East India Holidays

East India Tours

» DARJEELING TOURS
Duration : 6 Nights / 7 Days
Destinations : Gangtok - Sikkim - Darjeeling - Bagdogra

Darjeeling Tour - Queen of the Hills
We come to Darjeeling - rightly called Queen of the Hills, situated amidst the grandeur and beauty of the mighty Himalayas with Kanchanjunga. An exhilarating holiday resort from the days of the British Raj in India still maintaining its Victorian grandeur. This is where the best tea of the World is grown.

Darjeeling hills are mostly inhabited by Sherpas, Lepchas, Nepalese, Tibetans, Sikkimese and Bhutanese. Through the lush green hills of Darjeeling, climbs special railways affectionately called TOY TRAIN or FLOWER-PICKING TRAIN covering a distance of 50 miles to Darjeeling in 8 hours.

Swagatam Tours and Travels LTD., specialist in the Himalayan countries offers various packages & provided tours/treks in Sikkim & Darjeeling. We also specialise treks/tours to Nepal, Tibet, Bhutan & India including Ladakh offering various programmes to suit different interests such as culture, history, natural, Wild life, bird watching, our sample Sikkim & Darjeeling package are as follows:

Itinerary

Day 1 : Gangtok
Fly Kathmandu / Bhadrapur (1 hr) - scenic drive to Gantok (3-4 hr.) - hotel

Day 2 : Gangtok
Full day sightseeing in Gantok with Rumtek monastery - hotel

Day 3 : Sikkim
Excursion tour to Phoning monastery (38 km in north Sikkim)

Day 4 : Sikkim
Scenic drive to Pemayangtse monastery via beautiful temi tea estate (west Sikkim) - hotel

Day 5 : Darjeeling
Scenic drive to Darjeeling. PM: sightseeing in Darjeeling - hotel

Day 6 : Darjeeling
Visit Ghoom monastery, on the way back enjoy a short ride on the famous Darjeeling toy train-hotel

Day 7 : Bagdogra
Picturesque drive to Bagdogra to fly to onward destination or to Bhadrapur to Fly back to Kathmandu-transfer to your hotel.


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» PURI TOURS
Puri - The land of the golden beach

Golden sunshine, miles of yellow sand, blue waves and white surf. Under an umbrella, sipping green coconut water. This is Puri beach. It is a pleasure to swim here as the sea is shallow for almost a mile. Very near the beach huge waves come rolling in - ideal for surf riding

This city by the sea is one of the four main Hindu pilgrim centres in India and is famous for its Jagannath temple. Millions of devotees flock to this holy place every year to participate in the Rath Yatra or "Car festival". This annual ritual spreads over the entire summer and monsoon seasons making the most fruitful period to visit Puri.

Jagannath, lord of the universe, is carried in a spectacular procession from this legendary temple bearing his name, in a gigantic chariot (thus the word Juggernaut) pulled by his devotees, preceded by his sister Subhadra and brother Balabhadra in their respective chariots.

One of the four celebrated religious centers of India, Puri, the abode of Lord Jagannath needs no introduction. According to tradition Puri was once a thickly wooded hill inhabited by the Sabaras (Pre-Aryan and Pre-Dravidian tribes of the Austric linguistic family). The sunny beach at Puri is one of the finest in the world. Watching the sunrise in a symphony of colours is a wonderful experience. It is one of the most popular sea-side resorts where visitors from any part of the globe can
comfortably relax.


PLACES OF INTEREST
The Temple of Lord Jagannath built during the 12th century A.D. by Chodaganga Deva dominates the landscape for kilometers around. Being the tallest temple (65 metres) in Orissa, it is one of the most magnificent pieces of monuments of India. In front of the main gate stands a 16 sided monolithic pillar (11 metres high), called Aruna Stambha which formally stood in front of the Sun Temple and was brought to Puri during the 18th century A.D. Some of the other important temples are Gundicha, Lokanath, Sunaragauranga, Daria Mahabir and Tota Gopinatt. There are also a number of holy tanks like Narendra, Markandeya, Sweta Ganga and Indradyumna. There are many Monasteries locally known as Mathas also of touristic interest.

» JAGANNATH TEMPLE
This 65 metre high temple has all the richness and plasticity of the Kalinga sytle of architecture. It was built in the 12th century during the reign of Chodaganga Deva.

Apart from the main temple , the smaller shrines of Vimala, Vishnu and Lakshmi, and the Ananda Bazaar-the biggest food market in the world-which are within the precincts, merit a visit.

» GUNDICHA GHAR

or the Garden House is about 2 km from the main temple. It is a much smaller sanctum, where Jagannath, Balabhadra and Subhadra
are taken by chariot in great festivity, for a week's holiday every year, during Rath Yatra. It is also popularly known as the house of Jagannath's aunt.

» INDRADYUMNA TANK
Near the Jagnnath temple is the Indradyumna tank with a small shrine to King Indradyumna on its left bank.

» SAKSHI GOPAL
About 25 kms from Puri is an impressive temple, Sakshi Gopal, with a charming life size image of the child Krishna or Gopal. A legend relates that once Gopal came down from Vrindavan to give evidence in a dispute between two Brahmins. When he saw this beautiful place he fell in love with it and stayed on.

» ATHARNALA BRIDGE
An engineering marvel of the ancient days is the Atharnala bridge over the Madupur stream. This 85x11 metre bridge was built in the 13th century and is still in use.


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