About Mahabalipuram Excursions :
Mahabalipuram excursions guide offers excellent opportunities around the city. The place is close to Chennai and Kanchipuram and thus offers a range of choices for excursion. Both these towns are famous tourist destinations and attract scores of tourists every year. Kanchipuram, a place 65 kilometers off to Mahabalipuram is famous for its temples and silk saris that are popularly called Kanjivarams. The Kanjivaram saris are the masterpieces of hand weaving. These saris are the major source of income for the local population and are the major export items of Tamilnadu. The magnificent town of Kanchipuram is popularly called the ‘Golden Town of a Thousand Temples’. It is famous for the Kamakshi, Varadarajaswami, and Kailasanathar temples. These temples have been built by the various Dravidic dynasties such as Chola and Pallavas. These outstandingly beautiful temples are famous for their large and open courtyards and gigantic ‘Gopurams’. Vedanthangal is another favorite excursion site around Mahabalipuram. The place is renowned for a bird sanctuary that is the second largest bird sanctuary in India. This sanctuary attracts a range of migratory birds every winter. The most popular ones among these are Arctic Turn and Siberian Cranes. The Covelong beach here is famous for its golden sand and other historical monuments. The beach is scattered with historical relics and ruins that includes an old harbor, a fort, two Churches and a mosque. Apart from that, the place offers facility for some of the most exciting water sports such as wind surfing and motor-boating. Apart from these the Crocodile Bank situated at a distance of 14 kilometers from Mahabalipuram is also worth visiting. The place has been developed as ‘The crocodile breeding and research Institute’ and has various species of crocodiles and alligators.
General Information about Mahabalipuram :
Location: Mahabalipuram
State: Tamil Nadu
Capital: Chennai
Language: Tamil, Hindi, English
Temperature: Max 40˚C, Min 27˚C (summer), Max 29˚C, Min 20˚C (winter)
Best Season: November to March
How to Reach Mahabalipuram :
By Air:
Chennai, situated 58 Kilometres off, is the nearest airport to Mahabalipuram. Chennai airport has both domestic as well as international terminuses. Chennai is connected with all the major places in India through the numerous domestic flights. Nearly all the major domestic careers in India offer their services to Chennai. International flights operate from various parts of the world to Chennai.
By Rail:
The nearest railway stations are Chengalpattu (29-km) and Chennai (58-km). Chennai being a metropolitan city is well connected by railways to all the major and minor cities in India. Regular express and super fast trains are available to and from cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Agra, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Bangalore. From Chennai one has to take road to reach the Mahabalipuram.
By Road:
Buses are available from Pondicherry, Kanchipuram, Chengalpattu and Chennai to Mahabalipuram daily. The road to Mahabalipuram is good. Tourists can also hire a taxi from Chennai. Most of these taxis are privately operated and will require a lot of dickering before they settle for a reasonable fare.