HYDERABAD WITH SRISAILAM IN 4 DAYS

At a distance of 4 km from Nampally Railway Station, Charminar stands in the heart of the old city and is the most important monument in the city. Charminar is one of the top places to visit in Hyderabad city and a grand heritage site in Telangana state. Along with Golconda Fort, Charminar is the prime tourist places to visit in Hyderabad.

The Charminar was constructed in 1591 by Mohammed Quli Qutub Shah to mark the end of an epidemic of plague in Hyderabad city. Since the construction of the Charminar, the city of Hyderabad has almost become synonymous with the monument. It is located near the bank of the river Musi. Charminar is derived from two distinct words Char and Minar, which means four towers. It is a massive and impressive structure with four minarets.

Charminar is constructed in Indo-Islamic architecture. Marble, limestone, mortar and granite .....

At a distance of 5 km from Nampally Railway Station and 1 km from Charminar, Chowmahalla or Chowmahallat Palace is a magnificent palace belonging to the Nizams of Hyderabad. It is one of the top attractions you must include in Hyderabad packages. The palace was the seat of the Asaf Jahi dynasty and was the official residence of the Nizams of Hyderabad. The palace remains the property of Barkat Ali Khan Mukarram Jah, heir of the Nizams.

The name 'Chowmahallat' comes from two Urdu words, Chow (four) and Mahallat (palaces) means Four Palaces. While Salabat Jung initiated its construction in 1750, it was completed by Asaf Jah V, between 1857 and 1869. Extending from the Laad Bazaar on the north to the Aspan Chowk Road on the south, the palace originally covered 45 acres but only 12 acres remain today. This palace is one of the top tourist places to visit in Hyderabad city. It was the place where the Nizams entertained their official .....

At a distance of 4 km from Nampally Railway Station & 15 km from Charminar, The Salar Jung Museum located near Afzal Gunj is one of the best museums in India. This is also one of the most visited among Hyderabad tourist places. Situated on the southern bank of the Musi River, this museum houses the collections of Mir Yusuf Ali Khan, commonly known as Salar Jung III, Prime Minister of the seventh Nizam of Hyderabad. The museum has a collection of over 50000 items for exhibition.

There are 38 galleries in the Museum spread across three buildings- Central Block, Eastern Block and Western Block on two floors. The collection of the museum and the library were transferred from Diwan Deodi to the new building in the year 1968 and two more buildings were added in the year 2000. The Veiled Rebecca made with Italian marble is one of the main attractions of the museum including Musical Clock, Marguerite & Mephistopheles .....

At a distance of 3 km from Nampally Railway Station, Lumbini Park is located near the Tank Bund on the banks of Hussain Sagar Lake. The Lumbini Park has been named after the birthplace of Buddha and it lies just opposite a famous Buddha statue. The boats to reach Buddha statue start from Lumbini Park.

The park was developed as part of the Buddha Purnima project of the state government in 1994. It is one of the most beautiful parks in the city of Hyderabad and one of the best places to visit in Hyderabad city. In 2007, it was one of the targets of the 25 August 2007 Hyderabad bombings that killed 44 people.

The Lumbini Park has become an ideal place of relaxation and a place of amusement. The key features of the park are the fantastic floral clock, the cascading artificial waterfalls and the dancing musical fountains. The Park offers the opportunity to watch one of the greatest laser shows currently .....

At a distance of 3.5 km from Nampally Railway Station & 0.5 km from Lumbini Park, Buddha Statue has been placed on the rock of Gibraltar in the placid waters of the Hussain Sagar. The Buddha Statue is the world's largest single-stone statue of Buddha with a height of 72 feet (including base) and the weight of 450 tons. This is one of the prime attractions in Hyderabad city.

During his visit to New York, Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao (1983-89) saw the Statue of Liberty and inspired to build a similar structure of Gautama Buddha in the famous Hussain Sagar Lake. Erected as part of the Buddha Poornima project in 1985, this monolithic statue was erected out of a white granite rock. It was carved by 200 sculptors for two years. After 5 years and the expenditure of $3 million, the statue stood at 58 feet and weighed 350 tons, making it the world's tallest monolithic .....

At a distance of 11 km from Nampally Railway Station, Golconda Fort (also written as Golconda Fort) is situated towards the western outskirts of Hyderabad. The fort is one of the prime places to visit in Hyderabad and also an important heritage site in Hyderabad city. Along with Charminar, Golconda Fort is the prime tourist places to visit in Hyderabad.

The word 'Golconda' originated from Golla Konda which stands for Shepherd's Hill in Telugu. Golconda Fort was first constructed as a mud fort by the rulers of Kakatiya Dynasty in the 13th century. The fort was rebuilt and strengthened by Pratapa Rudra of the Kakatiyas. It was further strengthened by the Musunuri Nayaks, who defeated the Tughlaq army occupying Warangal. The fort was ceded to the Bahmani Sultanate as part of the treaty in 1364. It was later re-built with granite by initial Qutub Shahi kings, which took about 62 years to complete. Golconda .....

At a distance of 10 km from Nampally Railway Station & 1 km away from the Banjara Darwaza of Golconda Fort. Qutub Shahi Tombs are the burial ground of the 7 kings of the Qutub Shahi dynasty. The tombs are very popular for their unique architecture and grand structures. Qutub Shahi Tombs are one of the best among Hyderabad tourist places and a major heritage site in Hyderabad city.

Planned and built by the Qutub Shahis themselves, these tombs are said to be the oldest historical monuments in Hyderabad. The tombs are built in Persian, Pathan and Hindu architectural styles using grey granite, with stucco ornamentation. These tombs are standing at the center of a garden known as Ibrahim Bagh, containing ponds and planted pathways.

There are more than 30 tombs in the enclosure besides some open air tombs. The tombs vary in size from small to large. The tombs are domed structures built on a square base surrounded by pointed arches, each tomb are quadrangular and rise from 9 to 15 .....

At a distance of 1 kms from Nampally Railway Station, AP State Museum located with in Public Gardens is the oldest museum in Hyderabad. With very good collection, it is one of the important museums in the state.

Built in 1928 by the Nizam VII, the museum building itself is a fine example of Indo-Saracenic architecture. The Nizam, Mir Osman Ali Khan, wanted to preserve the cultural heritage of the state and also took steps to extend the treasure trove act of the British ruled dominions to his state and also created the Department of Archaeology under the stewardship of Dr. Ghulam Yuzdani in 1915. From then onwards the department played an active role and conducted several extensive explorations and excavations.

The museum contains a Buddhist gallery, Brahmanical & Jain gallery, Bronze gallery, Arms & Armour gallery, Numismatics gallery, Ajanta gallery and more. Adjacent to the State Museum is the Contemporary Art Museum.

Timings: 10:30 AM to 5 PM, Closed on Fridays

Entry .....

At a distance of 2.5 km from Nampally Railway Station, Birla Mandir is a magnificent marble temple dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara. The temple stands on 280 feet high hillocks called Kala Pahad & Naubat Pahad in the center of Hyderabad city. This is one of the most popular tourist places in Hyderabad.

Dedicated to Lord Venkateshwara (Balaji), the temple is made of white marble brought from Rajasthan. This is one of the must visit tourist places in Hyderabad city. The temple was constructed by Birla Foundation in 1976, which has also constructed several similar temples across India, all of which are known as Birla Mandir.

This temple is a wonderful blend of Nagara and South Indian temple architecture. A Rajagopuram built in the South Indian style greets the visitors. The tower over the main shrine of Lord Venkateshwara called the Jagadananda Vimana is built in Dravidian style, while the towers over .....

At a distance of 14 km from Srisailam Bus Station & 15 km from Srisailam Temple, Srisailam Dam is constructed across Krishna River on the border of Mahabubnagar District, Telangana (Left bank) and Kurnool district, Andhra Pradesh (Right bank). It is one of the largest dams in India and the 3rd largest hydroelectric project in India. Srisailam Dam is among the prime places to visit in Srisailam, situated on Hyderabad to Srisailam route. This is another popular attraction to visit as part of Hyderabad tour packages.

The construction of the dam was started in 1960 and took over 20 years to be completed and was opened in 1981. The dam was constructed in a deep gorge in Nallamala hills, 300 meters above sea level. The dam is 512 meters long, 240.79 meters (885 ft) high and has 12 radial crest gates. The dam has a live storage of 274 TMC and provides .....

At a distance of 1 km from Srisailam Bus Station, Mallikarjuna Swamy Temple dedicated to Lord Shiva has a great historical and religious significance and it is one of the 12 Jyotirlingas and also one of the 18 Sakti Peethas (Bhramaramba Temple situated in same complex). The holy temple is situated on a mountain named Shri Shaila on the banks of Krishna River. This Jyotirlinga is also referred as Kailash of the South. Mallikarjun Temple is among the prime places to visit in Srisailam.

The earliest known historical mention of Srisailam hill can be traced in Pulumavis Nasik inscription of 1st Century AD. The Sathavahanas, Ikshavakus, Pallavas, Vishnukundis, Chalukyas, Kakatiyas, Reedy Kings, Vijayanagara Emperors and Chatrapathi Shivaji are among the famous emperors who worshipped God Mallikarjuna Swamy and made several contributions to the development of the temple.

Prataparudra of Kakatiya Dynasty strived a lot for the improvement .....

At a distance of 3 Km from Srisailam Mallikarjun Temple & 11 km from Srisailam Dam, Sakshi Ganapati Temple, situated between Srisailam Temple and Srisailam Dam, is one of the sacred spots frequented by pilgrims since times immemorial. The traditional belief is that the Ganapathi in this temple keeps regular account of all the pilgrims to tender Sakshyam (evidence) of their visit to this Kshetram and so named as Sakshi Ganapathi. It is one of the well known Srisailam places to visit.

The sculpture of this deity is exquisitely made holding a book in the left hand and a pen in the right hand in such a way as noting down the names of devotees. It is in practice that devotees during their return from Mallikarjuna Temple visit this temple.

Srinatha, the renowned poet of 14th Century in his Kasikhandam states that this Sakshi Ganapathi is visualized by sage Agasthya during his pilgrimage to Srisailam.

Timings: 6 AM to 9 PM

At a distance of 4.5 Km from Srisailam, 5 km from Srisailam Temple & 10 km from Srisailam Dam, Phaladhara and Panchadhara, on the way to Sikharam, is one of the most beautiful scenic spot in the surroundings of Srisailam. This spot is located in a narrow valley approachable by a flight of 160 steps with streams of pure water flowing with musical sound reverberate the surroundings. It is one of the popular attractions in Srisailam and is situated between Srisailam town and Srisailam Dam.

According to locals, these streams signify their origin from the fore head of God Siva, the Phaladhara (Phala = fore head, dhara = Stream) and denote the five aspects of Siva, the Panchadhara (Pancha = five, dhara = Stream). The water from this stream flows uninterrupted in all the seasons.

Tradition records that Bhagavan Adisankara performed penance at this place and composed the famous Sivanandalahari here. His Holiness Kanchi Paramacharya confirmed this and marble statues of Sarada Devi .....

At a distance of 8 km from Srisailam Mallikarjun Temple & 12 km from Srisailam Dam, Sikharam is the highest point of Srisailam Hills at an altitude of 2830 feet above sea level. The Skanda Purana proclaims that a mere glance of this Sikharam frees the human soul from the fitters of rebirth. In ancient days people used to come to Srisailam on foot and those who unable to reach the shrine returned back by seeing this peak. It is one of the top places to visit in Srisailam and is about 3 km from the road between Srisailam Temple and Srisailam Dam.

The Sikhareswaram Temple located here is an ancient stone structure consisting of Garbhagriha, Antaralaya and 16 pillared Mukhamanda. The deity here is named as Veera Sankara Swamy and locally popularized as Sikhareswara Swamy. Historically the Reddy Kings have constructed a flight of steps to this temple in the year 1398 AD and also a tank (Pushkarini) at this place. This place gives a panoramic view of the entire temple complex of Srisailam .....

At a distance of 1 km from Srisailam Mallikarjuna Temple, Pathala Ganga is the sacred place in the backwaters of River Krishna. This is the place where devotees can have a holy dip in the river Krishna. Steps and iron chains are provided for the devotees to hold onto to protect themselves from the strong force of the river. From this place you can get a glimpse of wide reservoir and the magnificent mountains spread with the lush green Nallamala Forest. It is one of the popular Srisailam places to visit for best views of River Krishna. It is geographically located behind Srisailam Dam and the flood gates can be seen from here. Pathala Ganga is also the boating center for pleasure rides and trips to Akkamahadevi Caves.

Several pilgrims take bath in River Krishna at Pathala Ganga before visiting the deity of Srisailam Temple. Around 500 steps from the Hanuman Temple (Haritha Hotel) need to be trekked down to reach Pathala .....

At a distance of 1 km from Srisailam Temple, Tribal Museum at the entrance of Srisailam town is a wonderful place to experience the culture and life style of tribal living in Nallamala Hills. It is one of the popular Srisailam tourist places to understand the tribal culture of the region.

With a huge collection of tribal artifacts and different sections showcasing the life style of the natives, this is a must visit place in Srisailam. The museum is well maintained with good collection of the daily use articles of tribal, articles of labor, weapons, statues of their gods, musical instruments, etc.

There is a large park inside the Museum campus with images of dinosaurs, tribal huts, children play area, etc.

Timings: 8:30 AM to 8 PM. Entrance Fee: Rs 10.

At a distance of 58 km from Srisailam & 173 km from Hyderabad, Mallela Theertham is a charming waterfall located in the dense Nallamala forest. This is one of the popular tourist places to visit near Hyderabad and among ideal weekend getaways from Hyderabad for a day trip. It is situated close to Hyderabad to Srisailam highway and is a popular place to visit while travelling to Srisailam.

With a height of about 150 feet, water directly falls from a high cliff on a Shiv Lingas kind of rock formations. Bordered by thick forest, the surroundings of the falls offer unique experience. The water comes from a small stream which flows through the dense jungle and meets the Krishna River. About 380 well laid steps need to be walked down to reach the falls from the road point. The pool below the falls is closed with fencing on .....