Mamallapuram

Mamallapuram (மாமல்லபுரம் Māmallapuram), also known as Mahabalipuram, is a tourist town 60 km south of Chennai on the east coast of India, famous for its stone carvings.

Understand
Mamallapuram dates back to the Tamil Pallava dynasty in the 7th-9th century. The structures here, mostly carved straight out of granite, are among the oldest existing examples of Dravidian (South Indian) architecture.

Today's Mamallapuram is purely a tourist town and one of the major attractions around Chennai. The East Coast Road has made it easily accessible - just about an hour from the city. Unfortunately, the entire strip is now a mess of restaurants, resorts, amusement parks, people, discarded plastic and chaotic traffic. At one time you could see the Bay of Bengal almost all the way to M'puram, but now there is so much development that the ocean is glimpsed only as you get close to M'puram.

Mamallapuram itself was getting run down over the last decade with very patchy efforts at keeping the monuments preserved. This has changed in the last few years with the Shore Temple being included in the UNESCO heritage project. The surroundings have been made much nicer, but, there has been a lot of wind and water erosion on the temple carvings with many of them having undergone loss of detail over the years. Sort of too little, too late, but still, better than nothing.

Be prepared to fight your way through clutches of beggars, guides, snakes charmers and so on, all of which are an essential part of the experience and not to be frowned upon. The whole thing would be bland without them. A nuisance, but harmless.

By bus
Buses arrive in the centre of town from CMBT and Tiruvanmiyur in Chennai and from Kanchipuram. There are direct buses from CMBT, but you can take any bus that has ECR written on the front. The ECR bus, which can be picked up at Tiruvanmiur, is the most economical way of getting to Mamallapuram from Chennai, costing less than ₹40 (1 hour). The ECR bus will drop you about 2 kilometres outside of town, and rickshaws will be outside waiting (can be bargained down to ₹30). You can also catch the ECR bus from Pondicherry for ₹65 (2 hours).

To get to the ECR from Triplicane, walk to Kamarajar Promenade running parallel with the beach. Walk to the beach side of the road and head to the nearest bus stop. Take bus SP19 or SP19x to Tiruvanmiyur (₹15). The ECR bus stop is 30 meters before the Tiruvanmiur stop.

By taxi
A taxi from Chennai will cost ₹600-₹800 one-way ($15–20) though the rates are likely to be higher based on the season, cab operator. Visitors outside Chennai, even Indian nationals and most definitely from Overseas are likely to be asked for higher rates. To or from the airport will cost ₹800-₹1,200 and will take one hour off peak and 1 1/2 hours peak time. Please negotiate the cab fares at the beginning of the journey and remain firm if the operator asks for more.

By car
The drive from Chennai on the East Coast Road is, by Indian standards, a wonderful experience: it is one of the few toll roads in India and maintained well. That said, it's still only one lane per direction with no divider, so overtaking tends to be hair-raising and high-speed head-on collisions are all too common. The road runs parallel to the coast of Bay of Bengal making it a scenic driveway, although you will not see the sea until the last few miles. The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami wreaked havoc around here, so you will see shanty-towns built for affected fishermen and much of the greenery has been swept away.

Get around
It is easy to get around the town on foot, though bike rental is also available. It is relatively a small city and all points of interest are close to each other. Paid parking areas are available near the Shore Temple and the Five Rathas.

You can also hire a cab (non-a/c) for about ₹150 for 2 1/2 hours, during which you will be taken to all the major tourists spots in Mamallapuram.

See
For visiting all three sites the Shore Temple, cave temples and the Five Rathas you need to buy entry tickets. One can buy tickets online at https://asi.payumoney.com/quick/mam or by scanning the QR Code displayed at entry gates of tourist places and then paying through mobile wallets. The ticket counter closes at 5:30PM and entry to the attractions ends at 6PM. A combined entrance ticket to the Shore Temple and the Five Rathas costs ₹600 for foreigners and ₹35 for Indian citizens. Local guides, who speak multiple languages, are available for around ₹600 for a tour of all main attractions.

Rath Temples
These temples are carved out of a rock rather than carved into a rock (Cave temples).

Cave Temples
The cave temples are carved into a rock.

Structural temples
The structural (free-standing) temples at Mamallapuram have been built with cut stones as building blocks, rather than carved into a rock (cave temples) or out of a rock (ratha temples).

Rock reliefs
Reliefs are carved on rocks or boulders.

Lighthouse
Note: Old and new light houses provide views across the area to the sea. There are several unfinished temples nearby, and the December 2004 tsunami exposed more previously submerged temples.

Do

 * Bike trips around Tamil Nadu's countryside can be organised by travel agencies in the town.
 * Chill on the sandy beach
 * Surf, a restaurant at the entrance of the town, provides the following facilities:
 * Boat rides to in the Bay of Bengal with lifeguards.
 * Fishing trips to the sea.
 * Turtle walk at the sea shore.
 * Trekking  to a hill nearby.
 * The price for the above activities are slightly more than they should be. For example, a boat ride with lifeguards for 45 minutes is ₹280/- per head.
 * Several yoga camps are organised on a daily basis.
 * Solaman at Sakthi Yoga offers 1½ hour drop-in classes for ₹150 per person. Classes are offered three times a day: 7AM, 9AM and 4PM.
 * Mamallapuram is known for its orphanages which often invite tourists to visit them (and donate). Many of them are affiliated to religious missions. So please be aware of this and inquire before donating.

Learn
Local sculptors in the main street leading to the sea (after the Tina Shell View Lodge) teach stone carving. You will learn how to sculpt a simple locket, and the longer you stay, the more complicated things you'll be able to do. For a simple locket at least 5 hours are needed. For ₹100 a day you can learn/work as long as you like everyday (the result is yours of course).

Buy
Stone sculptures made by local artists. You can see them on their work (and also learn it yourself, see ). You can save a lot of money if you buy sculptures in small side roads and not in the main road.

Eat


There are lots of food stands in the centre serving large portions for next-to-nothing prices. Look specifically at the road leading down the Shore Temple from the bus stop, early in the morning at breakfast time.

Mamallapuram is famous for its coconuts, which are available from hawkers around all major sites.

Clustered around Othavadai Street and Othavadai Cross are restaurants catering primarily to tourists, which serve generally undistinguished Western food. Your best bet is often fresh grilled fish (which you can usually select yourself) served with french fries or salad.













Drink
Many restaurants serve beer though it may not be on the menu, usually Kingfisher but sometimes 'Bullet' (slightly higher alcohol content). Prices of beer are generally ₹130-150 (premium-strong) per bottle at cost and sold at ₹250 (if you ask) in restaurants.

No government-run TASMAC wine shop is available in town; to buy alcohol you must drive around 2 km out from Mamallapuram to the TASMAC Elite near the ECR road junction of Mahabalipuram town.

Mid-range




Stay safe
India's first nuclear reactor and much of its nuclear research program is just down the beach in Kalpakkam. Don't wander into restricted areas.

Most restaurants close by 11PM and the town is basically dead after that. Loitering around very late at night is not too safe.

Be careful when getting into the sea. There can be sudden dips and the sea often gets very rough and unsafe.

Nearby

 * The Eagle Temple &mdash; a short bus ride from Mamallupuram brings you to the spectacular Eagle Temple. Take it easy on the climb up, as it's a long way, but the views are worth it.
 * Thirukalukundram &mdash; This town is home to the famous Hindu Vedagiriswarar temple complex (Eagle temple).

Go next

 * Covelong and Muttukadu
 * Pondicherry (Puducherry) &mdash; Mamallapuram is a good stopover if you are making a trip from Chennai to Pondicherry by road.