Puri is a sacred city according to the Hindu mythology which is located 60 Km away from Bhubaneshwar. It is also known as the Jagannath Dham for the presence of the beautiful and historical Jagannath temple there. According to the established belief, the pilgrimage of a Hindu is incomplete without his or her visit to Jagannath Dham. It is the only temple of India where Krishna cohabits with Radha alond with the deities of Parvati, Durga and Shakti. It is the holy abode of lord Jagannath and the religious teachers have called it in different names like Neelachala, Purusottama Kshetra, Neeladri, Purusottama Puri, Srikshetra, Purusottama Dh?ma, Jagannath Dhama and Shankhakshetra.
The city of Puri takes the shape of an ocean of pilgrims’ during the festival of Ratha Yatra. It is during this time of the year that the idols and the chariots of lord Jagannath, Baladeva and Subhadra are decked richly before they are places gracefully in their respective chariots and taken along with a procession to Gundicha. This a sight worth experiencing and for these reason tourists apart from most dedicated of devout throng the city every year. The tourism of Puri takes a pride in offering a myriad of places of worship to its tourists. According to the popular religious belief Puri is considered to be one of the seven holy places of the world. Keeping aside the world famous Jagannath Dham, there are Mausima Temple, Nandankanan, Swargadwar, Sree Gundicha Temple, Konarak Sun Temple, Alarnath Temple and many more places of worship. There are monasteries like the Govardhan Math which give spiritual solace to aged travelers.
Besides the holy places of visit Puri offers you breath-takingly wonderful seashore to go for a walk or simply sit back and watch the waves lashing against the sandy extensive beach. An annual sea beach festival is also held at Puri which is a major attraction to the tourists. More over watching the sunrise and sunset from the seashore is an additional benefit of visiting the place. There is the famous crematorium at Swargadwar located 14 Km from the city of Puri. Another famous spot for pilgrimage is Sakshi Gopal located at 20 Km from Puri. Puri’s handiwork and cottage industries have a global recognition with the temple craft of Jagannath temple. Stone engravings, Patachitra, Katki, Pipli are the indigenous handicrafts of Orissa. Along the sea beach you also get mushroom stalls that sell out home décor and junk jewelry made of shells.
How to reach Puri: Puri has an excellent network both by rail and road from different metro cities of India. By air, one can reach Bhubaneswar which is the capital of Orissa and then reach Puri by road.
Places of accommodation:The best time to visit Puri is from the month of March to June. There are different hotels and tourist lodges belonging to the government and private sector that you can book according to your budget. You can get dormitories and premium suites in such hotels and lodges. Both online and spot booking facilities are available.
