6-day Private Guided South India The Temple Route

Itinerary

Day 1: Arrive Chennai

Stop At: Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
On arrival at Chennai airport assistance and transfer to hotel.

Later city tour of Chennai. Visit Fort St. George & Museum built by the British East India Company in 1640 AD. The fort is believed to be the first establishment of the British in India. Kapaleeshwarar Temple a Hindu temple dedicated to lord Shiva, Semmozhi Poonga a beautifuly landscaped botanical garden. Dakshina Chitra a living history museum & Arulmigu Sri Parthasarathy Temple an 8th-century Hindu Vaishnavite temple dedicated to the Lord Vishnu. Evening walk on the on Marina beach.
Duration: 4 hours

No meals included on this day.
Accommodation included: Overnight at Hotel

Day 2: Chennai - Kanchipuram - Vellore (140kms/ 3hrs approx)

Stop At: Kanchipuram, Kanchipuram, Kanchipuram District, Tamil Nadu
Pick up from your hotel in Chennai and drive to Pondicherry via visiting Kanchipuram & Vellore.

In Kanchipuram visit Kailasanathar 8th century temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, noted for its architecture and sculptures. There are 58 small shrines situated around the main shrine compound wall. Ekambareswarar temple another ancient temple dedicated to Siva. The 2500-year-old mango tree inside the temple has 4 branches each yields different varieties of mangoes. Varadharaja temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu, noted for its wonderful sculptures. Vaikundhaperumal temple dedicated to lord Vishnu, it is also one of the 108 Divyadesams. Kamakshiamman temple dedicated to Goddess Kamakshi the presiding deity, one of the holy Sakthi worship places in India.
Duration: 3 hours

Stop At: Vellore, Vellore, Vellore District, Tamil Nadu
Continue drive to Vellore and check in at hotel.

Later city tour visit 16th-century Vellore Fort, with its imposing granite walls and surrounding moat. Inside the fort, the Jalakandeswarar Temple features many ornate sculptures. Nearby, the Government Museum has prehistoric relics and natural history displays. Sri Lakshmi Narayani Golden Temple inside the Sripuram spiritual park is situated at the foot of a small range of green hills. This temple is gilded with 1,500 kg of pure gold, double the 750 kg gilding of the dome of the Golden Temple at Amritsar. Rest time free and easy to relax.
Duration: 3 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight at Hotel

Day 3: Vellore - Tiruvannamalai - Trichy (280kms/ 6hrs approx)

Stop At: Tiruvannamalai, Tiruvannamalai, Tiruvannamalai District, Tamil Nadu
Breakfast at hotel, drive to Trichy via visiting Tiruvannamalai a Hindu pilgrimage town. At the foot of sacred Arunachala Hill is the vast, ancient Arulmigu Arunachaleswarar Temple, dedicated to the Hindu god Shiva, with intricately carved gopurams (towers). Shiva is worshiped as Arunachalesvara and is represented by the lingam, with his idol referred to as Agni lingam. His consort Parvati is depicted as Unnamalai Amman. To the west, the huge Sathanur Dam was constructed in 1958 on the Thenpennai River. Nearby there are gardens, plus a crocodile farm and a small zoo.

Continue drive to Trichy check in at hotel. Evening visit Ranganathaswamy Temple to attend the Arti ceremony.
Duration: 2 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight at hotel.

Day 4: Trichy - Thanjore (60kms/ 1.3hrs approx)

Stop At: Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu, India
Breakfast at hotel. Visit Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple - there are 22 gopurams including India’s tallest (72 meters, 13 storey high). Many people have had a hand in its construction, including the Cheras, Pandyas, Cholas, Hoysalas and rulers from Vijayanagar. Rock Fort Temple -The 83m high Rock Fort is the only outcrop in the otherwise flat land of the city. The rock is one of the oldest in the world-approximately 3.800 million years, which makes it as old as the rocks of Greenland and older than the Himalayas. Also visit Tiruvanaikkaval the Jambukeshwara temple, dedicated to Shiva, and it houses five concentric walls, and seven gopurams.
Duration: 2 hours

Stop At: Thanjavur, Tamil Nadu, India
After sightseeing drive to Thanjore check in at hotel. Later visit Brihadeshwara Temple & Fort - built by great Chola king in the 10th century. It is an outstanding example of Chola architecture and is listed in UNESCO world heritage site. Thanjavur Palace & Museum - The palace houses an art gallery, a library and a hall of music. Art Gallery - in the Palace there are a number of granite and bronze statues of the Chola period. Saraswathi Mahal Library - another section of the Palace is the library where over 30,000 palm leaf and paper manuscripts in India and European languages are preserved.

Rest time free and easy to relax.
Duration: 3 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight at hotel.

Day 5: Thanjore - Darasuram - Gangaikonda Cholapuram - Chidambaram - Pondicherry (180kms/ 4hrs approx)

Stop At: Pondicherry, Pondicherry, Union Territory of Pondicherry
Breakfast at hotel, drive to Pondicherry. Enroute visit Darasuram Temple - a storehouse of art and architecture with 85 feet high vimana. The front mandapam itself is in the form of a huge chariot drawn by horses. The temple has some exquisite stone carvings. The main deity's consort Periya Nayaki Amman temple is situated adjacent to Airavateshwarar temple. Gangaikonda Cholapuram - built in Tamil style of architecture with a square plan. The original courtyard is two squares stacked next to each other, all mandapas, the upapitham, the shrine plans, the garbha griha (sanctum) and the tower elements are all square shaped and incorporate circles and principles of geometric symmetry. The temple complex includes Nandi Mandapa, Alankar Mandapa, Maha Mandapa, Mukha Mandapa and Ardha Mandapa. Thanjavur, Darasuram & Gangaikonda Cholapuram temples are the The Great Living Chola Temples (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) built by the Cholas between the 10th and 12th centuries CE and have a lot of similarities. Continue drive & visit Chidambaram Nataraja Temple which is dedicated to the Nataraja the dancing posture of Lord Shiva. The temple has mythical roots and a Shiva shrine existed at the site when the town was known as Thillai.

Arrive Pondicherry check in at hotel.
Duration: 5 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
Accommodation included: Overnight at hotel.

Day 6: Pondicherry - Mahabalipuram - Chennai (160kms/ 3hrs approx)

Stop At: Pondicherry, Pondicherry, Union Territory of Pondicherry
Breakfast at hotel. City tour of Pondicherry visit Aurovil founded in 1968 by the spiritual leader Mirra Alfassa as a town where people from all over the world could live in harmony. Its focal point is the Matrimandir, a futuristic, spherical temple covered in gold discs. Pondicherry Museum an art and history museum especially noted for its collection of fine lost wax bronzes form the period of the Chola Empire. The Museum's collection includes 81 Chola bronze sculptures, ranking as one of the largest collections of Chola bronzes. Later walk in French Colony. Pondicherry has some of the finest examples of old French culture with a hint of Tamil influence in its visual aesthetics. Observe and get inspired by the architectural beauty of the French part of the town while enjoying a cup of coffee and some deserts along the way. Customise your walk with your guide to cover French consulate, French Institute, Raj Nivas, Bharati Park (Aayi Monument), Government Square, Beaches, Monuments, Churches, French schools.
Duration: 4 hours

Stop At: Mahabalipuram, Mahabalipuram, Kanchipuram District, Tamil Nadu
Later drive to Chennai via visiting Mahabalipuram. In Mahabalipuram visit Monolithic Temples locally known as Rathas. They were executed by chiseling out the exterior face of the boulder. Shore Temple built with blocks of granitein in 7th century the temple complex consisting of two Siva temples and a carving of Anantasayana Vishnu. It is one of the oldest structural stone temples of South India and a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1984. Cave Temples cut and decorated with panels in the Mamalla style of the Pallava period in the 7th century. Remnants seen in the caves also indicate that they were plastered and painted when built. Krishna's Butterball a gigantic granite boulder resting on a short incline.

Continue drive to Chennai and drop off to airport for evening or late night flight for onward destination.
Duration: 3 hours

Meals included:
• Breakfast
No accommodation included on this day.