Guntur

Guntur is a major city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, close to the state capital Amaravati, West of Bay of Bengal. In ancient times, the city was referred as "Garthapuri". Its estimated population is around 700,000.

Climate
It's a humid climate, with hot summers and mild winters.

By plane
The nearest airport is in Vijayawada, which takes about two hours to reach by bus.

By train
There are two railway stations serving the city, namely and. The former is reserved for long-distance trains while the latter is reserved for passenger and local trains.

Guntur has long-distance service from many cities, including Hyderabad, Chennai, Bangalore, Kochi, Howrah, Puri, Visakhapatnam, Lucknow, Delhi, Jammu and Tirupati. See the Indian Railway site for detailed schedule and pricing information. It's also possible to travel to nearby Vijayawada, which is connected to even more destinations, and change to a local train for the last leg. Local trains are plentiful and connect Guntur, Vijayawada, Tenali and numerous smaller towns in between.

By bus
Local city buses are run by state owned APSRTC and also private City buses are also there. They cover not only the entire city region, but also the suburban and near by rural areas with a bit low frequency.
 * Deluxe buses travel to longer distances with in the state as well outside the state, for example to Hyderabad and Bangalore.
 * Private buses -- many private buses travel across the region covering both center city, suburban and rural areas. But the draw back of the private buses is that they don't maintain good schedules.
 * Parking in the city is improving. It may be easy to park two wheelers, but finding parking for Cars bit harder. Generally parking is provided by the city government as well as the business owners.

By two-wheeler
Motorbiking or cycling in downtown and busy areas can often be quicker than taking the auto-rickshaw or a taxi.

City centre
Guntur is known for its modest city centre, buisness district and residential areas. To name a few, Center of Brodipet and Arundelpet,, , , Outer Ring Road, and. is one of the famous residential areas. is like the Central Park for Guntur City. Located on the eastern part of the city, it is one of the man-made parks located in Guntur. Managed by the GMC and UDA together.
 * (also known as Prakasam Barrage) is in the northeastern part of Guntur, located around 29 km (18 mi) from the Guntur City on the Krishna River connecting Guntur and Krishna Districts. On the other side of the River Krishna is Vijayawada (aka Bezawada) which is like a twin city to Guntur. Together the two/twin cities provide major medical, educational facilities in the state. This region is also a major transportation hub in the country. There is a future plan to make 'Greater Guntur' and twin cities comprising this area.

Spiritual

 * Viswa Nagar. southwest of the City near Chowdavaram (10 miles/16 km), 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).

Famous temples and other shrines

 * Temple of Chaturmukha Brahma Lingeswaralayam 8 miles (13 km) 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 (built at the time of Shri Krishna Deva Raya) 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.
 * Sri Venkateswara Swamy Temple (Anantavaram) 32 km from Guntur and 10 km from Amaravathi.

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, Opposite ILTD, Grand Trunk Road. Peter Paul Mobile: 9394111519

Mosques

 * 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, Big Market, Guntur, Masjid-e-Mohammad, 5/7 brodipet and Masjid_e_Athiqur Rahaman at Jute Mill are good mosques with nice architecture.

Do

 * Visit Guntur mirch (red chilly) yard, which is the biggest in Asia.

Eat


2. Syed Babu Hotel ( Anjuman E Islamia Complex. Opp: Lalapet Police Station) is the oldest hotel for over 50 years serving authentic Guntur Biryani. Other dishes served are Kichidi, Paya and Kebab. Its worth a visit.

Guntur has three star hotels like Vajram Residency, Sindhuri, and Vijaya Krishna International. For biryani you can visit Hyderabadi house.

For grocery shopping, one can go to the super markets like Triveni supermarket, Reliance Fresh. Moreover, Spencers and Subhiksha are famous for grocery shopping. Apart from these supermarkets, the Guntur vegetable market is one of the biggest in Andhra Pradesh.

Sleep
There are many three-star hotels in Guntur like Grand Nagarjuna, Sindhuri,Nakshatra.

Cope

 * Hospitals - As Guntur is a district headquarters, it has a number of good hospitals including Amaravathi Nedical Research Center, Sankar Eye Hospital and Bommidala Cancer Center.

Go next

 * Bhuvanagiri Fort
 * Hyderabad
 * Tirupati
 * Vijayawada
 * Tenali
 * Visakhapatnam
 * Warangal