Tourism in Andhra Pradesh

The state of Andhra Pradesh comprises like scenic hills, forests, beaches and temples. Also known as The City of Nizams and The City of Pearls, Hyderabad is today one of the most developed cities in the country and a modern hub of information technology, ITES, and biotechnology. Hyderabad is known for its rich history, culture and architecture representing its unique character as a meeting point for North and South India, and also its multilingual culture,

Andhra Pradesh is the home of many religious pilgrim centres:

Ø  Tirupati, the abode of Lord Venkateswara, is the second richest and most visited religious centre (of any faith) in the world. Srisailam, the abode of Sri Mallikarjuna, is one of twelve Jyothirlingalu in India. Amaravathi's Siva temple is one of the Pancharamams, Vemulavada temple, one of the old abodes of Lord Shiva, reputed as Dakshina Kashi – Benaras of South India. Vemulavada temple is built by Chalukya Kings between AD 750 and 975. Yadagirigutta, the abode of an avatara of Vishnu, Sri Lakshmi Narasimha.

Ø  Birla Mandir, on the Naubath Pahad is a Hindu temple of Lord Venkateshwara, built entirely of white marble located in Hyderabad,

Ø  The Ramappa Temple and Thousand Pillar Temple in Warangal are famous tourist spots and depict the finest taste of Kakatiya dynasty for arts & culture and temple carvings. Warangal is also home to Medaram – the Asia's largest tribal fair/festival called "Sammakka Saralamma Jatara".

Ø  Gnana Saraswati Temple, Basar is one of the famous Saraswati Temples in India.

Ø  Bhavani Island, near Vijayawada

Famous Buddhist centres:

Ø  Amaravathi – Guntur District.

Ø  Nagarjuna Konda – Bhattiprolu.

Ø  Mangalagiri – Near to Vijaywada City.

Ø  Ghantasala – Krishna District.

Ø  Nelakondapalli – Krishna District.

Ø  Dhulikatta – Karim Nagar District.

Ø  Lingapalem – West Godavari District.

Others are Bavikonda, Thotlakonda, Shalihundam, Pavuralakonda, Sankaram, Phanigiri and Kolanpaka.

Pilgrim centres and temples:
 
Ø  Sri Venkateswara Swami Temple – The abode of Lord Venkateswara, is the richest and most visited religious centre (of any faith) in the world situated in Tirupathi City.

Ø  Sri Kanaka Durga Temple – One of the Shkati Peetam's situated in Vijayawada City.

Ø  Sri Mallikaruna Temple – One of the Jyothirlingam's situated in Srisilam Town.

Ø  Sri Varaha Lakshmi Narashima Temple – Situated at Simhachalam near to Vizag City.

Ø  Sri Kalashastiswara Temple – Situated at Srikalahasti Town.

Ø  Sri Venkateswara Swami Temple – known as china Tirupathi located at Dwaraka Tirumala Town.

Ø  Sri Amaralingeswara Swami Temple – One of the Pancharama's located at Amaravathi Town.

Ø  Sri Someswara Swami Temple – One of the Pancharama's located at Bhimavaram Town.

Ø  Sri Kshira Rama Lingeswara Swami Temple – One of the Pancharama's located at Palakol town.

Ø  Sri Bhimeswara Swami Temple – One of the Pancharama's located at Rama Chandra Puram Town.

Ø  Sri Satyanarayana Swami Temple – Located at Annavaram near Rajahmundry city.

Ø  Ramappa Temple – Near to Warangal City.

Thousands of oldest temples are situated in Andhra pradesh.

Attractions:

·         Charminar – Center of the Hyderabad Old City.

·         Golkonda Fort – Largest and 400 years oldest fort.

·         Makka Masjid – Masjid in Hyderabad City.

·         Ramoji Film City – Largest Film City in the world situated in Hyderabad City.

·         Kilash giri – Mountain View along with beach side situated in Vizag City.

·         Bhimili Beach – Beautiful Beach near to Vizag City.

·         Araku Valley – known as Andhra Ooty near to Vizag City.

·         Borra Caves – caves formed 1 million years ago situated near to Vizag City.

·         Surendrapuri – A Unique Mythological Awareness Centre near Yadagirigutta, 60 km from Hyderabad.

The golden beaches at Visakhapatnam, the one-million-year-old limestone caves at Borra, picturesque Araku Valley, hill resorts of Horsley Hills, river Godavari racing through a narrow gorge at Papi Kondalu, waterfalls at Ettipotala, Kuntala and rich bio-diversity at Talakona, are some of the natural attractions of the state. Visakhapatnam is home to many tourist attractions such as the INS Karasura Submarine museum, Yarada Beach, Araku Valley, VUDA Park, Indira Gandhi Zoological Gardens. The weather in Andhra Pradesh is mostly tropical and the best time to visit is in November through to January. The monsoon season commences in June and ends in September, so travel would not be advisable during this period. Rajahmundry is the hub for great Engineering and Architectural monuments such as Godavari Bridge (Asia's second largest Road cum Railway Bridge), Papi Hills, Iskon Temple, Tantikonda, Sir Aurthur Cotton Museum, Pushkar Ghat, Gowthami Ghat. A unique festival called Pushkaram will be celebrated along the Godavari River for every 12 years and Rajahmundry attracts 4-5 crore people during the tenure of the festival.

Golkonda (Telugu: గోల్కొండ, Urdu: گولکوندا), a ruined city of south-central India and capital of the medival kingdom of Golkonda (c. 1364–1512), is situated 11 km west of Hyderabad.

The most important builder of Golkonda was a Kakatiya King. Ibrahim was following in the spirit of his ancestors, the Qutub Shahi kings, a great family of builders who had ruled the kingdom of Golkonda from 1512. Their first capital, the fortress citadel of Golkonda, was rebuilt for defense from invading Mughals from the north. They laid out Golkonda's splendid monuments, now in ruins, and designed a perfect acoustical system by which a hand clap sounded at the fort's main gates, the grand portico, was heard at the top of the citadel, situated on a 300-foot (91 m)-high granite hill. This is one of the fascinating features of the fort.