Day
01/ Delhi
Arrive Delhi, meet assist at the airport transfer to hotel. Night
stay in Delhi.
Day
02/ Explore Old Delhi and New Delhi
Morning after breakfast proceed for tour of Old & New Delhi.
OLD DELHI -The 350 years old walled city was built
by Emperor Shah Jehan in 1648 as his capital. Opposite the fort
are the black and white onion dome and minarets of the Jama Masjid,
the most elegant mosque in India. Raj Ghat is worth a visit where
Mahatma Gandhi was cremated in 1948.
New Delhi : The new capital designed by Sir Edward Lutyens. An interesting
drive in the one passing through the impressive Rajpath from the
World War I memorial arch, the India Gate towards the Presidential
Palace. Visit Humayun's Tomb built in 1565 AD, Safdarjung's Tomb,
the Qutab Minar, 72 meters high and the most curious antique, the
uncorroded Iron Pillar, which dates back to the 4th century AD.
NEW DELHI - An extensive sight-seeing tour of New
Delhi would include a visit to the Humayun's Tomb, the Qutub Minar,
a drive along the ceremonial avenue - Rajpath, past the imposing
India Gate, Parliament House, the President's Residence and would
end with a drive through the Diplomatic Enclave Visit the powerful,
majestic Hindu Temples of Delhi: Chattarpur Temple, Yogmaya Temple
& Lakshmi Narayan Temple.
Day
03/ Delhi - Bangalore - Puttaparthi
After late breakfast, transfer to Domestic Airport for flight to
Bangalore, and continue to Puttaparthy by surface. Reach Puttaparthy.
Transfer to hotel. Night stay in Puttaparthi.
Day
04/ Puttaparthi (Christmas with Sathya Sai Baba)
After breakfast, full day at Puttaparthi and visit Sri Sathya Sai
Baba Ashram. Night stay in Puttaparthi.
Day
05/ Puttaparthi - Tirupati
After breakfast, drive to Tirupati and transfer to hotel. Visit
to Lord Balaji Temple. Night stay in Tirupatty. Tirupati is a dusty
bustling little town at the foot of the Tirumalai Hills in the southern
tip of Andhra Pradesh. Every day thousands of pilgrims descend on
Tirupati spilling out of buses, cars, taxis and trains. They are
all on their way up to the temple of the Lord Venkatswara up in
the Tirumalai hills. It is an old temple, that has witnessed the
rise and fall of powerful dynasties. The Pallavas, Cholas and Pandayas
were all patrons of the shrine and they endowed it with jewels and
wealth. It is a pleasant drive from Tirupati up to Tirumalai and
as the road winds its way up the forested slopes there are splendid
views of Tirupati and the plains. The temple is a perfect example
of the Dravidian style of temple architecture. Within the three
parakarams or enclosures of the temple complex is the main shrine
with its exquisitely worked and gilded vimana above it, gleaming
in the sun. This early morning ritual is an unforgettable experience
- as the myriad flickering oil lamps light up the sanctum and the
majesty of the deity decked in glittering ornaments, the absolute
silence is broken by the chant of the priests. It is the beginning
of another day at the temple.
Day
06/ Tirupati - Chennai
After breakfast, drive to Chennai. Reach Chennai and later on half-day
city tour of Chennai. Night stay in Chennai. Chennai (previously
known as Madras), the first city of South India and the capital
of Tamilnadu state, is a historic land of ancient culture. India's
most southerly city brims with magnificent architecture, exotic
pageantry, and age-old traditions. The Dravidian dynasties of Pallavas,
the Cholas and the Pandiyas, all left their marks on the culture
and architecture of the region. Chennai, a thriving seaboard that
did business with the Chinese, Greeks, Phoenicians, Romans, and
Babylonians 2000 years ago and later the French, Portugese, Armenians,
and Arabs. Chennai remembered history goes back to the 4th Century.
Night stay in Chennai.
Day
07/ Chennai - Kanchipuram - Mahabalipuram
After breakfast, leave for Mahabalipuram, en route visiting Kanchipuram
and Kamakshi Temple. Reach Mahabalipuram in the evening.
Mahabalipuram : Globally renown for its shore temples,
Mahabalipuram was the second capital of the Pallava kings of Kanchipuram.
58 kilometres from Madras on the Bay of Bengal, this tiny sea -
side village of Mahabalipuram, is set in a boulder - strewn landscape.
Tourists are drawn to this place by its miles of unspoiled beach
and rock-cut art.
The sculpture here is particularly interesting because it shows
scenes of day-to- day life, in contrast with the rest of the state
of Tamil Nadu, where the carvings generally depict gods and goddesses.
Kanchipuram is among the most famous of the 'temple
cities' of Tamil Nadu. Its temples house different Hindu sects.
Though today it is only a destination for pilgrims, and a repository
of major architectural monuments, in antiquity it occupied a more
preeminent place in the history of South India.The Ekambareshvara
temple is the principle Shaiva sanctuary and its soaring gopuras
dominate the city's skyline.
Day
08/ Optional Day Trip to Thiru Annamalai and Ramana Maharishi Ashram.
OPTIONAL: Visit to Thiru Annamalai and the ashram in Arunachala
of famous Vedanta Advaita (Non-dualism philosophy) saint, Ramana
Maharishi.
Day
09/ 9 Mahabalipuram/Chennai/Madurai
After breakfast, tr.ansfer to Domestic Airport for flight to Madurai,
Reach Madurai. Afterwards, visit to the Meenakshi Temple and transfer
to hotel. Night stay in Madurai.
Day
10/ Madurai/Kanyakumari
After breakfast, half-day sightseeing of Madurai and continue to
Kanyakumari. Reach Kanyakumari and transfer to hotel. Madurai, situated
in southern Tamil Nadu, is a district with its headquarters in Madurai
city, on the banks of Vaigai river. Madurai is the second largest
city in Tamil Nadu. It is more than 2,500 years old and is an important
cultural and commercial centre. Madurai, once the seat of Tamil
learning and still the place where Tamil language is spoken in its
purest form, is an ancient city planned in the shape of lotus. Night
stay in Kanyakumari.
Day
11/ Explore Kanyakumari - New Years Eve at Mata Amritanandamayi
Ashram
After breakfast, full day sightseeing of Kanyakumari and Vivekenanda
Memorial Rock.Cape Comorin, Land's End mainland India's southernmost
point, where three seas meet and where the shore temple to the virgin
goddess Kanyakumari stands. It is one of the sacred pilgrimage places
of the hindus. There are two significant memorials here. One is
the Gandhi Mandapam, built to commemorate the immersion of the ashes
of Mahatma Gandhi in the waters by the temple. The other memorial,
dedicated to Swami Vivekananda, is built on the rock 656 ft. from
the shore where he meditated in 1892 before taking the message of
the Hindu philosophy to the west. Swami Vivekananda was the foremost
disciple of Sri Ramakrishna Paramahamsa. Night stay in Kanyakumari.
Day
12/ New Years Day at Mata Amritanandamayi Ashram/Trivendrum
New Year's Eve and New Year's Day at Mata Amritanandamayi Ashram
and later on continue to Trivandrum. Transfer to hotel. Mata Amritanandamayi
is believed to be an avatar--an incarnation of Mother Divine in
human form. She is the first Indian saint to give her blessings
by hugging each aspirant who visits her. To receive a hug from "Ammachi,"
as she is called by her devotees, is to experience the nectar of
divine love flowing into your heart and illuminating your mind.
This is something that has to be experienced in order to understand
its power. A feeling of true spiritual grace is bestowed upon every
person who visits this wonderful saint. We will have the honor of
spending New Years Eve and New Years Day with her. Night stay in
Kanyakumari.
Day
13/ Trivandrum - Delhi
After late breakfast, transfer to Airport for flight to Delhi After
reaching Delhi, transfer to Village BISTRO for Farewell Dinner and
later on transfer to Airport for onward destination.