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Note: The content in this sandbox was transwikied from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tourism_in_Andhra_Pradesh to Wikivoyages Andhra Pradesh article (English Wikipedia diff page, Wikivoyage diff page), but due to formatting concerns, I userfied the addition to the Andhra Pradesh article to this sandbox page. Northamerica1000 (talk) 00:12, 24 March 2014 (UTC)



Tourism


Andhra Pradesh is the top tourist destination in India. The state has a rich cultural heritage and is known for its rich history, architecture and culture. Andhra Pradesh has a variety of tourist attractions including beaches, hills, wildlife, forests and temples. The weather is mostly tropical. June to September are the monsoon months and travel is not advised during this time. November to January are the optimal times to visit.

Hyderabad
Hyderabad is well developed, and is known for its architecture, culture and history. It is also home to the second largest film industry in India, the Cinema of Andhra Pradesh. The primary languages in Hyderabad are Telugu, Urdu and Hindi. Hyderabadi cuisine is a blend of heavy Mughal influences, traditional Andhra and Telangana cuisine. A number of restaurants have come up that serve a variety of cuisines. The more popular Hyderabadi restaurants in the Twin Cities are the Spice King, Madina, Bawarchi, Cafe Bahar and the Golden Persis at Paradise Corner in Secunderabad.

Tirupati
The town owes its existence to the sacred temple situated on the Tirumala Hills. Tirumala is the abode of Lord Venkateshwara, (one of the incarnations of Lord Vishnu), located atop Seshachala hills often called as "Yaelu Malai" or "Yaedu Kondalu" (seven hills). The temple of Lord Venkateshwara is the richest Hindu temple and the most visited religious center (of any faith) in the world.

Srikalahasti
Srikalahasti is a town in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on the banks of river Swarnamukhi, a tributary to river Pennar. It is one of the ancient Hindu pilgrimages and the site of a famous Shiva temple with magnificent gopuras, and adjacent to Tirupati, another famous temple town. It is also the house of popular textile painting art called kalamkari.

Rajahmundry
Rajahmundry or Rajamahendri (Telugu: రాజమండ్రి or రాజమహేంద్రి) is the biggest city of the East & West Godavari districts and first municipal corporation in the Godavari district's of Andhra Pradesh state in India. Poet Nannayya gave Telugu script here which made it a language. It is the birthplace of poet Nannayya, who is also called the first poet of Telugu. The City is known as the Cultural Capital of Andhra Pradesh, Rajahmundry is noted for its versatile Vedic culture and intellect. It is one of the oldest cities of India. It is the seventh most populous city in Andhra Pradesh. City population is around 1 million, but census shows 413,616 (Census 2011). In Madras Presidency, The district of Rajahmundry was created in 1823. The Rajahmundry district was reorganized in 1859 into two - the Godavari and Krishna districts. During British rule, Rajahmundry was the headquarters of Godavari district. Godavari district was further bifurcated into East and West Godavari districts in 1925. It is situated 400 kilometres (249 mi) east of the state capital, Hyderabad, on the banks of the River Godavari. It is the birth city of Andhra Pradesh. This is probably due to the fact that the Telugu language originated here. The biggest attraction in Rajahmundry is the river Godavari. The three bridges over the river are the longest in South India. Numerous ghats and parks are situated along the river's banks as well. Dowleswaram Barrage near Rajahmundry on River Godavari.

Major Attractions:
 * 1) Pattiseema, Papikondalu and Bhadrachalam (By Boat from Rajahmundry in River Godavari)
 * 2) Temples - Markandeyaswamy Temple, Satyanarayana Swamy Temple Annavaram (70 km), Bheemeswara Swamy Temple (60 km)
 * 3) Maredumilli - Dense Forest (70 km)
 * 4) Bridges - Dowleswaram Barriage, Bridges (Road cum Rail) and Arch Bridge, Century Old Rail Bridge on river Godavari.
 * 5) Also, Several Temples, Ghats on banks of Godavari and historic places in and around the city

Basar
This is an ancient temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswathi. The temple at Basar is also the abode of Goddess Lakshmi and Kali. The current structure dates back to the Chalukya period.

This temple has no exquisite carvings like other temples. Walking ahead a few steps, one enters the sanctum sanctorum - a feeling better experienced than described. A feeling of peace, brightness and unlimited joy engulfs one. The presiding deity, 'Gnana Saraswathi Devi', is in a seated position with a 'Veena' in hand and bedecked with turmeric. Adjacent is the shrine of Goddess Maha Lakshmi and a little distance away, on the eastern side is the Maha Kali temple. Basar is a village with wonderful gardens surrounded by the temple premises amidst the dry and barren patches of the north Telangana region, 30-km from Nizamabad. Basar is situated on the banks of River Godavari. It is located at a distance of about 220-km by road and 190-km by rail from Hyderabad.

Machilipatnam
Machilipatnam is a city with a significant history of foreign conquests, business and trade. The relics of Bandar Kota (Machilipatnam Fort) can be visited. The old light house is still standing. The town has existed since the 3rd century BCE (Satavahana period) when, according to Ptolemy, it was known as Maisolos. The Periplus of the Erythraean Sea calls it Masalia in the 1st century BCE.[2] The port is located on the southeastern, or Coromandel Coast, of India. Situated in the mouth of the River Krishna on the Bay of Bengal, the Masula port saw flourishing sea trade. The naming of the eastern gate of Charminar as Machili-Kaman (literally meaning "gate of fish", in this case specifically meaning a gate to the fishing town of Machilipatnam) testifies the symbiotic relationship between port and the capital. The East India Company built its first factory in India in Masulipatnam. It was a 17th-century port for French, British and Dutch trade. The port has a medium-size fishing harbour which can accommodate 350 fishing vessels and an active carpet-weaving industry.

The beaches in Machilipatnam are long, broad, pristine, and with pale blonde sands. The beach near in Manginapudi near Machilipatnam is the most popular beach. Apart from Manginapudi beach, Palletummalapalem is a beach side fishing hamlet 11 kilometres (6.8 mi) from Machilipatnam; it is known for its scenic beauty and also as a historic port city. Kuchipudi, a popular Indian Classical Dance form originated at Kuchipudi, 25 kilometres from Machilipatnam. The dance form is in practice in Machilipatnam.

Panduranga Swamy Temple, Machilipatnam|Panduranga Swamy Temple at Chilakalapudi near the city, is a famous pilgrimage site. It is a temple of Lord Vishnu, said to be similar to the temple at Pandaripur.

Sivaganga Temple is a historical temple maintained by Challapalli jameendars rather than the Government. It is one of the oldest temples in the area. Located on the Avanigadda road, it attracts tourists and devotees all through the year. On Shivaratri major celebrations are carried out by the temple trustees.

Visakhapatnam
Visakhapatnam (also known as Vizag and Waltair) is the second largest city in Andhra Pradesh and is located on the eastern shore of India in the state of Andhra Pradesh, nestled among the hills of the Eastern Ghats and facing the Bay of Bengal to the east. Tourists are attracted by its unspoilt beaches, nearby scenic Araku Valley and Borra caves, the 11th-century Simhachalam temple and ancient Buddhist sites like Totlakonda & Bavikonda spread across the area. The city boasts a submarine museum, the first of its kind in South Asia, at Rama Krishna Beach. Vizag is well connected with daily flights from Hyderabad, Chennai, Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Tirupati, and Bhopal. There are bus services to Hyderabad, Vijaywada and Orissa. The Beach road from East point colony to Coastal battery is studded with parks, statues, etc., is a favorite evening gathering point. Along the road can be found India's only submarine museum, INS Kursura, as well as the Visakha museum and Matsyadarsini (an aquarium). VUDA park, at the beginning of the Beach Road, has a musical fountain, and entertainment for children. It has a roller skating ground, which has served as the venue for several national and international skating competitions.

Rushikonda beach, 6 km away from Vizag city, has become a favorite evening spot. Bhimili-Vizag beach Road, 30 km in length offers one of the best views of the sea, sand, hills and greenery. Many parks are constructed adjacent to this road. Tenneti park beach park is a park constructed on the cliff of Kailashagiri. There are several points from which the beautiful rocky beach down beneath can be seen. Many Telugu, Tamil and Hindi movies were filmed here.

Visakhapatnam is predominantly a Telugu speaking city. The Telugu spoken by the middle classes is a standard dialect, while a significant population who have settled down in the city from the adjoining villages and neighbouring districts of East Godavari, Vizianagaram and Srikakulam speak Uttarandhra (North Coastal) Mandalikam dialects. Historians believe that centuries ago, when Uttarandhra was part of the KalingaEmpire, Buddhist missionaries and merchants might have taken Telugu (Derived from Brahmi script) script to Southeast Asia from the shores of Uttarandhra where it parented into the scripts of Mon, Burmese, Thai, Khmer, Siam, Javanese and Balinese languages and even Sinhala of Sri Lanka. Their similarities to Telugu script can be discerned even today. Visakhapatnam is home to a small Oriya, Maharashtrians, Bengali and Malayalee communities; their migration is of recent origin. Due to the Naval presence and high concentration of public sector industries, Visakhapatnam has a significant Hindi speaking population.

Visakhapatnam is also known as the City Of Destiny. It is also one of the fast-developing cities in the India and among the top 20 cities in the world. Vizag is also known for it scenic beauty and is also considered as the tourism capital of our state. Visakhapatnam serves as the gateway for waterways for the state of Andhra Pradesh. Visakhapatnam has one of the country's largest ports and its oldest shipyard. It has the only natural harbour on the eastern coast of India. The Visakhapatnam port is one of the busiest ports in India. The shipbuilding yard situated at Visakhapatnam is the largest in India.

Vizag is by road, rail and air to all the major cities in the country.



Vijayawada
Vijayawada (also known as Bezawada) is the third largest city in Andhra Pradesh and is located on the banks of the Krishna River bounded by the Indrakeeladri Hills on the west and the budameru stream on the north. Besides being an important religious centre for Hindus, Buddhists and Christians, Vijayawada is also a centre of Andhra culture.

Kanaka Durga Temple, the second largest temple in Andhra Pradesh is located here. Also worth seeing are Prakasam Barrage, Kondapalli Fort, Bhavani Island, Victoria Museum, Undavalli Caves, Namburu, Mangalagiri and Amaravati. Also worth visiting is "Haailand", about 15 km from Vijayawada, which is a theme park. Ropeway to Indrakeeladri and Shilparamam are the main projects that are going to come up.

Gunadala Matha Shrine - One of the second largest Christian pilgrim destinations in India located in Vijayawada City. Thousands of people visit Gunadala Matha throughout the year as they firmly believe in the merciful heart of the Blessed Mother Lady of Lourdes and are convinced of her Motherly blessings. Devotees, not only from all corners of Andhra Pradesh, but from the neighbouring states of Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka visit the shrine during the festival in February, every year.

With a population of over a million and a floating population of over 80 lakhs in a month, lot of activity is expected to happen in the near future. Mall and Multiplex Culture is also picking up fast in Vijayawada with big names like Inox, PVR and Adlabs setting up their screens. Star hotels like Taj are also eying the city as a potential market.

State run city buses, motor driven auto rickshaws and manual driven cycle rickshaws are the major means of transport in Vijayawada. The domestic airport located at Gannavaram, is about 20 km from the city and connects Vijayawada to Hyderabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Mumbai, Delhi and Jaipur by air.

Warangal
Warangal is the fourth-largest city in Andhra Pradesh and is known for important educational institutions like Kakatiya Medical College and National Institute of Technology (NIT), NIT grew into an important national level institute for engineering studies. Warangal NIT is one of the best Institutes among all the NIT's in India. From 1959 onwards, this institute has successfully produced innumerable global citizens and scientists. Ex President of India, Sri Abdul Kalam visits this institute almost every year.

Warangal was the capital of a Hindu Shaivaite kingdom ruled by the Kakatiya dynasty from the 12th to the 14th centuries. The old name of this newly formed city is Orugallu. Oru means one and Kallu means stone. The Ancient name was Andhra Nagaram please refer Andhra Maha Vishnu temple.

Kakatiya sculpture at WarangalLiterary evidence shows that long before Satavahanas, a legendary king named Āndhra Viṣhṇu ruled in and around the Diviseema region of Andhra state. After his reign, people came to believe that he had an amsa of the divine savior Lord Maha Vishnu himself. Perhaps in his honor, people dedicated a new temple now located at Srikākuḷam, Krishna District. The lord of the temple is known as Āndhra Viṣhṇu or Srikākuḷāndhra Viṣhṇu. The Kakatiyas left many monuments, including an impressive fortress, four massive stone gateways, the Swayambhu temple dedicated to Shiva, and the Ramappa temple situated near Ramappa Lake. The cultural and administrative distinction of the Kakatiyas was mentioned by the famous traveller Marco Polo. Famous or well-known rulers included Ganapathi Deva, Prathapa Rudra, and Rani (queen) Rudrama Devi. After the defeat of Pratapa Rudra, the Musunuri Nayaks united seventy two Nayak chieftains and captured Warangal from Delhi sultanate and ruled for fifty years. Jealousy and mutual rivalry between Nayaks ultimately led to the downfall of Hindus in 1370 A.D. and success of Bahmanis. Bahmani Sultanate later broke up into several smaller sultanates, of which the Golconda sultanate ruled Warangal. The Mughal emperor Aurangzeb conquered Golconda in 1687, and it remained part of the Mughal empire until the southern provinces of the empire split away to become the state of Hyderabad in 1724 which included the Telangana region and some parts of Maharashtra and Karnataka. Hyderabad was annexed to India in 1948, and became an Indian state. In 1956 Hyderabad was partitioned as part of the States Reorganization Act, and Telangana, the Telugu-speaking region of Hyderabad state which includes Warangal, became part of united Andhra Pradesh state.

Major Hindu festivals such as Bathukamma festival, Dasara, Deepavali, Sankranti are celebrated here. Bonalu and Bathukamma festival is very famous here and celebrated by the women and young girls worshipping the goddess for nine days with various flowers. In addition, the district hosts the Sammakka Saralamma Jatara or congregation bi-annually, and approximately 6 million people gather around the small village of Medaram and its adjacent stream/rivulet, Jampanna Vagu, 90 km from Warangal city for over three days. This fair is said to be the largest repeating aggregation of tribal communities in the whole world and commemorates the valiant fight put up by a mother and daughter (Samakka and Sarakka) with the reigning Kakatiya king over an unjust law. This is also the second biggest congregation in Asian continent after Kumbha Mela in India.

Travel

 * Air: There is an airstrip at Mamnoor on the south-eastern outskirts. The nearest international air port is located at Hyderabad, 150 km away.
 * Rail: Warangal is well connected to all the major cities in India by rail. Kazipet is about 13 km from Warangal and is a major railway junction, which also includes a diesel-electric locomotive facility. Kazipet is also known as the Gateway to North India.
 * Road: Long-distance deluxe buses run from Warangal to Bangalore, Madras, Hyderabad, Tirupathi, Anantapur, and Hubli; and standard express buses to Guntur via Vijaywada, Cherial, Jangaon, Kodad, Karimnagar, Nizamabad, Adilabad, Suryapet, Palampet, Jagtial, Khammam, Bhadrachalam, and Basara.

Nellore
Nellore was previously named Simhapuri. Sri penchala lakshmi narasimha swamy from penchalakona, rapur dist is a famous place, and in nellore sri talpagiri raganayakaswamy and sri rajajarajaswary temples are there. Nellore has some fantastic tourist spots which have immensely contributed to the tourism potential of the district. The region has a combination of religion, nature and history in its expanse of tourism. Some of the famous temples of the region are Ranganayaka Temple, Jonnawada Kamakshamma temple, Penchalakona, Mahalakshmi temple in Fathekhan Pet, Narasimhskonda, Erukalala Parameswari Temple, Barashahid Dargha, Rajarajeswari Temple, Mulasthaneswara Temple (Lord Shiva), Ayyapa Temple, Golagamudi Venkaiah swamy temple, Kasumur Dargha,A.S.Peta Dargha, Adavilo Vinayakudu (Gudur), Ammavari temple in Sulurupeta, Srivenkateswarapalem (Between Bitragunta and kavali), Someswaralayam (Somasila) and a lot more. Additional tourism attractions include Somasila Dam, Kandaleru Dam, Thalakona water falls, Pulicat Lake and the Nelapattu Bird Sanctuary. Additionally, the Udaygiri fort which is at a distance of 100 kilometers from Nellore stands as a historical testimony of the region.