To visit a sacred town is a great feeling, but to visit it at festival time is a big opportunity. So, if you want to visit Varanasi, ensure you’re there when they celebrate the Ganga Dussehra Festival. It is celebrated twice a year, in summer and winter. However, if that’s not possible and you want to get a good and quick view of this fascinating city, head over at any time of the year and take in all its spiritual practices. One of the top things to see in Varanasi should always be the Ganga Aarti. In fact, you should include a Ganga Aarti in Varanasi Tour, or your visit to this holy city will be incomplete. Legend of Ganga Aarti There are two myths associated with this practice: One, the river is a creation of Lord Brahma to especially welcome Lord Shiva. And, two: During Dasa- Aswamedha Yajna, Lord Brahma sacrificed 10 horses. At the time, aarti descended from the Vedic notion of fire rituals. Significance of Ganga Aarti The reason this aarti is performed is to show gratitude to the divine form of God. This offering to the Ganga as the holiest river in India. Where is Ganga Aarti Performed? This aarti is performed every evening on the banks of the Ganga in Varanasi, Rishikesh and Haridwar. It is a very spiritually uplifting aarti that one must attend at least once in life. Though this ceremony is performed at these three centres, there is a difference in the way it is done at all the places. In Varanasi, it is performed on the banks of the Ganga. This ritual is performed on the banks of the river and one must face the river while performing it. Lamps are lit and swirled around by the priests in a clockwise direction while they chant hymns in praise of the Ganga. The idea behind this is that the lamps take on the deity’s power. After the aarti is completed, people take blessings from the flame of the lamps. They linger there for some time before reluctantly making tracks for their homes or hotels. Where to stay in Varanasi Accommodation in Varanasi depends on how much you want to spend. So, you can stay in hostels, paying guest hotels, budget hotels, luxury hotels, resorts and luxury tents. Take your pick. The amenities, food, view of the city, etc will vary according to your choice. Before you leave Varanasi, ensure that you see a handful of the famous Ghats here. One of them is the Ganga Mahal Ghat in Varanasi, about 190 years old. It lies north of the AssiGhat and is worth a look. To have a truly fulfilling trip to Varanasi, it would help you a lot to tie up with a seasoned travel agency who can make reservations for you. One good agency is Optima Travels, known for customizing itineraries, so let them know exactly what you’re looking for in this trip. There isn’t just a spiritual side to Varanasi; there are other aspects to it too. So, be sure of all that you want to see and do in this city so that your agent can include them in the itinerary. To make swift and firm arrangements for your upcoming trip to Varanasi, speak to optimatravels.com today.
0 Comments
Everyone must visit the holy city of Varanasi. Apart from all the temples and rituals here, there’re other things to see here. This city produces silk textiles and much more, so it’s well worth spending at least a day here. If you have only a day to spend in this city, here are the Top Things to Do in Varanasi:
There are many Ghats here, you might like to see, but you must definitely see the Shivala Ghat, famed for its history and for being the mansion of the King of Nepal.
The temples here are many and ornate. They include the SankatMochan Hanuman temple, Tulsi Manas temple among others.
When to visit The Best Time to Visit Varanasi is the winter months, between November and February. Though it can be quite cold here during the winter, it is still the best time to visit here. If the idea of taking a Full Day Varanasi Tour grabs you, why not make arrangements to spend a fantastic day in Varanasi? To make the most of your time here, you should have all your reservations made by a seasoned travel agency, Optima Travels. This agency has been in the travel business for years and has built up a good reputation for their itineraries, punctuality and much more. In fact, they even go the extra mile for their customers, so you won’t be disappointed. To know more about all they can do for you, reach them today. Incredible Varanasi Varanasi is also known as Kashi considered as the spiritual capital of India, is located in the state of Uttar Pradesh and is one of the seven sacred cities of Hindus. It is one of the oldest and spiritual cities in the world. Varanasi also called Benaras, is well-known for its numerous ghats, narrow streets and Kashi Vishwanath temple. The city is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Millions of pilgrims flock together every year to feel the true aroma of spirituality. It is believed that those who leave their bodies and are cremated here get an instant gateway to liberation. The Ganges here has the power of washing away all of one’s sins once taken a dip. The elixir of life, Ganga, brings purity to the living and salvation to the dead. Feel the Different Energy The Ghats of Varanasi, each known by significant names like Manikarnika, Harishchandra, Dashashwamedh, AssiGhat, TulsiGhat, Chet Singh Ghat, etc., are the most popular pilgrimage centers. There are almost 100 ghats, each with steps leading to the holy Ganga River. Each ghat has a special significance in Hindu mythology, and are primarily used for religious rituals and bathing. Some have crumbled over the years, whereas others have managed to thrive. Varanasi is a city that can delight you no end through its famous temples. The most visited among all is the Kashi Vishwanath temple of Lord Shiva. Others in the list are SankataMochan temple, Kala Bhairav mandir, Maa Annapurna Mandir, and almost every lane possesses a significant temple. The infinite number of Temples in Varanasi has been weaving the link between the ancient and modern times seamlessly. Another exciting activity, the Morning Boat Ride on the Ganges in Varanasi Tour is highly recommended. Picturesque scenery of the rising Sun shining on pilgrims as they are engulfed in bathing and other rituals is breathtaking. Varanasi Ghats are the places where one can witness life and death together. One cannot fully experience the exotic sight of Varanasi without gliding through the waters of the Ganga. Our religious services Optima Travels is the travel agency that provides the best Varanasi Tour Packages and other pilgrimage tours in the city. Once connected with us, you can enjoy the rituals and all other religious activities with full pleasure. When you book our package online, you get the benefit of pure and genuine pandit who can help you in performing all the rituals with the spiritual shlokas and mantras. If you are a true believer of Lord Shiva, then plan the holiest destination for your trip which can be thrilling and overwhelming. We offer services which are budget-friendly with the highly maintained vehicle and skilled drivers. We can make your trip less of tension and more of a dreamy experience. Varanasi is full of surprises awaiting every corner, the more one explores it, and the more one starts valuing it. Catering to the needs of every pilgrim, Varanasi Tourism provides the finest hospitality and a blissful experience. Travelling from Delhi to Varanasi by car is a great idea. Not just because you can leave when you want to and arrive at your will, but also that you can take in all the stunning views along the way. And there’s a lot of that. The distance between Delhi and Varanasi is 820 km and it takes 13.5 hours to reach your destination. If you start from Delhi at 6 am, you can reach Varanasi at 7.30 pm. You will drive along the Yamuna Expressway from New Delhi, a three-hour journey, to reach Vrindavan. Once in Vrindavan, walk around the bustling town, discover all the alleys laced with history. There are a lot of local delicacies to gorge on, so don’t leave Vrindavan without savouring them. After you explore Vrindavan fully, it’s time to continue your Varanasi Tour from Delhi by Car. Your next halt on this route is Lucknow. There’s a lot to explore in Lucknow, right from historical monuments, to food, chikankari clothes and jewellery. To reach Lucknow, you need to take the Agra-Lucknow Expressway. Once you’re done with seeing everything that Lucknow has to offer, head over to Varanasi. Leave Lucknow early in the morning for Varanasi. Get on to the NH30 and NH19. This route may be a little bumpy, but once you leave this behind, you come across some lush green fields. And finally, you enter Varanasi, the spiritual centre of India. Your Varanasi Tour from Delhi comes to an end. Now that you’re in Varanasi, why not explore it to the full? One good way of doing this is to choose one of the many fun Varanasi Tour Packages. You can choose a Temple Tour package which will take you to many of the prominent temples here. Then, there’re also many Ghats of Varanasi to explore here, each with its own history. Alternatively, you can approach a good travel agency here who will draw up a customized itinerary for you to explore Varanasi. One such agency is Optima Travels. This agency has grown over the years to be a leading travel agency—all for its attention to detail; for going the extra mile and for being there for their customers 24x7. Don’t you want to be the customer of such an agency? One who cares for you, plans for you, thinks for you and gives you a memorable holiday. Just ask for the plans relating to Varanasi Tourism. If you have any special needs, we will take care of that too while planning your itinerary. Perhaps, you need a wheelchair or some other kind of help. Don’t worry, we will take care of that too. Meet them once so that you can plan your trip with them. Let them know your expectations, your wishes and they will draw up an itinerary accordingly. And once you have everything planned between you, you stand to gain hefty discounts from them. Travel with Optimatravels.com at any time of the year, whether to Varanasi or to other parts of the country. You’ll have a great time. One of the most sacred spots in India, Varanasi is also a big tourist destination in North India. It holds a very special place in the hearts of the Hindus for the customs and rituals practised there according to Hinduism. Numerous tourists from all over the country and different parts of the world converge here to witness the activities performed on the ghats and in the temples here. Pilgrims here take a dip in the holy waters of the Ganga, believing that by doing this all their earlier sins get washed away. But there’s a lot more to Varanasi than just the religious aspect, in fact Varanasi Tourism is highly developed here. If you spend three days here, you can get a ringside view of the temples and ghats here, but a longer visit can encompass everything else too. 3 Days Varanasi Tour On a 3days Varanasi tour, you can visit the various big and small temples here and listen to their histories. In the evening, attend the aarti performed on the River Ganga where priests chant mantras along with the music of bells, cymbals and drums. You can follow this up with a typical vegetarian lunch at an upscale restaurant here. Next morning, take a sunrise cruise on the Ganga and observe people performing rituals on the water. Stroll down the narrow, cobbled lanes of the Old City and then visit the famous Kashi Vishwanath Temple or the Golden Temple. Later, drive down to Sarnath and visit this site of Buddhism. Check out all the Buddhist monuments and see the spot where the Buddha made his first sermon. Then, visit the SarnathMuseum, MulagandhaKutiVihar, Chaukhandi Stupa and Dhamek Stupa. On Day 3, visit Benaras Hindu University after breakfast. Also, take in other sights like Bharat Kala Bhawan, Durga Temple, New Kashi Vishwnath Temple, Bharat Mata Temple and TulasiManas Temple. How to Get to Varanasi If you like the itinerary given above or would like to extend it, you can consider taking one of the many Varanasi Tour Packages. To choose the right one, you need professional help.A good suggestion in this regard is to go with an experienced travel agent, someone like Optimatravels.com. They are known for their perfect itineraries, custom-designed to suit your tastes and amount of time in Varanasi. Just let them know what your expectations are, your size of group or whether you’re travelling solo, and whether you have any special needs like a wheelchair, etc. They will factor in all these needs and give you a fantastic and all-encompassing itinerary so that you see everything in Varanasi. You might also like to coincide your holiday with a Dev Dipawali Varanasi Tour. This is a great idea because in these days, the city is dressed up for this festival. So, come here at that time, if you don’t mind the crowds. Conclusion You might like to extend your temple tour of Varanasi to include some adventure sports too. Or visit a few neighboring towns. If this interests you, you can speak to Optimatravels.com about it and they will fix up a good itinerary for you. Read also: Enjoy Golden Triangle with Varanasi Tour with Optima Travels to Experience Incredible India A trip to Varanasi can only begin with seeing all the temples and Ghats here, but it can’t end here. After seeing the weavers, walking through its cobbled lanes and eating all its amazing food, there’s still a lot of Varanasi left to be seen. And after you’re done with taking one of the best Varanasi Tour Packages, why not move out of this religious and historic city and experience the neighbouring small towns like Sarnath, Bodh Gaya, Vindhyachal, Chandauli and Mirzapur. It’s a whole new experience to visit small towns and see their jaw-dropping landscapes. If you choose to visit Sarnath, you can take a Sarnath Day Tour from Varanasi. Here, you will see the Buddhist part of the city like the place where Buddha delivered his first sermon. Apart from this, there are other sites to see such as the temples. You can also visit the Ashoka Pillar, Archaeological Museum, Chaukandi Stupa, Thai and Tibetan temples. You can have similar beautiful experiences by visiting other neighbouring towns of Varanasi; depending on the time you have at your disposal and enjoy the best Tourist Attraction in Varanasi. This can be a very spiritually uplifting experience for you. So, if you wish to do it again, you should have a properly organized tour that includes Varanasi and Sarnath. A Sarnath Varanasi Day Tour would be ideal for you, particularly if it is organised by a professional travel agency. A good suggestion is Optmatravels.com, an agency that has years of experience in the field and has won customers by drawing up the right plan and taking care of them till they returned home. Over the years, they have developed a fine reputation for being there for their customers, always offering an all-encompassing itinerary that gives tourists more than just a flavour of this amazing city, Varanasi. By always being there for his customers and going the extra mile for them, this agency has been their travel agency of choice for many years. Even today, they will travel only with him. Another way by which he stands out among a sea of travel agencies is that he customizes itineraries for you. So, by telling him which places you would like to see or skip, the size of your group and your plans after taking a group holiday to Varanasi, he can draw up a customized itinerary for you. He also organizes a guide to take you around and fill you in with dos and don’ts, anecdotes about each monument and tips for shopping and eating out. These are extremely important when you’re in a strange place. If all of this excites you and you want to meet a representative of Optima Travels, all you need to do is to get in touch with them. Once you discuss your travel plans with them and pay for it, they will gift you hefty discounts. What better way to start your holiday than to hold some more cash in your hands? To know more about your upcoming holiday and to discuss with them visit Optimatravels.com today. Rajasthan has always held a grand allure for tourists. Winter is a nice time to visit this princely state when the weather is cool and right to travel. You can take a grand tour of Rajasthan along with Varanasi and enjoy seeing the palaces and forts of this state along with the famous temples of Varanasi. If you take one of the Golden Triangle Tour Packages along with Varanasi, you can have a long and beautiful holiday, exploring historical cities like Delhi, Agra and Jaipur and culminating in the princely state of Rajasthan. Hop on to the Rajasthan with Taj Mahal Khajuraho Varanasi Tour and have the time of your life. Once you visit the world-famous Taj Mahal at Agra, drive into Rajasthan and discover the splendour of Jaipur and Jodhpur. It’s a different world in Rajasthan, as you will soon discover. In Rajasthan, spend some time in Khajuraho, world-famous for its group of temples with exquisite and ornate sculptures. This eighth century Jain temple is dedicated to Lord Mahaveera. After enjoying some moments here, explore the various cities of Rajasthan before going across to Varanasi. Here, you will notice a change in ambience as there is devotion to God in the air. Once you’re here, you can choose a good travel agent like Optima Travels to give you a choice of Varanasi Tour Packages. Choose the one that suits your needs best and set off to explore this temple town. There are many ancient and ornate temples here that you can visit, but ensure that you check out the Kashi Vishwanath Temple. If you sync your holiday here with Dussehra, you can also catch the Ganga Dussehra Festival that people from all over the country converge here to see. You’ll be amazed at the number of people who collect here to pray and light diyas on the banks of the River Ganga in the evening. They also take a dip in the river to purify themselves of all previous sins. After visiting a handful of temples and Ghats, you can set off to have a different kind of fun. Check out the streets of Varanasi for the weavers here and then go shopping for silk, jewellery and artefacts. You can also take a day trip to Sarnath and Ramnagar Fort. If you like this idea of combining a tour of Rajasthan with Varanasi and a Golden Triangle Tour, get in touch with Optima Travels who can give you an itinerary that will give you good value for money and your time. Further, if you inform them in advance about any special needs such as a wheelchair or any such, they will make arrangements for you so that you get the most out of your holiday like the rest of your group. Conclusion To know all that this agency can do for you, give them a call. You’ll be pleasantly surprised to find that they give you a good discount once you book with them. For this and much more, get in touch with them today by a click on optimatravels.com. |
AuthorOptima India Tourism, an inbound India tour operator, is a natural partner of your India tour. Optima India Tourism, a unit of Optima Travels Pvt. Ltd. Archives
November 2023
Categories: Travel & Tours |