ARAKU & VIZAG IN 3 DAYS

Hill Station | Nature & Scenic | Historical & Heritage

Photo Credit: Flickr
This trip demands considerable trekking / walking

ITINERARY SUMMARY

Trip Starting Point: Vizag City

Mode of Travel: Car (or Cab)

Trip Duration: 3 Days

Ideal Start Time: 8 AM (Day 1), 9 AM (Day 2) & 8 AM (Day 3)

Total Places Visited: 9

DAYS

DAY 1 : TRAVEL TO ARAKU & SIGHTSEEING

Travel from Vizag to Araku Valley

At a distance of 200 m from Araku Bus Station, Araku Tribal Museum is a wonderful place which explores the tribal culture of Eastern Ghats. It is one of the top tourist places to visit in Araku Valley.

The Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation established this museum in 1996. Araku Valley boasts of 19 tribes that live in the vicinity of the town. The purpose of the museum is to create awareness about tribal culture and lifestyle. Araku Tribal Museum is not a historical place but offers information about the tribes that currently live here.

Araku Tribal Museum is spread over two levels, built with mud and real metals to portray tribal life. The museum has been designed to showcase tribal lifestyle in motion, starting with a kitchen that displays utensils made of iron and mud. A series of 10 photographs capturing the wedding ceremony of the tribal is very interesting at the entrance. The passages within the museum that connect various sections are constructed of mud .....

At a distance of 13 km from Araku Bus Stand, Chaaparai is a beautiful water cascade situated on Paderu - Araku Road in Vishakhapatnam district of Andhra Pradesh. Also known as Dumbriguda Waterfalls, it is a scenic place surrounded by forests and is one of the popular Araku Tourist Places.

Chaparai Waterfalls is a popular tourist attraction, with its endless streams that cut across big rock formations of Araku Valley. The area around the waterfalls has become a popular site for picnicking, owing to the presence of the beautiful stream flowing through wide rock formations. Smooth slanting rocks interrupt the stream, making a huge natural water slide. This waterfall is highly attractive and allures lots of tourists. This waterfall is one of the preferred locations for Telugu filmmakers.

One can experience the beauty of water gushing through natural rocks. Bathing is well possible when the water flow is not really heavy. It is recommended not to enter into the water in monsoon .....

At a distance of 2.5 km from Araku Bus Station, Padmapuram Gardens is a popular botanical garden situated in Araku. It is one of the well-known places of sightseeing in Araku Valley.

The garden was built in 1942 on a 26-acre plot to supply vegetables to the soldiers who fought in World War II. After the War, it was converted into a Horticultural Nursery cum Training Center where orchards, rare species of flowers and trees, tree houses and stone sculptures greet the eye.

A pleasurable way of seeing the gardens is to get on to the Araku Express toy train, popular with visitors to the gardens. Along with the toy train, the garden also contains tree top huts, which can be booked by the tourists. These tree huts, also known as hanging cottages, are ten feet above the ground level. It is a thrilling experience to stay in a hanging cottage and one can experience a rare swing as the tree sways to a heavy breeze. A beautiful rose garden and exotic varieties of plants form the chief .....

Overnight Stay in Araku Valley

DAY 2 : ARAKU SIGHTSEEING

Travel from Araku Valley to Ananthagiri

At a distance of 30 km from Araku, 3 km from Anantagiri village, Tadimada waterfalls, also known as Anantagiri Waterfalls is a charming waterfall situated near Anantagiri town in Vizag district of Andhra Pradesh. It one of the best waterfalls in Araku and also one of the top tourist attractions in Araku.

With a height of about 100 feet, Anantagiri falls offer best views in monsoon season. The best way to reach these waterfalls is by walking / trekking from Anantagiri. The falls is about 1-2 km away from the main road between Anantagiri and Araku Valley (after about 1.5 km from Anantagiri). The approach road from main road is very narrow and bumpy. Only SUVs can manage well on this road. It's advisable to walk to these falls from Anantagiri - Araku main road which takes about 20 minutes. The road is almost flat and anyone can manage to walk easily.

The rocks near the falls are very slippery and should be careful while getting on to the rocks. Though swimming is possible, water .....

At a distance of 26 km from Araku, 85 km from Vizag & 660 km from Hyderabad, Anantagiri is a lovely tiny hill station between Vizag and Araku Valley. It is one of the top tourist places to visit in Araku Valley and is also among the top hill station in Andhra Pradesh apart from being a popular weekend getaway from Vizag city.

At an altitude of 1168 meters, Anantagiri is famous for extensive coffee plantations and numerous waterfalls. There is a view point on the way to Anantagiri on main road that offers excellent views of the deep valleys on one side and coffee plantations on the other side.

Anantagiri Hills are well known for its scenic beauty and charming weather. It is a perfect gateway to spend some time amidst the lap of nature. Anantagiri is paradise for coffee lovers and nature enthusiasts. The village is surrounded by coffee estates that emit the rich aroma of coffee and .....

At a distance of 36 km from Araku, 88 km from Vizag & 662 km from Hyderabad, Borra Caves are one million year-old limestone caves and the deepest caves in the country. Situated in Anantagiri hills of Andhra Pradesh, the caves are situated at an altitude of 1400 m and occupy an area of 2 sq.km. Borra Caves is one of the best places to visit in Araku Valley as part of Vizag packages.

These natural caves were discovered in 1807 by William King George of the Geological Survey of India. According to locals, once a cowherd lost his cow while grazing. He soon realized that his cow had fallen down. While searching for the cow, the cowherd found these caves and came across a Linga inside it. The Linga is considered synonymous to Lord Shiva, who saved the cow. After this, a small Shiva temple was built right outside this cave.

The caves are filled with fascinating stalagmite and stalactite .....

Overnight Stay in Araku Valley

DAY 3 : TRAVEL TO VIZAG & SIGHTSEEING

Travel from Araku Valley to Vizag

At a distance of 9 km from Vizag Railway Station, Kailasagiri is a charming hill on the seafront at an altitude of 130 meters. Kailasagiri is one of the prime attractions in Vizag city.

Spread over an area of 350 acres, it is one of the most attractive tourist spots in Vizag with an enchanting view of the sea, beaches, lush green forests and the beautiful city. The major attraction of the park is Lord Shiva Parvathi statue. At the base of Lord Shiva's statue, there is a stream that flows all the way to the foot of the hill. The hilltop also has many wonderful attractions like the Titanic viewpoint, floral clock, Shanku-Chakra Namas of Lord Venkateswara, Gliding point, Jungle Trails, Manicured lawns, Art gallery & Children Park. The floral clock on Kailasagiri is one of the biggest in India with a diameter of 10 ft.

A number of amazing viewpoints are developed all around the hilltop. One more major attraction is the toy train operated on top of the hill which takes a circular .....

At a distance of 6 km from Vizag Railway Station, the Submarine Museum situated on RK Beach is a Russian built submarine of the Indian Navy (INS Kurusura) turned to a museum in 2001. Submarine Museum is one of the prime attractions of Vizag city.

The Submarine Museum is the first submarine tuned to a museum in the whole of Asia and second in the World. INS Kurusura Submarine is a Soviet built I-641 class Submarine inducted into the Indian Navy on 18, December 1969 and the same was decommissioned on 28, February 2001 after 31 years of glorious service to the nation. The Submarine was brought from the sea to the sands of the Ramakrishna Beach and positioned on concrete foundation to set up as a museum. It has been established with the aim to create awareness among the public to know how the submarines work during wartime and for showcasing the life inside the submarine, etc.

The tourism department of Visakhapatnam looks after the maintenance of the INS Kurusura Submarine. The .....

At a distance of 4 km from Vizag Railway Station, Ramakrishna Beach (also called RK Beach) is a spectacular long beach on Bay of Bengal. This is one of the most popular beaches in Visakhapatnam and gets its name from the Ramakrishna Mission ashram across the Beach Road from the park. Ramakrishna Beach is one of the prime attractions of Vizag city.

This beach occupying large parts of the seafront is a great spot to spend time leisurely. The RK Beach was jointly developed by the Municipal Corporation of Visakhapatnam (MCV) and the Visakhapatnam Urban Development Authority (VUDA). The Submarine Museum, Visakha museum, Sri Ramakrishna Mission Ashram, an aquarium, Kali Temple, statues of prominent personalities, road side restaurants and parks are added attractions of RK beach. The beach is best known for the INS Kursura Submarine Museum, which preserves the Kalvari class submarine. The war memorial called 'Victory at Sea' at the shore of the beach was constructed as homage to soldiers .....

END OF THE TOUR