Guntur Tourism

This Article gives the Tourism and Destination in Guntur City and its region/district. Also Check the Guntur Tourism Category at the end of this section below.

Ancient & Archaeological

* Amaravathi, BhattiproluLocated 16 miles(N-E) from Guntur City, Amaravathi is named after its famous temple of Amareswara Swamy with the swayambhu linga. Also the Mahachaitya stupa, built in the 2nd century B.C. in Amaravathi, is richly adorned with carvings depicting the life and teachings of the Buddha. The stupa houses a small museum with a collection of old monuments, and a pictorial depiction of the Buddha's life and teachings and terracotta antiquities. The temple walls have a number of inscriptions that throw light on the different dynasties that reigned over this place. [http://www.hindu.com/2006/06/06/stories/2006060610900400.htm A Recent Finding] . The Museum at Guntur, has collection of various relics and antiques such as Stupa-slabs, railings, sculpture, coins of gold, silver and lead, potsherds and crystals caskets.

Bhattiprolu is located 20 miles(S-W) of the city, formerly the Kingdom of Prati Palaputra, appears to be the earliest known kingdom in Guntur District. [http://www.chennaimuseum.org/draft/gallery/01/04/inscrip.htm archaelogical information] gathered in the area of Bhattiprolu.

* Kondaveedu Kondaveedu is located 17 Miles from Guntur City . This historical fort was built during the reign of the Reddy kings in 14th century A.D. there are 21 structures in the fort . The ruins of the fort located on the hilltop offer unraveled mysteries to the tourist. A place of natural scenic beauty with natural wonders it is an ideal place for trekking. The Gopinatha temple and Kathulabave at the foot of the hillock, numerous temples, residential structures, pillared halls on the hill and the entrance gate ways on east and west sides are the attractions at kondavidu.

* Kotappakonda [http://www.kotappakonda.com Trikutaparvatam] , Guthikonda Caves Kotappakonda, the temporal abode of Trikoteswara Swamy, is a village, 25 miles south- west Guntur City near Narsaraopet. Its original name is Kondakavuru, but is more popularly known as Kotappakonda or Trikutaparvatam, a three-peaked hill nearby. Though surrounded by other hills, the three hills, also known by the names of Trikutachalam or Trikutadri, can be distinctly seen from a distance from any direction. The three peaks are named after the Hindu Triumvirate, Brahma, Vishnu and Maheswara. Guthikonda popularly known as Dakshina Kasi is located near Narasaraopeta. The Guthikonda Caves [ [http://www.all-indiatravel.com/guntur/guthikonda-guntur.html Guthikonda Of Guntur ] ] here are place of deep mystery attracting many tourists to explore.

* SitanagaramSitanagaram is located 16 miles North-East of Guntur City on the banks of river Krishna with a vast sandy beach for recreation and leisure. The famous Someswara Swamy temple is situated here According to the legend Lord Rama wept here for Sita when she was abducted by Ravana, hence the name Sitanagaram.

* Undavalli-caves, MangalagiriLocated 13 miles northeast of Guntur city, these two places are easily accessible on the Guntur-Kolkata Express Way. [http://mangalagiri.net Managalagiri] is famous for its temple of Lord Lakshmi Narasimha swamy. The hill used to be an active volcano. It is at an altitude of 30 meters above the sea level. Latitude is 16.44 degrees north, and longitude is 80.56 degrees east. Here at the temple, jaggery water is offered to the lord by the devotees. According to the ancient scriptures, the lord is being worshiped since Satya Yuga (The first of the four yugas). In the down hill there is another temple dedicated to Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy. It is said that, Yudhishtira (Dharmaraju, the eldest of the Pandavas) installed the main deity in this temple. The temple has a very tall tower with beautiful sculpture which has 11 stairs.

* ChebroleLocated 10 Miles South of Guntur city, Chebrole is famous for chaturmukha Brahma and Lord Nageswara Swamy. Has a beautiful red stone Nandi. It is a major panchayat comprising three villages Chebrole, patha reddy palem and kotha reddy palem. It is a mandal head-quarters. Buckingham canal passes by which is used for inland transport and irrigation. It was a regional fort for pallavas, chalukyas and kakatiyas. Its ancient name was sambhole (from which 'chebrole' is derived). There are famous Chalukya inscriptions. Chebrole is mentioned in yuddamalluni Vijayawada inscriptions. It became famous in the rule of Kakatiyas as a great general Jayapa ruled the Chebrole fort. Jayapa also wrote a famous book on Indian dance, 'Nrutyaratnavali'.

City center and Other

* City centerGuntur City has its own nice/modest downtown, midtown/city centers and uptown/residential areas. To name a few, 1. Center of Brodipet and ArundelPet, 2. Jinnah Tower Center, 3. Naaz Center, 4. Inner and Outer Ringroads, 5. Old Guntur, 6. Brindavan Gardens 7. Manasa Sarovar located on the Eastern part of the city, it is one of the man made parks located in Guntur.
* Krishna BarrageKrishna Barrage (also known as Prakasam Barrage) is on the northeastern part, located around 18 miles from the Guntur City on the Krishna River connecting Guntur and Krishna Districts. On the other side of the River Krishna is Vijayawada which is like a twin city to Guntur.

Nature

* Uppalapadu Nature ConservationUppalapadu is located to the southern part of the Guntur City (4Miles). The water tanks in the village are unique as they provide refuge to many species birds including endangered Spot-Billed Pelicans and Painted Storks. The bird population in these tanks used to be around 12,000 previously, however lately only about 7000 birds roost in this dwindling habitat through the year. © SPECIES 2001 [ [http://sagar.physics.neu.edu/pat/uppalapadu] Dead link|date=March 2008] , [ [http://www.hindu.com/2006/12/29/stories/2006122909350200.htm The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Guntur News : Siberian birds attract visitors at Uppalapadu ] ] .

* Nagarjuna Sagar Dam & Ethipothala Falls
Nagarjuna Sagar, a massive irrigation project on the River Krishna, about 100 miles from Guntur City, has a rich and interesting past. It was a valley in the Nallamala range of the Eastern Ghats with civilizations dating back to thousands of years. Recorded history, however, assigns the first signs to the later Satavahanas and subsequently the Ikshvakus in the third century. The Sriparvata and Vijayapuri of yore were really temples where the famous savant and Philosopher Acharya Nagarjuna preached the message of the Buddha. The Ethipothala Falls located 7 miles from Nagarjunasagar, the water here is used for crocodile breeding.

piritual

* Viswa Nagar: [http://www.viswaguru.com Viswamandiram] Located to the South-West of the City near Chowdavaram (10 miles), easily accessible using the GNT-Chennai Express way (NH5). This is the place of Sri Viswayogi Viswamji and the Universal Integration Pillar. It is an envisioned symbol of oneness of humanity. Also located here is the VIMS/Viswayogi Institute of Medical Sciences (Mother and Child Care Hospital).
* A few of the famous temples and other shrines- Temple of Chaturmukha Brahma Lingeswaralayam located 8 miles to the center city of Guntur. It is one of rare temples of India built for Lord Brahma. - Sri Anjaneya Swamy Temple at Ponnuru (which has large idols) and Kothapet.- Sri Bhavanarayanaswamy temples at Bapatla and Ponnuru.- Temple at Ramalingeswara Agraharam. It has old inscriptions dating to 1000 years ago.- Kakani Malleswara Swamy temple at Pedda Kakani built during the era of Krishnadevaraya.- Hinkar Tirtha (Jain Temple, Mangalagiri), VaikuntaPuram(Tenali).- Sri Kali Gardens at Namburu.

Churches- St. Matthew's West Parish, Near Grand Trunk Road- St. Matthew's East Parish, Near Old Bus Stand- St. Matthew's North Parish, Brodipet- Telugu Baptist Church, Nagarampalem- St. Joseph's Church, Opposite A.C.College- Church of South India, Opposite A.C.College- Laymen's Evangelical Fellowship,Opp ILTD, Grand Trunk Road,Guntur.- Laymen's Evangelical Fellowship,Court Road,opp Municipal office, Ponnur

Mosques- Hazrat Kale Mastan Shah Walia Dargah (to be Modelled like Ajmer Dargah [cite web|url=http://newindpress.com/NewsItems.asp?ID=IEA20070727015014&Page=A&Title=Southern+News+-+Andhra+Pradesh&Topic=0&|title= ‘Ajmer Dargah’ in Guntur|work=Online edition of the New IndPress|accessdate=2007-08-08] )- Masjid - e - Markaz, Near Pottur-pet, Old city- Masjid - e - Barah Imam, Near Brahma Nanda Reddy Stadium, Old City- Masjid - e - Firdouse, Alinagar, Old city- Masjid - e - Azad Nagar, Old City- Masjid - e - Madeena, Small Market, Old City- Masjid - e - AL Aksa, New City- Masjid - e - BIG Mosque, Constructed by Aurangazeb, Old City- Masjid - e - EK Minar, near Big Market

References

External links

* [http://www.discoverap.com DiscoverAP] *
* http://www.hinduonnet.com/fline/fl2118/stories/20040910005512000.htm