Places to visit in Kolkata

Ask a localite on the best places to visit in any renowned place?  You are bound to receive an answer which you will not be expecting. Ideally someone living in a place is so accustomed to the place that they would not find a specific place interesting even though it might be an attraction to someone who has the eye of an explorer.

Me, being someone who is very close to Kolkata fall in the same category. Nevertheless putting myself at least once in the eye of an explorer have tried to collect all the areas of interest of Kolkata.

Kolkata formerly known as Calcutta was initially a colonial city developed by East India Company and was also the capital of British India. As a result Kolkata has lot of historical structures from the British era which still stand strong.

Vidyasagar Setu, - Second Hooghly Bridge

Some of the prominent are as below:

1. Victoria memorial
2. Cathedral Church
3. Fort William - Entry restricted but there's an incredible view from the ghats of the Hooghly
4. Prinsep Ghat
5. Birla Planetarium
6. Birla Mandir

Kolkata is known for its Art and Culture. There are several places which attracts the culture lovers.
Few of them are below:

1. Academy of Fine Arts
2. The Asiatic Society
3. Indian Museum
4. Nandan - Rabindra Sadan
5. Jorasanko Thakur Bari - Rabindranath Tagore’s ancestral home Sobhabazar Rajbari
6. Marble Palace Kolkata

Kolkata also has a lot of renowned places for worships:

1. Kalighat Temple
2. Thanthania Kalibari
3. Dakhshineshwar Kali Temple
4. Belur Math
5. ISKCON Kolkata, Sri Sri Radha Govind Temple

Other places of attractions include:

1. Mother House
2. Alipore Zoo
3. Eden Gardens
4. Mother Wax Museum

Like any other metro city, Kolkata also has a number of Amusement Parks like:

1. Science City
2. Nicco Park
3. Aquatica
4. Eco Park - Specially the Seven Wonders of the World

If you have some time to spare and if you are book addict, do visit College street or Boi Para. It is the largest second hand book market in the world where you can purchase rare collections at a very cheap price.

There are lot of other places which I might have forgotten but truly it is the City of Joy as it is being termed.

Howrah - The twin city of Kolkata also has places which are worth mentioning and if you are at Kolkata, make sure to visit the below.

1. Howrah Bridge
2. Howrah Station
3. Botanical Garden, Howrah

Howrah Bridge

Trust me, I have not visited all of them till date, but will definitely try to visit them along with my wife and kid once I get some time out of the regular schedule.

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Tajpur - An alternative to Digha

Courtesy Sourav, everyone knows that Dada (Short form 'Da') in bengali means elder brother. But have you heard about the acronym DiPuDa. No, you will not get that in any dictionary. This is common among travel freak Bengali's. Digha, Puri and Darjeeling (acronymed as DiPuDa) are 3 famous and most visited destination among any bengalis for a short break. Digha being the most nearest beach is always an attraction. Due to rush of the mass, it always remains crowded. Loners and peace lovers started searching for other serene beaches nearby.

Tajpur, around 170 kms from Kolkata and about 13 kms from Digha is a serene beach with its unspoiled beauty of nature. This is also the land of red crabs. With few beach huts offering fresh sea food, Tajpur Beach does not have much for the fancy tourists.

Pic Story follows...

Early Morning on the way to Tajpur

The Serene Beach

Mandarmani Beach from Tajpur

The Waves

And Again

Pani Pani Stall in Digha

There are few resorts near to the beach like Sabuj Saikat, Tajpur Beach Resort, Palm Village Resort, Blue Lagoon, Tajpur Nature Camp etc. I stayed in Sabuj Saikat and would recommend this. Nice and peaceful atmosphere with funky LED lighting during the night. They will offer you a food package 500 Rs (Inclusive of Lunch, Evening snacks, Dinner and Breakfast) which will taste as if it is a home cooked food. Evening snacks of Chicken Pakoda and French Fries with Tea in a wonderful lit garden was just awesome and needed for a serene place like Tajpur.

If you are willing to visit this place, it is preferable to bring your own vehicle as this is far from the highway and communication to this place would be difficult in case you want to visit nearby beaches like Digha or Mandarmani.

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Shantiniketan

Shantiniketan is a place which does not need any introduction. Yet for those who need an introduction, Shantiniketan is a small town near Bolpur in the Birbhum district of West Bengal, India, approximately 180 kilometres north of Kolkata (formerly Calcutta). It was made famous by Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, whose vision became what is now a university town (Viswa-Bharati University) that attracts thousands of visitors each year during various times of the year.

Santiniketan is a popular tourist attraction and a weekend destination for people living in Kolkata. Though house of Rabindranath is a place of historical importance, yet there are many other attractions for the tourists.

A Baul performing on the train

One do not need to have special preparation to visit this place. Bolpur is the railway station for Shantiniketan and it takes around two to three hours by train from Kolkata. Trains like Gana Devta Express, Shantiniketan Express, Visvabharati Fast Passenger, Darbhanga Passenger are some of the most convenient trains. It can also be reached by road. Train journey can be made interesting with the Baul songs(folk songs) of the local bauls and home made sweets (which is sold by local hawkers).

Temple at Kenduli

Festivals notable in and around Shantiniketan:
1. Paus Mela - Which starts on the 7th day of the Bengali calender month of Paus
2. Vasanta Utsav - During the time of Holi
3. Rabindra Jayanti - To celebrate the birthday of Rabindranath aTagore
4. Baul Mela - At Kenduli

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Kolkata - The City of Joy

Kolkata one of the 4 metro cities in India is also nicknamed as the 'City of Joy'. Kolkata is famous for its culture and was long known as the cultural capital of India with generations of poets, writers, film directors and Nobel Prize winners.

There are several sites containing sightseeing, restaurant, nightlife and accommodation listings. I choose to jot down few of the must visit places in Kolkata.

Historical buildings, Museums and Temples
1. Victoria Memorial
2. Birla Planetarium
3. Maidan
4. Calcutta Zoo
5. Indian Museum (Jadu Ghar) - The largest museum in India
6. Howrah Bridge
7. Fort William
8. Kalighat
9. Dakshineswar Kali Temple and Belur Math
10.St. Paul's Cathedral Church
11.Marble Palace or Mallick bari
12.Botanical Garden, Howrah
13.Shaheed Minar or "Tower of the Martyrs"
14.Jorasankho Takhurbari - House of Rabindranath Tagore

Amusement Parks
1. Science City
2. Nicco Park
3. Aquatica
4. Nalban Boating Complex

A walk along the Ganges with the "ghats" or piers such as Princep Ghat, Outram Ghat, Millennium Park and the 2 bridges up and down - Howrah Bridge and Vidyasagar Setu, enchants the mind. One can go on a boat ride as well.

Vidyasagar Setu

Foodies can go to China Town at Tangra which is the home to the Largest Chinese Community in India.

Bookworm's must visit College street. It is the largest second-hand book market in the world and largest book market in India and collectively boasts of a collection of almost any title ever sold at Kolkata. One can buy rare books at throw-away prices and extensive bargaining take place.

If you have a few more days to spare, you can also check out the Places around Kolkata.

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Places around Kolkata – Picnic, Day trips, Drives, Weekend travel and more

There are number of places where we can have a day or 2 break away from our hectic work life. It all depends from person to person and varies with the interest of people. The list below does not contain an exhaustive list, yet I have tried to cover the places which I feel can suffice our ends for a pleasure\adventure trip.

Common Weekend Breaks

1. Digha
2. Bakhali-Frasergunj
3. Sankarpur
4. Puri
5. Mandarmani
6. Talsari
7. Gopalpur-on-Sea
8. Darjeeling
9. Kalimpong
10.Kurseong
11.Siliguri
12.Ghatshila
13.Junput
14.Tajpur

Digha, Mandarmani and Sankarpur are the 3 beaches nearest to Kolkata. Bakhali is a popular bachlelors outing spot. Talsari was a uncommon destination not long ago, now growing in popularity though.

Picnic Spots

Picnic or commonly known as Charuibhati in bengalli is one such event which each and every bengalli performes at least once in a year during the winter's if not more. Below are some common/uncommon spots which you can definitely try out in the next winters.

1. Garchumuk
2. Gadiyara
3. Sashati
4. Kolaghat
5. Geokhali
6. In some farm house in Duttapukur
7. Baruipur

Adventure Travel

1. Sunderbans
2. Ayodha Hills
3. Joychandi Hills
4. Mukutmanipur
5. Bethuadahari Wildlife Sanctuary
6. Mython Barraige
7. Belpahari
8. Lava-Lolegaon
9. Masanjor



Historical Places

Want to know about the glorious past of Bengal. You can travel to the places below. These are some of the places though not all worth mentioning.

1. Bishnupur
2. Murshidabad
3. Shantiniketan
4. Antpur
5. Gour
6. Guptipara
7. Kalna
8. Dasghara
9. Karnasubarna
10.Bardhaman Rajbari
11.Maishadhal Rajbari

Temples or Pilgrims

1. Tarapith
2. Hansheswari Temple
3. Mayapur
4. Nabadwip
5. Tarakeswar
6. Rajballavi Temple, Rajbalhat
7. Mahesh Jaganath Temple
8. Jairambati-Kamarpukur
9. Bandel Church

To check out the places in Kolkata visit this page.

This is not all. Enjoy these while I add more to the list as and when I remember.

In case you want to check the weather in Kolkata, you can have it below...

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