VISHAKHAPATNAM
At a distance of 602 km from Hyderabad, 355 km from Vijayawada, 168 km from Kakinada, 203 km from Rajahmundry and 444 km from Bhubaneswar, Visakhapatnam (also called Vizag) is a coastal & port city in the state of Andhra Pradesh, located on the shores of Bay of Bengal. It is the headquarters of Visakhapatnam district and is also base for Eastern Naval Command of the Indian Navy.
The city of Vizag, as Visakhapatnam is popularly called, derives its name from the Hindu God of valour, Visakha. The city is located beautifully among the hills of the Eastern Ghats with facing towards the Bay of Bengal. According to the Archaeological records, Visakhapatnam was built by Kulotunga Chola between the 11th and 12th centuries AD.
The religious Hindu texts mention that the region of Visakhapatnam in the 5th century BC was part of the vast Kalinga territory which extended up to River Godavari. The relics found in the area also prove the existence of a Buddhist empire in the region. Kalinga later lost the territory to King Ashoka in the bloodiest battle of the time which prompted him to embrace Buddhism. The city was also under the rulers of Chalukya, Pallava,Vengi, Chola and the Gajapathi dynasty. The Mughals ruled this area under the Hyderabad Nizam in the late 15th and early 16th century. The port of Vizag played a very crucial role for the East India Company during the rule of the British.
Visakhapatnam is the largest city of Andhra Pradesh with around 2 million population and spread over 550 sq. km. It is an industrial city and one of the major tourist destinations in the state of Andhra Pradesh. The city is home to several state owned heavy industries; one of the most advanced steel plants and one of the country's largest ports & shipyard are located here. It is the only natural harbor on the eastern coast of India.
The city is home for several beaches along the Bay of Bengal coast, scenic hills, valleys and caves. Rushikonda Beach, Ramakrishna Mission Beach, Yarada Beach, Submarine Museum, Lighthouse, Kailasagiri hill park, Venkateswara Temple, VUDA Park and Bheemili Beach are important tourist places. Simhachalam, ISKON temple, Araku Valley, Anantagiri Hills and Borra Caves are the nearby attractions to Vizag.
Vizag airport is the nearest airport, which is about 10 km from the city. It is well connected by flights with Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, Mumbai, Bhubaneswar and Andaman Islands. Visakhapatnam is situated on the Kolkata-Chennai main railway line and is connected to the cities like Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mysore, Puri, Kanyakumari, Kollam, Tirupati, Howrah, Ahmedabad, Mangalore, Jamshedpur, Bhubaneswar, Guwahati, Trichy, Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jodhpur, Pondicherry, Goa and New Delhi. Vizag is well connected by bus with Hyderabad, Vizianagaram, Vijayawada, Bangalore and Chennai.
The best time to visit Vizag is from November to February. Usually it takes 2-3 days to visit all the places in and around Vizag.
