About Vellore

Country: India | State: Tamilnadu

Ideal Trip Duration: 1-2 Days

Nearest City to Vellore: Chennai (142 Kms)

Best Time to Visit Vellore: October to March

Peak Season: December to January & May to June

At a distance of 70 km from Kanchipuram, 106 km from Tirupati, 142 km from Chennai, and 214 km from Bangalore, Vellore is a city and the administrative headquarters of Vellore district in Tamil Nadu. Situated on the banks of the Palar River, Vellore is one of the oldest cities of South India, and among the popular Tamilnadu tourist places.

Vellore is popularly known as the Fort City of Tamil Nadu. Now a very calm and understated place, it was once a battleground and has seen many wars. The name Vellore also means a City of Spears. Vellore along with Sripuram is one of the popular weekend getaways from Chennai, and among the top attractions, you must include in South India Trip. Vellore has an enriching legacy reflecting the early Dravidian culture. It has been ruled by the Pallavas, Cholas, Vijayanagara Empire, Rashtrakutas, Carnatic kingdom, and the British.

Vellore has many historic and religious attractions that one must visit as part of Vellore tour packages. The famous Sripuram Srilakshmi Golden Temple is also situated near Vellore. The Vellore Fort is the prime attraction in the town completely made of granite stone. The Fort might have been built during the rule of Chinna Bommi Nayak (1526 to 1595 AD). The Fort is one of the most perfect specimens of military architecture in South India. The Jalakandeswarar Temple inside the Fort is a very fine example of Vijayanagar architecture. Clock Tower, the State Government Museum, the French Bungalow, Science Park, Vainu Bappu Observatory, Amirthi Zoological Park, Big Mosque, St. Johns Church, and the Pearl Palace are the other important Vellore tourist places.

About 126 km from Vellore, Chennai International Airport is the nearest airport that has well-flight connectivity with almost all the major cities of India, and abroad. Katpadi Junction on the outskirts of Vellore has frequent train connectivity with cities like Chennai, Bangalore, Tirupati, Vijayawada, Mangalore, Trivandrum, Coimbatore, etc. Vellore Bus Station is connected with frequent buses with Chennai, Kanchipuram, Pondicherry, Chittoor, Tirupathi, and Bangalore.

The best time to visit Vellore is between the months of October to March. It usually takes a full day to visit important places in Vellore.

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Other Info
Internet Availability: Good
STD Code: 0416
Languages Spoken: Tamil, Hindi, English
Major Festivals: Details Not Available
Notes/Tips:
None

How to Reach Vellore

By Air

Nearest Airport: Chennai - Chennai International Airport (131 Kms)

By Train

Nearest Train Station: Vellore Town Railway Station (0 Kms)
Katpadi Junction (6 Kms)

By Bus

Nearest Bus Station: Vellore Central Bus Station (2.5 Kms)

Top 10 Places to Visit in Vellore

Heritage

#1 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 1.5 km from Vellore Town Railway Station, the Vellore Fort is a large 16th-century fort situated in heart of the Vellore city in Tamil Nadu, India. It is one of the famous heritage sites near Chennai, and among the must include places in Vellore holiday packages.

Vellore Fort was built in the 16th century CE by Channa Bommi Nayaka and Thimma Reddy Nayaka, the Chieftains under the Vijayanagara ruler Sadashiva Raya. This granite fort happens to be one of the best examples of military architecture in South India and among the unique forts in India. The fort was captured in the 17th century by the Adil Shahis, the Muslim rulers from Bijapur. It was then taken by the Marathas, and later by Daud Khan of Delhi in the early 18th century. The British took control of this fort in 1768 and controlled it .....

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Heritage | Pilgrimage

#2 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 1.5 km from Vellore Town Railway Station, Jalakandeswarar Temple, dedicated to Lord Shiva is located inside the Vellore Fort. The temple is named Jalakandeswarar, as it is located at a lower height than the temple moat.

The temple has two courtyards and has a main shrine with a closed path around it and a number of sub-shrines. Inside the Garbha griha, main deity Jalakandeswarar is seen in the form of Shivalinga. Goddess Sri Akilandeswari Amman is seen in separate sanctum in the inner enclosure of the temple. To the outer walls of Amman sanctum one can get the darshan of Vinayaka, Madeswari, Vaishnavi, Varahi, Lakshmi and Saraswathi. There is also a Nandi statue in front, facing Sri Jalakandeswarar sanctum.

According to puranas, Athri muni installed a Siva Lingam in this place and worshiped. After he left, without proper maintenance the Siva Lingam in the temple was covered by an ant-hill. Rain waters in the .....

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Pilgrimage

#3 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 17 km from Vellore, Ratnagiri Balamurugan Temple is an ancient temple located on top of a hillock in Ratnagiri on Vellore - Chennai National Highway. It is one of the important places of pilgrimage in Tamilnadu, and among the must-visit places as part of Vellore tour.

The Ratnagiri Temple is dedicated to Lord Murugan. This temple was built in the 14th century by Arunagiri Nathar. It was renovated in the year 1980 by Bala Muruganadimai Swamy. The temple boasts a huge tower at the entrance. One of the special features of this temple is that the poojas are conducted in Tamil instead of common Sanskrit. The 14th Century poet Arunagirinathar has sung about this temple as Murugan, the God of Devas resides in Ratnagiri.

According to the locals, the divine power in the temple manifests its blessings in three forms. First is in the form of the Lord Murugan idol .....

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Heritage

#4 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 650 m from Virinjipuram Bus Stop and 13 km from Vellore Town Railway Station, Sri Margabandeswarar Temple is a 13th century temple situated on Bangalore - Chennai National Highway. The temple has rich sculptures and artistic pillars. The temple was built by Cholas Kings in 13th Century while Bomma Nayakars, who built Vellore Jalagandeswarar temple, made several extensions to the temple including beautiful kalyana mandapa.

The main deity of this temple is Swayambu Lingam known as Margabandeeswarar. The Siva Lingam is slightly leaning to North East direction. The Goddess of the temple is Maragadambal. Other deities seen in the temple are Ganapathy, Subramanya, Chandra Mouleeswara, Pancha Mukha Lingam, Saptha Matrukas, Lakshmi, Saraswathy & Durga. In this temple Lord Brahma is worshiped as Virinjan. He worshipped Lord Shiva .....

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Pilgrimage

#5 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 10 km from Vellore, 70 km from Kanchipuram, 120 km from Tirupati, 146 km from Chennai, and 212 km from Bangalore, Sripuram Golden Temple is a sacred Hindu temple situated in Tirumalaikodi at Southern Vellore, Tamil Nadu. It is one of the popular pilgrimage sites near Bangalore, and among the must visit places during Vellore trip.

Sripuram Golden Temple is dedicated to the goddess Mahalakshmi. Constructed in the year 2007, The temple is built in 100 acres area of land and constructed by Vellore-based Sri Narayani Peetham, headed by spiritual leader Sri Sakthi Amma. The Vimana and Ardha Mandapa have been coated with gold both in the interior and exterior. Sripuram is the biggest structure made out of gold as one and a half tonnes of gold has been used for the construction of the temple with a cost of 600 crores. This is one of the prominent Vellore places to visit.

The .....

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Waterfall

#6 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 2.5 km from Kaigal Village, 28 km from Palamaner, 55 km from Kolar, 92 km from Horsley Hills, 142 km from Tirupati, 123 km from Bangalore, 68 from Chittoor, 78 km from Kanipakam, 96 km from Vellore & 225 km from Chennai, Kaigal Water Falls, also known as Dumukurallu Waterfalls is a nice waterfall located on the Palamaner - Kuppam Highway.

The waterfall is natural, perennial and water comes from a big rock at a height of 40 feet, irrespective of seasons. But its force and beauty is increased during the Monsoon season. The name Dumukurallu waterfalls came into prominence because of its sound resembling the fall of stones from above.

The falls is formed by the Kaigal stream which is one of the two streams flowing through Koundinya Wildlife Sanctuary. There is a big pond below the waterfalls and this is a nice place to visit for nature lovers. It is situated in a .....

Distance (From Vellore): 96 Kms
Trip Duration (From Vellore - Including Travel): 6 Hours
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Pilgrimage

#7 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 2 km from Vellore Town Railway Station, Sri Selva Vinayagar Temple is an ancient temple dedicated to Lord Ganesha situated in Shenbakkam. The place was once called Swayambakkam since Vinayagar appeared hear as Swayambu.

The Selva Vinayagar Temple is dedicated to Sri Selva Vinayagar and Somasundareswarar. Sri Selva Vinayagar is surrounded by 10 other Swayambhu Vinayagars. The 11 Vinayagars are present in the following order: Bala Vinayagar, Nandana Vinayagar, Omkara Vinayagar, Karpaga Vinayagar, Chinthamani Vinayagar, Selva Vinayagar, Mayura Vinayagar, Mooshiga Vinayagar, Vallaba Vinayagar, Siddhi-Buddhi Vinayagar and Panchamuga Vinayagar.

Bala Vinayagar is still under the ground and only the top portion is visible. One can see an Elephant installed in front of Selva Vinayakar instead of Mooshika, which is a unique feature of the temple.

According to legend, A Maratha minister by name Thukoji was passing through this place when the axle of his chariot .....

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Pilgrimage

#8 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 2 km from Kathalampet and 21 km from Vellore Town Railway Station, Sri Lakshmi Narasimha Swamy Temple at Singiri Koil is a Hindu shrine dedicated to Lord Narasimha, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu. It is situated on Vellore - Polur road.

This temple is situated on a small hillock which is about 80 feet high and can be reached by a flight of about 100 steps. As per the inscriptions around the sanctum sanctorum, this is an 8th century temple built by the local chieftain, Rajavarman at the behest of Lord Narasimha who appeared in his dream.

The main idol in the sanctum sanctorum is seen in a sitting posture with four hands - two hands hold the conch and the discus, his third hand is on his lap and fourth hand is around the waist of Goddess Lakshmi. The image of the Lord is nearly six feet in height with Goddess Lakshmi is seated on the lap of the Lord.

There is a separate shrine for Lord Anjaneya, who is known here as Sri Bala Anjaneya. The idol is one feet .....

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Wildlife

#9 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 27 km from Vellore Town Railway Station, Amirthi Zoological Park is situated under the Javadu hills of Tellai across Amirthi River. Established in 1967, the zoo park occupies an area of 25 hectares. It is named after the Amirthi River which flows next to the park.

This park is popular for its waterfalls, swing and animal habitats. Half of this jungle is cleared to serve as a tourist spot while the other half is developed as a wildlife sanctuary. One km trek in the park leads to a full view of Amirthi falls, a small cascading seasonal falls. Visitors can play and swim in the pool formed by the falls here in monsoons.

Animals in the park include spotted deer, mongoose, hedgehog, foxes, reason monkeys, red headed parrots, love birds, tortoises, peacock, crocodiles, wild cats, eagles, ducks, pigeons, wild parrots, rabbits and pythons. Many herbal and medicinal plants can be seen growing in the Park. A meditation .....

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Miscellaneous

#10 of 23 Places to Visit in Vellore

At a distance of 77 km from Vellore and 54 km from Yelagiri, The Vainu Bappu Observatory is an astronomical observatory owned and operated by Indian Institute of Astrophysics. It is located at Kavalur in the Javadi hills near Vaniyambadi in Vellore district of Tamil Nadu.

The Kavalur Observatory is located in a 100 acre forest land. The observatory houses a number of optical telescopes, including currently India's largest optical telescope the 2.3m Vainu Bappu telescope, 1.3 meter J.C Bhattacharya telescope, 1m Carl Zeiss Telescope and many other smaller ones. Apart from the Telescopes, there is also a Fabry-Perot Interferometer which is being used to study airglow emissions from the Earth's thermosphere. The observatory is situated at an altitude of 725m. Several varieties of plants, some wildlife and different birds are spotted in the campus.

The observatory traces its origin back to the year 1786 when William Petrie set up .....

Distance (From Vellore): 77 Kms
Trip Duration (From Vellore - Including Travel): 4 Hours/Half Day
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Top 3 Vellore Packages