Maharashtra has never been looked beyond The City of Dreams-“Mumbai". Not many touring places are known in this state which is spread over 3 lakh kilometre squares of area. But this article might change your thoughts forever.
Yes, Maharashtra has many hidden delicacies just waiting for the right tourists to go about them. It comes with some of the most unique experiences which people will not understand until they experience it themselves. Also Maharashtra can make you enjoy the most beautiful sunset ever seen.
This article particularly highlights the religious legacy of India, with some of the beautiful pictures that were clicked while we were on road.
I term it as an Offbeat Pilgrimage Travel because people of my age group who contribute most towards travel will willingly never plan a trip like this. But trust me,this is something they are missing on big time. So for all those who have not thought about it at all here are the pictures and details for the trip.
This article particularly highlights the religious legacy of India, with some of the beautiful pictures that were clicked while we were on road.
I term it as an Offbeat Pilgrimage Travel because people of my age group who contribute most towards travel will willingly never plan a trip like this. But trust me,this is something they are missing on big time. So for all those who have not thought about it at all here are the pictures and details for the trip.
There’s a lot more to see in Maharashtra which cannot be inscribed in a matter of words. So just grab your bags, plan your trip and have the the time of your life.
We flew to Pune from Delhi and directly left for Bhimashankar which is a Jyotirling shrine. It took us almost 2 hrs(110kms) to reach via NH 60.
I was in Maharashtra and how was it possible to not get Misal Pav for my first meal there.
There were so many beautiful places by the highway in between that we had to stop and click. The images would give you a brief idea.
After riding for some time, we discovered a beautiful lake surrounded by hills on one side and highway on the other.
Bhimashankar is not just a shrine but people also go there for trekking as it is surrounded by Sahyadri range.
As they say that happiness is along the journey not at the end of it, we were actually experiencing it in this road trip of Maharashtra. It was day 3 and we had to cover two more Jyotirlings which were Nagnath in Aundha and Vaijnath in Parli.
It was long day again and we left early in the morning. I took us 3.5 hrs to reach the temple of Nagnath in Aundha(200 kms from Aurangabad).
The Temple has a unique design and is very beautiful, people also say that it was sacked by Aurangzeb due to which it has that design.
There a was young boy there who briefed us about the temple and in return demanded us to buy him a few books.
We quickly completed out darshan and left for the darshan of the next and last Jyotirling in Maharashtra which is Vaijnath in Parli(2 hrs 20 mins from Nagnath temple).
By the time we reached Parli it was already 5 and finally we were done with the Darshan for all 5 Jyotirlings in Maharashtra.
It is the trip that is not just about these Jyotirlings, but a lot more like being on roads the entire day, exploring cotton farms in Maharashtra which the largest contributor of Agriculture in India, Maharashtrian Food(Misal Pav, Vada Pav, Kadhi Pav, and Maharashtrian Thali), The culture and traditions of the state and so many more things which you will experience only once you are there.
There’s a lot more to see in Maharashtra which cannot be inscribed in a matter of words. So just grab your bags, plan your trip and have the the time of your life.
We finished the Darshan and left for our next destination which was Shirdi (190 kms, almost 4 hrs drive). Enroute we stopped for a cup of tea and witnessed a beautiful sunset there.
Overnight we were in Shirdi.
This was the day when we were supposed to cover 2 more Jyotirlings one of which was Trimbakeshwar(Near Nashik). For this we had to leave very early in the morning by 6.
Shirdi to Trimbakeshwar is a 2 hrs drive via Nashik-Shirdi highway.
The jyotirling shrines are places where Shiva has appeared.And Trimbakeshwar is one of those.
Next destination was Grishneshwar Jyotirling which is 3.5 hrs drive(171) from Trimbakeshwar and is near Aurangabad.
We drove from Trimbakeshwar to Ghrineshwar temple and finished the Darshan as soon as we could because out next sightseeing was to the Ellora Caves.
From Grishneshwar it takes just 5 minutes to reach the Ellora Caves in Khuldabad and from Aurangabad it is at a distance of 30 kms.
Ellora caves are a group of Hindu, Buddhist and Jain rock cut caves.
Number of caves in the Ellora group are 34, out of which 12 are Buddhist caves, 17 are Hindu and 5 are Jain caves. Striking features of these caves include a 15 metres tall statue of Lord Buddha. This statue is situated in cave no. 10 that is there in the Buddhist group of caves.
The most stunning cave is number 16, a large megalith known as the Kailasa temple. Instead of excavating horizontally as with other caves, this structure was excavated from the top of the rocky cliff downwards. This took generations of workers and almost 200 years to complete. No wonder it's the shining gem of Ellora.
This caves were declared as a World Heritage Site in 1983 when the first round of recognition was done by UNESCO in India.
There is a lot more that can be written here about Ellora, but I feel that pictures will do that job better. So here is a photo gallery for Ellora Caves.
We left for Aurangabad where we spent the night.
As they say that happiness is along the journey not at the end of it, we were actually experiencing it in this road trip of Maharashtra. It was day 3 and we had to cover two more Jyotirlings which were Nagnath in Aundha and Vaijnath in Parli.
We had an amazing Maharashtrian breakfast before we left.
It was long day again and we left early in the morning. I took us 3.5 hrs to reach the temple of Nagnath in Aundha(200 kms from Aurangabad).
The Temple has a unique design and is very beautiful, people also say that it was sacked by Aurangzeb due to which it has that design.
There a was young boy there who briefed us about the temple and in return demanded us to buy him a few books.
We quickly completed out darshan and left for the darshan of the next and last Jyotirling in Maharashtra which is Vaijnath in Parli(2 hrs 20 mins from Nagnath temple).
By the time we reached Parli it was already 5 and finally we were done with the Darshan for all 5 Jyotirlings in Maharashtra.
It is the trip that is not just about these Jyotirlings, but a lot more like being on roads the entire day, exploring cotton farms in Maharashtra which the largest contributor of Agriculture in India, Maharashtrian Food(Misal Pav, Vada Pav, Kadhi Pav, and Maharashtrian Thali), The culture and traditions of the state and so many more things which you will experience only once you are there.
Tomato Farms
There’s a lot more to see in Maharashtra which cannot be inscribed in a matter of words. So just grab your bags, plan your trip and have the the time of your life.
Note: We are 4 of us so we hired an Innova for 3 complete days. We ended our journey in Aurangabad and flew to Mumbai from there.
Total cost for 3 days came out to almost 9000 Rs per person including meals , transportation and stay(This does not include the flight tickets from Delhi to Pune and Aurangabad to Mumbai).
For any further details that you need in planning a similar itinerary please inbox me.
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