Colors of South India

Welcome ! Upon arrival you will be received and transfer to your hotel. After the check-in, your afternoon will be available at leisure.

Visiting of Madras, cultural center and capital of the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is a fascinating mix of old and new.

Tour of the city: the church of St. Thomas, the museum of the bronzes and the temple of Kapaleeshwara. Visiting of the St. George Fort, built in 1640 by the British East India Company, the church of Santa Maria, the first English Madras church, the Museum.

Later, we will continue to Mahabalipuram, a fishing village on the Indian Ocean. Accommodation in hotel and rest of the day will be free.

In the evening dinner and overnight at the hotel.

Morning tour of Mahabalipuram visiting the Shore temples, Arjuna's Penance, Krishna’s Butter Ball and Five Rathas.

The afternoon will be free. Overnight in Mahabalipuram.

Breakfast at hotel and departure for Pondicherry.

In the afternoon visiting of the city from the colonial architecture.
Pondicherry was ruled by the French for 300 years and today it still represents the French culture in India. Here is the most beautiful waterfront of the region, the drivers of tuk tuk speak French and the women wear Western clothes even casually. In this city there are the Aurobindo Ashram, one of the great Indian philosophers and Mirra Alfissa known as "The Mother" and the utopian city of Auroville.

Hotel accommodation, dinner and overnight.

Breakfast at hotel and departure to Swamimalai, whose name means Mountain of God.
The city is one of the six temples dedicated to the god Kārttikeya (another name for Murugan). It is the fourth among the Padai Veedugal (battlefields). It is situated 5 km far from Kumbakoram and it is one of the holy abode of God Murugan, son of Shiva. In the temple dedicated to him you can see the sacred representation in which the god is presented as Guru (teacher) and father Shiva as Shisya (disciple) during the explanation to the father about the meaning of his Pranavam (Aum).

In the evening dinner and overnight at the hotel.

After breakfast drive to Tanjore.

Upon arrival, visiting of one of the oldest cities in the south, which reached its peak when it became the capital of the kingdom of the Cholas in the tenth century. Hotel accommodation.

In the afternoon there will be and escursion to the Brihadiswara temple dedicated to Shiva. The temple is covered by polychrome sculptures and, though currently used by the faithful, with the exception of only the high tower topped by a pyramid,it is also accessible to non-Hindus.

Return to hotel and overnight.
 

Breakfast at hotel and departure to Madurai.

In the afternoon visiting of the spectacular Sri Meenakshi temple, built under the reign of Thirumalai Nayak 1623-1655 and dedicated to Goddess Meenakshi and to her husband Shiva, here called Sundareshwarar. The huge dome is covered by colored statues and it was designed in 1560 by Vishwanatha Nayak.

In the evening we will return to the temple to witness the impressive ceremony with a procession of priests and musicians to commemorate the marriage of the goddess.

Overnight at hotel.

 

A full day devoted to the visit of the city of Madurai, 2,500 years old, the second largest city of the entire Tamil Nadu. The shape of the city is that of the lotus flower. Then we will visit the palace of Thirumalai Nayak, a building of the 17th century, built by King Thirumalai Nayak, a leader of Madurai Nayak dynasty in 1636 AD. The palace was built thanks to the help of an Italian architect and it stands for a fusion of different styles, including classical Dravidian, Islamic and European. The building was the main palace where the king lived. The original complex of the palace  was four times higher than the current structure. In its heyday, the palace of Thirumalai Nayak Madurai was considered one of the wonders of the South along with the Gandhi Museum.

Return to hotel and overnight.
 

Departure to Mysore, the district capital of Mysore, in the federal state of Karnataka. The name Mysore is the English version of Mahishūru (which means "the abode of Mahisha"). Mahisha stands for Mahishasura, a demon from Hindu mythology.

Mysore is famous for the parties that take place every year during the Vasara festival, when the city receives a large number of tourists. Although tourism is the major industry of Mysore, the growth of technology in the first decade of the twenty-first century has resulted in the city, helping to make it the second largest exporter of software in the state of Karnataka, next to Bangalore.

Hotel check-in.

An whole day devoted to the visit of Mysore.

Thousands of small factories fill the air with the fragrance of the essential oils used in the production of incense sticks. In Mysore you can visit the Mysore Palace, a magnificent residence of Maharaja built in the early twentieth century in Indo-Saracen style. It recalls the opulence of the courts told in fairy tales of the "Arabian Nights".

Later, there will be an excursion to the temple of Sri Chamundeswari, in Dravidian style, dedicated to the goddess Kali and located on a hill overlooking the city and the church of St. Philomena.

Free dinner, accommodation at the hotel and overnight.

After breakfast leave for Hassan.

Enroute visit Sravanabelagola.

Hotel check-in in the afternoon and visiting of Belur and Halebid Hoysala temples.

Overnight in Hassan.

Leaving for Bangalore.

Along the way, stop in Shravanabelegola, the oldest and most important pilgrimage center for Jains. A staircase leads to the spectacular statue of Bahubali "Gomateshwara" of the seventh century. It consists in a monolith 17 meters high, which is said to be the highest in the world. Thousands of pilgrims come here in order to witness to the Mahamastakabhisheka, a spectacular ceremony which is celebrated every 12 years, when the statue millennial is sprinkled with milk, yogurt, cheese, saffron and gold coins.

Overnight at hotel.

The end of our tour is arrived. After breakfast, you will have freetime until the transfer to the airport.