Topic: Spectacular Indian Destinations you never knew existed (Read 1077 times)

Another a very alluring place to visit is the Kailasanath Temple in Ellora.
There are 33 more ancient caves, monasteries and temples in the region collectively known as the Ellora caves which is a part of the collection of ancient megalithic, monolithic structures and caves (and cave paintings) along with those in Ajanta which are world famous for being one of the earliest signs of human appreciation of art and ingenuity.

Compared to the rest of the much older structures in this collection which is collectively known as 'Ajanta and Ellora Caves"; the Kailashnath temple or simply Kailash Temple is a relative teenager being just 1200 years old.

But once you are in the premises of this megalith, you really begin to truly appreciate the 20+ years of hard work that those ancient people put into carving out this place by chiseling out an estimated amount of 400000 tons of rock.

Next up, is a really popular tourist attraction rather than a hidden gem, Adalaj a hindu water building in the village of Adalaj close to the city of Ahmedabad.
Heard of one of those fantasy stories about some princely royal Indian king and his palace right? This building; not royalty though; fits that image of a royal building perfectly, it's architectural beauty is simply marvelous.

(Pic by
Sunil Krishnan)

One place that I would like to talk about with some time and thought put to it is The Majuli Islands of Assam.

Why this place is unique or famous?

For starters, this is one of the planet's largest fresh water river islands. Also one of the poorest. For people living here it's like living in a timecapsule isolated from the hub bub of the rest of the world.



The scenery alone would mesmerize you. Then you have the charming beauty of the people themselves.



Getting to and from the island also presents with a unique set of challenges. The river is not very deep at places so really large vessels cannot tread these waters, so the preferred way of traveling to the island and back is served by these native motorised ferry services.



Best time to visit this place is during the annual Majuli festival in the month of November.
If you are spiritual, or like traditional folk music and dance, if you are just a Hinduism fanatic or even if you are none of these and just would like to experience the magic of this place in it's full glory then this festival IS the place for you to be.



Remember that charm I was talking about these people?



Why you should visit Majuli at the earliest chance you get?
Blame it on the pollution / population / global warming, it is true that this place is being slowly eroded away, polluted and populated beyond what this place can sustain. This place would disappear soon and only be available on the history pages of some book that you may never open, so come, live and experience the scenic beauty of this dying place and if you want to save it.. try turning your engines off the next time you're stuck in the traffic.

This is really a well hidden place in India, it is quite remote as the only way to access this place is by bus. Introducing Lonar, Maharashtra.

A salt water lake in a 5000 year old meteorite impact crater.

Well someone asked me to post about south Indian temples but I'll first about these south Indian hidden jewels. This here is Matheran South India's grad canyon.

Normally I'd prefer to not include hotels but this one is special. The Rajmahal Palace (King's Home palace) in Jaipur, Rajasthan has a breathtaking scenery with the perfect touch of royalty.

If you are a Buddhism freak or a hiking freak, The Ki Monastry of Himachal Pradesh is a must visit destination. You cant reach here easily but the hike is worth it. It is also a key political meeting place for the Tibetian freedom revolution, no one will admit it through.No this isnt where Dalai Lama stays.

No matter what gets your goat this is one hell of a surreal place.

Munnar in the Idukki district of Kerela. You can hire an elephant safari through the tea plantation hills and the jungles.

You have heard of the modern chinese ghost city of Inner Mongolia, but have you heard of the ancient Ghost City of Bhangarh, Rajasthan ?

There are many legends about this place ranging from a clasic romeo juliet tale to a defiled magician's curse, but by any and all accounts it is certain that this city was abandoned as soon as it was built in the 17th century.

This isnt Switzerland but it IS called the Mini Switzerland, this is Khajjiar, a tiny piece of heaven or hill station; what have you; in the Chamba district of Himachal Pradesh. This year the National Institute of Technology will conduct the 4th International Conference on Eco-friendly Computing and Communication Systems (ICECCS) between 7 to 8 December 2015.

Lake Tsongmo in the state of Sikkim is tucked in between India's 3 neighboring countries; Bhutan, Nepal and China. Apart from the occasional shrieks of mountain goats being hunted by the illusive snow leopard and the distant footsteps of paroling Indian and Chinese military this place is pretty much scenic & peaceful.

Sandakphu, Darjeeling This one is rather close to my home, it only takes around a day's journey by train from where I reside to reach Darjeeling. For those who havent heard of Sandakphu; it is the 7th highest peak in India.

But these days Rishikesh is not famous for it's religious sites & aspects but rather a very western sport.

Rishikesh, the name of this place literally means 'hairs of a rishi (yogic saint)"

This is the famous Lakshman Jhula - An iron suspension bridge, you can actually sleep overnight on it. (Dont try it if you are not a local)

Pangong Lake, another pristine ecosystem from Ladakh

Barren Islands Andaman

The only active volcano of India. This beautiful place is so remote and unvisited that no high quality pictures exist online.

This volcano is a part of a remote East Indian Islands which were once captured by the Japanese in WW2. Few of these islands are home to some of Earth's most unspoiled tribes. The Sentinels one such tribe violently opposes outside world interaction. They have even killed people who tried to contact them, it is now a law to NOT disturb these tribesmen.





The vicious Indian Sentinelese

Cherapunji and Mizoram
Part of a forgotten part of our nation. The Japanese tried to invade us through these regions back in WW2.

Mawsmai Falls


Nohkalikai Falls


A Mizoramese Town

Ladakh & Leh (respectively)

This is a legendary tourist destination in the northern part of India / Kashmir. Yes Kashmir belongs to India.

This is not photoshop, just our Ladakh..


This is the famous Maitreya Buddha of Leh.

Coral Reef, Lakshadweep

Nothing as grand as the one in Australia but yeah we have our diamond in the rough here, this is one of those hidden gems that most Eastern Indians dont know exists.