi of Sai Baba fame. Tirupathi is one of the richest temples in South India and is known for extreme cleanliness maintained in the temple and on the way to temple. Temple is situated on hill station and the journey to the temple really worth. The deity is Lord Balaji (Mahavishnu) and the temple surroundings are beautified with gardens to make it an excellent tourist spot. There is well-maintained pond inside the temple which sets a good feast for the eyes.
How to plan the tour?
South Indian temple tour can vary from 7 to 17 days based on the places you visit. Chennai is a convenient location for the tourists who are from North India and other countries to set start to the tour. If you are on an arranged tour by consultants, then there is no need to worry about the travel, food, and accommodation. Otherwise, you can start the tour from Chennai. Almost all temples cities are connected each other by rail and bus.
From Chennai, you can take a day to visit Tirupathi, and then, you can visit the famous temple of Tamil Nadu on the direction to Rameswaram. Then enter Kerala to visit Trivandrum and move to Kanyakumari. From there, you can back to Trivandrum to back home or to Mangalapuram to start watching Karnataka temples.
At present, it very easy to book your tour in advance as there are several reputed tour operators to help you. You can also set start to an immediate tour since at present everything can be booked on the go.