Madurai,
the cultural capital and second largest city of Tamil Nadu is one of the
oldest cities of southern India. Madurai has been a centre of learning and
pilgrimage, for centuries. It is believed that, the divine nectar falling
from Lord Shiva's locks, gave the city its name - Madhurapuri, now known as
Madurai. Known as the temple city, Madurai is situated on the banks of the
River Vaigai. Madurai is also an important pilgrimage center. The 985
beautiful pillared Meenakshi Amman Temple is the major attraction of
Madurai. The city is also renowned for its textile mills, engineering
industries and large university areas.
Sightseeing at Madurai -
Meenakshi Temple : The Meenakshi-Sundareswarar temple has long been
the focus of both Indian and international tourist attraction. It is one of
the most important places of Hindu pilgrimage. The Meenakshi temple boasts
an excellent work of Dravidian architecture, with gopurams (large gateways)
and mandapams (multi-pillared halls) covered from top to bottom in an
abundance of multi-coloured images of gods, goddesses, animals and mythical
figures.
Mariamman Teppakulam : The Vandiyur Mariamman Teppakulam hosts the
annual float festival in January and February. This is one major attraction
in Madurai. This tank has an idol of Vinayaka or Vigneshwara installed on a
platform in the middle.
Tirumalai
Naik Palace : The palace and the temple here is a must visit for the
tourists. The palace of Tirumalai Nayak is about a km from the temple. This
Indo-Saracenic building was built in 1523 and was originally four times as
large as it is today. The palace features the architectural works of the
Nayaks.
Reaching Madurai -
Air : There are daily flights to Madurai from Chennai,
Bangalore,Tiruchi & Coimbatore. Madurai Airport is 10 Kms away from
Madurai City.
Rail : Madurai is an important railway junction of the Southern
Railway and is directly connected to Chennai and Tirunelveli. Madurai is on
the Madurai-Tiruchirappalli-Dindigul-Quilon line. The Vaigai Express, which
is a super-fast day train between Chennai Egmore and Madurai takes 7 hours
for the 495kms.
Road : There are excellent roads connecting Madurai to all parts of
South India. Madurai City has 5 Major Bus Stand.
STD/ISD Codes -
If dialing from India -------0452 (number)
If dialing from abroad -------++91-452 (number)
Shopping in Madurai -
Madurai is best-known for its handloom sarees of excellent quality,
brassware, wood carvings. Hajeemoosa is well know store house of fabric &
sarees. Handicrafts can be bought from - Madurai Gallery, Imran Handicrafts
Arts, Cottage Industries Exposition Ltd., Cottage Arts Emporium.
For jewelry you can go to - Thanga Mayil Jewellery, NSB Jewellers.
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 SUGGESTED
TOURS |
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South India :(09
Nights / 10 Days)
Madras / Mahabalipuram / Pondicherry / Tanjore / Trichy / Madurai
/ Kovalam / Mumbai
Churches
of South India Tour :(13 Nights - 14 Days)
Chennai (Madras) - Thanjavur - Velankanni - Madurai -
Trivandrum - Kollam (Quilon) - Kottayam - Cochin - Kozhikode (Calicut) -
Mumbai (Bombay) - Goa
Grand South
India Tours :(20 Nights - 21 Days)
Chennai - Mahabalipuram - Pondicherry - Thanjavur - Trichy - Madurai
- Periyar - Kovalam - Kumarakom - Cochin - Bangalore - Mysore - Hassan -
Halebid - Belur
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Madurai Attractions
