Elephanta Island Travel Tours

Elephanta Island is an island off of Bombay in southern India that is home to the Elephanta Caves, a UNESCO world heritage site. To get to the Caves, you will need to go to the gateway of India in Mumbai city; purchase your tickets for the ferry here. The trip takes an hour to reach by sea. There are two types of launch: Economy and Deluxe. One is big and the other one is slightly smaller in size. Travelling by both carries has its own fun experiences.

The main attraction on this island is the cave temple dedicated to the Hindu god, Shiva. The 120 steps that lead to the temple have shops selling handcrafted articles. Among other things, you can buy intricately carved stone articles as souvenirs. From the top of the steps you get a glimpse of the cave temple, this 1400 year old Shiva temple is carved into a mountainside. The main hall has 36 ornamental pillars, the hall also has 9 panels, each depicting an avatar (incarnation) of the Hindu god, Shiva. There is another hall which also houses a sanctum. It is believed that if you circumambulate it three times, your wishes are granted. The cave temple is a study of Indian history and Hindu mythology. Tourists are astounded when they find out that this hand-made temple is carved out of one big stone. Photography is allowed inside and outside the temple, be sure to get some beautiful pictures both inside the temple and outside to remember the beautiful island.

From the gateway of India to the famous Elephanta Caves and from the hustle and bustle of the contemporary Mumbai, this trip is a journey back to a time when faith, mysticism and art reigned, when the challenge of carving out gigantic statues and caves from stone was considered a blessing, , when the tryst with stone gave birth to effigies of Hindu faith, a testimony even today of the hard labor of our ancestors.

After a full day of sightseeing the MTDC restaurant offers a pleasing spread at a reasonable cost, the view of the sea while you are enjoying your meal is very relaxing.

By: Enid Glasgow

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Enid Glasgow is a travel writer who enjoys traveling to remote destinations. She enjoys traveling with Big Five Tours, providers of India tours and Galapagos tours.