Bhavnagar is a tiny town that greets everybody with its richness of traditions, enlaced in the modern life. Due to its closeness to the sea, the city has always been an important centre of trade and commerce of cotton goods. Today this large provincial city has some intriguing temples, museums and also serves as a gateway to several parks and reserves including Velavadar Blackbuck National Park. The city has associations with Mahatma Gandhi, who went to university here, and relics of his life can be seen at Gandhi Smriti in the 1895 AD Barton museum building, which also has a collection of coins, stamps, guns and other arms, sculpture and folk arts. It is a bustling trading centre with colourfully set bazaars, people sporting blood-red turbans, puppet sellers, and festivals and fairs. Takhteshwar Temple, Gaurishankar Lake, Nilambagh, Velavadar National Park, Victoria Park, Khodiyar Mandir, Aksharwadi Temple, and Shri Adishwar Temple are some important tourist attractions, which are worth a visit on a holiday to Bhavnagar.
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A reserved forest area in Bhavnagar, Victoria Park is one of India’s oldest man-made forests that is maintained by the government of India.
The park covers a lush lands of 500 acres and houses rare fauna and flora species Lake Gaurishankar is very close to Victoria Park and one can have mesmerizing views of the Lake from the park.
It is one of the oldest human-made forests in India, made in 1888 by Mr Proctor Sins for Maharaja Takhtasinhji of the Bhavnagar city. Also, the Gaurishankar Lake and Krishna Kunj lake are home to some migratory birds.
On the edges of the Gaurishankar Lake, a few minutes from Bhavnagar is a 2-sq-km protected forest, Victoria Park.
This is Alang on India’s bay of Khambhat, a place where Ship comes to die and Men die with them. Alang is the biggest ship graveyard in the world.
On the way to Alang Ship breaking yard, there are thousands of shops selling junks pulled off from the ships.
It’s a fascinating site to visit and sobering at times. Photography is strictly prohibited in and around the yards. 14 km of coastline around Alang is allocated to these recycling yards and entry is restricted. The best way to photograph these dismantling ships is to go 3 km left towards the mouth of the river. I will recommend you to be very careful while taking these shots. Unnecessary trouble can be easily invited.
Alang is a census town in Bhavnagar district in the Indian state of Gujarat. In the past three decades, its beaches have become a major worldwide centre for ship breaking. The longest ship ever built, Seawise Giant, was sailed to and beached here for demolition in December 2009.
Palitana located 51 km south west of Bhavnagar is known for being the largest cluster of Jain temples.
There are in total 863 temples from base to the peak of the Shatrunjaya hill, where the Palitana temples are located
The path is climbed through 3950 steps spanning 3.5 km up the Shatrunjaya Hills. The construction of temples of Palitana spanned over a period of 900 years and was structured in two phases. From the 11th to12th centuries AD as a part of the resurgence of temple building all over India, the first phase of temple architecture was constructed.
The second phase followed later, from the 16th century AD onwards. Muslim invaders destroyed some of the earliest temples built in the 11th century AD, during the 14th and 15th centuries AD. No one person can be attributed for the construction of these magnificent temples rather it was the effort of the wealthy businessmen who were followers of Jainism.
Aksharwadi Temple, dedicated to Lord Swaminarayan, serves as a place for enlightenment as well as education and entertainment for many years.
This intricately carved structure, built by the society of BAPS Shri Seva Sansthan, contains various terracotta works, wall paintings and idols of many deities including Kanhaji’s cradle (Lord Krishna).
The temple bears a close resemblance to the Swaminarayan Temple in London. Other than Bhavnagar, one can find Swaminarayan temples in New Delhi and Gandhinagar that stand as a testament to the 10,000-year-old culture of the Indian subcontinent.
Situated on Waghawadi road, it is one of the well-known BAPS Mandirs in Gujarat and among the must-visit places in Bhavnagar.
If you’ve always dreamed of visiting the African savannah, but haven’t quite managed to make the trip, a journey through Saurashtra may help quench your wanderlust.
You find lions to the southwest in the peninsula in Gir, and here, at the Velavadar Black Buck Sanctuary and National Park
You’ll find a land of wide-spreading golden grasslands under a deep blue sky, where spiral-horned antelope or the Black Bucks can be seen bounding up out of the grasses.
Close to the coast there are wetlands full of birds, and in the evenings, sea-breezes blow up into the savannah and cools things off after a hot day in the sun. At night, wolves and jackals roam the fields, and the flat country offers a tremendous view of a starry sky.
Velavadar National Park was formerly the private grassland of the Maharaja of Bhavnagar, where he would hunt blackbucks with his famous hunting cheetahs.
15 km from Bhavnagar, on the bank of the beautiful Tataniya Wali Lake, stands the beautiful Khodiyar Mandir or Tataniya Dharo. The temple was set up in the year 1911 by the king of Bhavnagar.
Inside the temple, there is a huge mandap where one can see the beautiful idol of Khodiyar Mata.
Khodiyar Mata Mandir Rajpara is located in Bhavnagar a District of Gujarat. Hindu Devotes from all over Gujarat come to this holy Place throughout the Year.
Besides, there is a pond on the premises of the temple. There is also a garden with a ride for children to play. For the people of old age and handicapped who cannot walk up to the upper temple of Khodiyar Mataji they can reach through the Ropeway and for the children’s Entertainment, the rope-way ride is created.
The Salangpur Hanumanji Temple holds great significance as one of the most revered and sacred temples in the Swaminarayan Sampraday. Sadguru Gopalanand Swami himself installed the revered image of Lord Hanuman within its premises. Known for its immense spiritual power, this temple serves as a focal point of religious devotion for many.
Situated in Sarangpur, the temple is conveniently accessible by both bus and car, located a mere 82 kilometers away from Bhavnagar. Its grandeur is evident through its expansive and spacious architecture, while the awe-inspiring statue of Lord Hanuman leaves a lasting impression on all who visit.
