Monday, May 18, 2009

Varanasi, city of temples - Travelogue on Varanasi

Popular amongst tourists, students and an important pilgrimage Varanasi has many hotels available to suit every pocket. Many heritage havelis have been beautifully restored and converted into hotels, grander and more modern hotel options are also available. Similarly the influx of tourists has resulted in multi cuisine restaurants to open near the ghats, the main tourist area.

Particularly worth mentioning is Nirvana, it has exceptionally well done up interiors in dazzling bright hues contrasted with stone floors, it serves great food at affordable prices. Pizzeria Vaatika near Assi ghat serves great coffee and food, the lasagna, spinach pizza, apple pie topped with vanilla ice cream is especially good. A few blocks away, Haifa restaurant has delicious middle-eastern fare like hummus, falafel, pita bread and salad.

By Air :Varanasi is well connected and accessible to major Indian cities and tourist spots. There are daily domestic flights to and from Varanasi to several cities in India. Apart from the state owned Indian Airlines, there are many private air taxi operators that offer their services from Varanasi to other Indian cities. In fact, the daily flights on Delhi-Agra-Khajuraho-Varanasi route are quite popular among the tourists.

By Rail: Since Varanasi lies in the heartland of the North Indian plains, it is well connected to Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and other parts of India. There are two railway stations in Varanasi, the Kashi Junction and the Varanasi Junction (also known as Varanasi Cantonment). Rajdhani Express from Delhi or from Calcutta passes through Varanasi too. One can also catch trains from Mughalsarai, just 10 km south of Varanasi.

By Road: Situated in the flat Ganga plains, Varanasi has a good network of roads. Frequent public and private buses and road transport to all the major towns of Uttar Pradesh and nearby areas.

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