India is a land of geographical and cultural diversity. This country, it is said, will never fail you, no matter how fussy a traveler you are. If you are looking for a spiritual destination, you will find ample number of them across the country. If you are pining for an adventure destination, India does have its fair share of them. If it is mountain or the sea which attracts you, there is certainly no dearth of them. In addition, India has some bizarre destinations too; some places which are either haunted or have an unsolved mystery attached to it (like the Roopkund Lake in northern India) or are famous for its food or culture.
One of the top destinations in India is
Goa. It is called as the beach capital of the country. It is a touristy place with Arabian Sea at its backyard and golden sand as its beach resident. When you are in Goa, you seem to dissolve amongst a tide of tourists and travelers, many of them belong to different nationalities. Goa’s famous beaches like Baga, Palolem and Anjuna are also great places to try new-age sports including parasailing, kayaking, jet skiing and the likes. Goa’s heritage corner serves up some beautiful cathedrals like the Basilica of Bom Jesus and the Se Cathedral. Lakes, waterfall and the river cruise at Mandovi make Goa a complete destination.
For the soul-searcher,
Varanasi is another destination which deserves a place in this short piece. This holy town in North India is famous for its huge temple devoted to Shiva and for the evening aarti which takes place at the ghat of River Ganga. Much like Goa, Varanasi is stuffed with foreign tourists, though the reason is entirely different. While in Goa, tourists wade in to relax and enjoy. In Varanasi, they look for peace and spiritualism. It goes without saying that they are not disappointed.
Speaking of history, there is nothing better which India can offer than
Rajasthan. This state located near the Thar Desert is a piece of heritage. Its capital Jaipur, also known as The Pink City, has top attractions like Hawa Mahal, Amber Fort, Jaigarh Fort and Chowki Dhani. The city has a very different way of going about life. Here, you get to see spotlessly clean streets. The general life too is much unhurried and peaceful. Its cousin Udaipur, another city in the state, is a deadly cocktail of history and nature. The best testimonial for this claim is Lake Pichola, which is a humongous lake in the heart of Udaipur dotted with temples and hotels. Destinations like Jaisalmer, Jodhpur, Keodeola National Park and Ranthambore National Park add more variety and spice to Rajasthan.
Amongst the mountains,
Kashmir is the king while Darjeeling the queen. Ladakh is emerging as the topmost adventure destination in the country, though it is accessible only during the summer. Shimla is the old favorite and there are many couples who still prefer the cool climes of Shimla to the plains of Delhi or Mumbai. Down south, India has popular tourist destinations like Ooty, Chennai, Tirupati and Bangalore.
