Contents Lonely Planet Publications 13 India Highlights 4 Destination India 18 Getting Started 20 Events Calendar 26 Itineraries 28 History 38 The Culture 59 Food & Drink 84 Environment 95 Activities 105 Delhi 119 History 120 Orientation 120 Information 120 Dangers & Annoyances 125 Sights 129 Activities 138 Courses 138 Tours 139 Sleeping 139 Eating 146 Drinking 151 Entertainment 153 Shopping 153 Getting There & Away 156 Getting Around 160 GREATER DELHI 161 Tughlaqabad 161 Qutb Minar 163 Rajasthan 165 EASTERN RAJASTHAN 168 Jaipur 168 Around Jaipur 182 Bharatpur 183 Keoladeo Ghana National Park 185 Deeg 186 Alwar 187 Sariska Tiger Reserve 188 Shekhawati 189 Ajmer 192 Pushkar 195 Ranthambore National Park 201 SOUTHERN RAJASTHAN 203 Bundi 203 Kota 207 Around Kota 209 Chittorgarh (Chittor) 210 Around Chittorgarh 213 Udaipur 213 Around Udaipur 224 Mt Abu 226 Around Mt Abu 230 WESTERN RAJASTHAN 230 Jodhpur 230 Around Jodhpur 239 Jaisalmer 240 Around Jaisalmer 248 Bikaner 249 Around Bikaner 253 Haryana & Punjab 254 Chandigarh 256 Around Chandigarh 265 HARYANA 265 Kurukshetra 265 South & West of Delhi 266 PUNJAB 266 Anandpur Sahib 266 Sirhind 267 Patiala 267 Northern Punjab 268 Amritsar 268 India Pakistan Border at Attari/Wagah 275 Pathankot 276 Jammu & Kashmir 277 JAMMU & THE KASHMIR VALLEY 278 Southern Kashmir 282 Jammu to Srinagar 286 Srinagar 286
14 CONTENTS Around Srinagar 294 Srinagar to Kargil 294 KARGIL & ZANSKAR 295 Kargil 295 Around Kargil 295 Suru Valley 296 Zanskar 296 Trekking in Zanskar 298 LADAKH 299 Leh 301 Trekking in Ladakh 315 Around Leh 317 Nubra Valley 323 East of Leh 326 Himachal Pradesh 330 EASTERN HIMACHAL PRADESH 333 Shimla 334 Around Shimla 341 Kinnaur Valley 343 CENTRAL HIMACHAL PRADESH 347 Mandi 347 Rewalsar Lake 348 Mandi to Kullu 349 Great Himalayan National Park 349 Bhuntar 349 Parvati Valley 350 Kullu 353 Naggar 355 Manali 357 Around Manali 366 WESTERN HIMACHAL PRADESH 368 Dharamsala 368 McLeod Ganj 369 Around McLeod Ganj 380 Southwest of Dharamsala 381 Dharamsala to Mandi 382 Chamba Valley 383 LAHAUL & SPITI 389 Lahaul 390 Spiti 392 Uttar Pradesh 398 Agra 399 Delicious India 413 Fatehpur Sikri 423 Mathura 425 Vrindavan 427 Lucknow 428 Faizabad & Ayodhya 432 Allahabad 434 Chitrakut 438 Jhansi 439 Varanasi 440 Sarnath 453 Gorakhpur 454 Kushinagar 455 Sunauli & the Nepal Border 456 Uttarakhand 458 Dehra Dun 461 Mussoorie 465 Around Mussoorie 469 Haridwar 469 Rajaji National Park 474 Rishikesh 475 Around Rishikesh 482 Uttarkashi 482 Garhwal Temple Treks 482 Joshimath 484 Around Joshimath 485 Valley of Flowers & Hem Kund Trek 485 Badrinath & Mana Village 486 Kuari Pass Trek 486 Nanda Devi Sanctuary Trek 487 Corbett Tiger Reserve 487 Nainital 489 Ranikhet 494 Almora 495 Around Almora 497 Kausani 497 Around Kausani 498 Bageshwar 498 Pithoragarh 499 Pindari Glacier Trek 499 Milam Glacier Trek 499 Banbassa 500 Kolkata (Calcutta) 501 History 502 Orientation 502 Information 503 Dangers & Annoyances 508 Sights 508 Activities 518 Tours 518 Sleeping 519 Eating 522 Drinking 526 Entertainment 527 Shopping 527 Getting There & Away 528 Getting Around 531 West Bengal 532 SOUTH OF KOLKATA 534 Sunderbans Tiger Reserve 534 Diamond Harbour 536 Sagar Island 536 Bakkali 537 NORTH OF KOLKATA 537 Up the Hooghly 537 Bishnupur 537 Shantiniketan 538 Nabadwip & Mayapur 539 Murshidabad & Berhampore 539 Malda 540 Gaur & Pandua 540 WEST BENGAL HILLS 540 Siliguri & New Jalpaiguri 540 Jaldhapara Wildlife Sanctuary 544 Mirik 545 Kurseong 546 Darjeeling 547 Trekking Around Darjeeling 559 Kalimpong 560 Around Kalimpong 565 Bihar & Jharkhand 566 BIHAR 568 Patna 568 Around Patna 573 Raxaul 574 Gaya 575 Sasaram 576 Bodhgaya 576 Dungeshwari Cave Temples 580 Rajgir 580 Around Rajgir 581 JHARKHAND 582 Ranchi 582 Betla (Palamau) National Park 583 Parasnath 584
CONTENTS 15 Sikkim 585 EAST SIKKIM 588 Gangtok 588 Around Gangtok 594 Towards Tibet 595 SOUTH SIKKIM 595 Namchi 596 Jorethang (Naya Bazaar) 596 WEST SIKKIM 597 Gangtok to Pelling 597 Geyzing, Tikjuk & Legship 598 Pelling 598 Around Pelling 600 The Monastery Loop 601 NORTH SIKKIM 605 Gangtok to Singhik 605 Beyond Singhik 606 Northeast States 609 ASSAM 611 Guwahati 612 Around Guwahati 616 Northwestern Assam (Bodoland) 617 Tezpur 617 Around Tezpur 618 Kaziranga National Park 618 Upper Assam 619 ARUNACHAL PRADESH 623 Itanagar 623 Central Arunachal Pradesh 623 Western Arunachal Pradesh 625 NAGALAND 627 Dimapur 627 Kohima 627 Around Kohima 629 Kohima to Mon 629 Northern Nagaland 629 MANIPUR 630 Imphal 630 Around Imphal 631 MIZORAM 631 Aizawl 632 Rural Mizoram 633 TRIPURA 633 Agartala 633 Around Agartala 636 North Tripura 637 MEGHALAYA 637 Shillong 637 Around Shillong 640 Garo Hills 641 Orissa 643 Bhubaneswar 645 Around Bhubaneswar 651 SOUTHEASTERN ORISSA 652 Puri 652 Raghurajpur 657 Konark 657 Chilika Lake 659 Gopalpur-on-Sea 660 WESTERN ORISSA 662 Taptapani 662 Baliguda 662 Rayagada 662 Jeypore 663 Around Jeypore 664 Sambalpur 665 Debrigarh & Badrama Wildlife Sanctuaries 665 NORTHEASTERN ORISSA 665 Similipal National Park 665 Jashipur 666 Baripada 666 Cuttack 666 Balasore 667 Chandipur 667 Bhitarkanika Wildlife Sanctuary 667 Ratnagiri, Udayagiri & Lalitgiri 668 Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh 669 NORTHERN MADHYA PRADESH 672 Gwalior 672 Around Gwalior 676 Jhansi 677 Orchha 677 Khajuraho 680 Around Khajuraho 689 Satna 689 CENTRAL MADHYA PRADESH 689 Bhopal 689 Around Bhopal 694 Sanchi 695 Around Sanchi 698 Pachmarhi 699 WESTERN MADHYA PRADESH 702 Ujjain 702 Indore 704 Around Indore 707 Mandu 709 EASTERN MADHYA PRADESH 713 Jabalpur 713 Around Jabalpur 715 Pench Tiger Reserve 716 Kanha National Park 717 Bandhavgarh National Park 719 CHHATTISGARH 720 Raipur 720 Around Raipur 721 Jagdalpur 721 Around Jagdalpur 722 Gujarat 725 EASTERN GUJARAT 727 Ahmedabad (Amdavad) 727 Around Ahmedabad 737 Gandhinagar 738 Vadodara (Baroda) 739 Around Vadodara 741 Bharuch 742 Surat 742 Around Surat 743 Daman 743 SAURASHTRA 745 Bhavnagar 746 Around Bhavnagar 748 Palitana 748 Diu 749 Veraval 755 Somnath 755 Sasan Gir Wildlife Sanctuary 757 Junagadh 759 Gondal 762 Porbandar 762 Dwarka 764 Jamnagar 765 Rajkot 768 KUTCH (KACHCHH) 770 Bhuj 770 Around Bhuj 773 Mandvi 774 Little Rann Sanctuary 775 Mumbai (Bombay) 777 History 778 Orientation 779 Information 779 Sights 783 Activities 791 Walking Tour 792 Courses 793
16 CONTENTS Mumbai for Children 793 Tours 794 Sleeping 794 Eating 798 Drinking 801 Entertainment 803 Shopping 804 Getting There & Away 805 Getting Around 807 GREATER MUMBAI 809 Elephanta Island 809 Sanjay Gandhi National Park 809 Maharashtra 811 NORTHERN MAHARASHTRA 813 Nasik 813 Around Nasik 816 Aurangabad 817 Around Aurangabad 821 Ellora 822 Ajanta 825 Jalgaon 828 Lonar Meteorite Crater 828 Nagpur 829 Around Nagpur 830 SOUTHERN MAHARASHTRA 831 Konkan Coast 831 Matheran 833 Lonavla 835 Festive India 837 Karla & Bhaja Caves 845 Pune 846 Around Pune 852 Mahabaleshwar 852 Around Mahabaleshwar 855 Kolhapur 855 Goa 858 CENTRAL GOA 864 Panaji (Panjim) 864 Old Goa 870 Ponda & Around 872 Dudhsagar Falls 872 NORTH GOA 872 Mapusa 872 Candolim, Sinquerim & Fort Aguada 873 Calangute & Baga 877 Anjuna 882 Vagator & Chapora 885 Mandrem 887 Arambol (Harmal) 887 SOUTH GOA 889 Margao (Madgaon) 889 Chandor 891 Colva & Benaulim 891 Benaulim to Palolem 894 Palolem & Around 895 Karnataka 898 SOUTHERN KARNATAKA 901 Bengaluru (Bangalore) 901 Around Bengaluru 913 Mysore 914 Around Mysore 921 Hassan 923 Belur & Halebid 924 Sravanabelagola 924 Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve 925 Kodagu (Coorg) Region 927 KARNATAKA COAST 930 Mangalore 930 Dharmasthala 933 Udupi (Udipi) 934 Malpe 934 Devbagh 934 Jog Falls 934 Gokarna 935 CENTRAL KARNATAKA 938 Hampi 938 Around Hampi 943 Hospet 943 Hubli 944 NORTHERN KARNATAKA 946 Badami 946 Around Badami 948 Bijapur 949 Bidar 952 Andhra Pradesh 954 Hyderabad & Secunderabad 956 Nagarjunakonda 970 Warangal 970 Around Warangal 972 Visakhapatnam 972 Around Visakhapatnam 974 Vijayawada 975 Around Vijayawada 976 Tirumala & Tirupathi 976 Around Tirumala & Tirupathi 978 Puttaparthi 979 Lepakshi 979 Kerala 980 SOUTHERN KERALA 983 Thiruvananthapuram (Trivandrum) 983 Around Trivandrum 988 Kovalam 988 Around Kovalam 992 Padmanabhapuram Palace 992 Varkala 993 Kollam (Quilon) 997 Around Kollam 999 Alappuzha (Alleppey) 999 Around Alleppey 1004 Kottayam 1004 Around Kottayam 1005 THE WESTERN GHATS 1006 Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary 1006 Munnar 1010 Around Munnar 1012 Parambikulam Wildlife Sanctuary 1013 CENTRAL KERALA 1013 Kochi (Cochin) 1013 Around Kochi 1026 Thrissur (Trichur) 1027 Around Thrissur 1029 NORTHERN KERALA 1029 Kozhikode (Calicut) 1029 Wayanad Wildlife Sanctuary 1031 Kannur (Cannanore) 1034 Bekal & Around 1035 LAKSHADWEEP 1036 Bangaram Island 1037 Agatti Island 1037 Kadmat Island 1038 Minicoy Island 1038 Tamil Nadu 1039 CHENNAI (MADRAS) 1042 History 1043 Orientation 1046 Information 1046 Dangers & Annoyances 1047 Sights 1047 Activities 1050 Courses 1050 Tours 1051 Sleeping 1051 Eating 1052
CONTENTS 17 Drinking 1054 Entertainment 1054 Shopping 1055 Getting There & Away 1055 Getting Around 1058 NORTHERN TAMIL NADU 1058 Chennai to Mamallapuram 1058 Mamallapuram (Mahabalipuram) 1059 Around Mamallapuram 1064 Vedantangal Bird Sanctuary 1065 Kanchipuram 1065 Vellore 1068 Mumbai (Bombay) (p778) Rajasthan (p166) Goa (p859) Himachal Pradesh (pp332 3) Haryana Uttarakhand & Punjab (p460) (p255) Delhi (pp122 3) Madhya Pradesh & Chhattisgarh (p670) Tiruvannamalai 1069 Gingee (Senji) 1071 Puducherry (Pondicherry) 1071 Auroville 1078 CENTRAL TAMIL NADU 1079 Chidambaram 1079 Around Chidambaram 1080 Kumbakonam 1081 Around Kumbakonam 1082 Cauvery Delta 1083 Thanjavur (Tanjore) 1084 Around Thanjavur 1087 Trichy (Tiruchirappalli) 1087 SOUTHERN TAMIL NADU 1092 Trichy to Rameswaram 1092 Rameswaram 1092 Regional Map Contents Gujarat (p726) Jammu & Kashmir (pp280 1) Maharashtra (p812) Karnataka (p899) Uttar Pradesh (p400 1) Andhra Pradesh (p955) Tamil Nadu Kerala (p1040) (p981) Bihar & Jharkand (p567) West Bengal (p533) Orissa (p644) Sikkim (p586) Kolkata (Calcutta) (pp504 5) Northeast States (p610) Andaman & Nicobar Islands (p1121) Madurai 1094 Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) 1100 THE WESTERN GHATS 1103 Kodaikanal (Kodai) 1103 Around Kodaikanal 1108 Indira Gandhi (Annamalai) Wildlife Sanctuary 1108 Coimbatore 1109 Around Coimbatore 1111 Coonoor 1111 Kotagiri 1112 Ooty (Udhagamandalam) 1112 Mudumalai National Park 1118 Andaman & Nicobar Islands 1120 Port Blair 1127 Around Port Blair & South Andaman 1131 Havelock Island 1132 Neil Island 1134 Middle & North Andaman 1135 Little Andaman 1137 Directory 1138 Transport 1173 Health 1191 Language 1200 Glossary 1207 The Authors 1215 Behind the Scenes 1219 Index 1225 GreenDex 1242 Map Legend 1244
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