Best of Chennai and Mahabalipuram Full Day Private Guided Tour

5.0 (11 reviews) 9 hours Free cancellation Private tour

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11 reviews

5.0

Best of Chennai and Mahabalipuram Full Day Private Guided Tour — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

Best of Chennai and Mahabalipuram Full Day Private Guided Tour, photo 2 — Photos: the activity supplier, via Viator

About this activity

Morning you will be picked up from your hotel in Chennai.Spend your day exploring Marina Beach,Chennai's cultural hub of Mylapore Kapaleeshwar Temple,St.George fort and the San Thome Basilica, followed by a traditional South Indian lunch in a local restaurant.

Then visit Mahaballipuram is about an hour's drive from Chennai on the East Coast Road. It was the second capital and seaport of the Pallava Kings who ruled in the 5th century.you can see the famous Shore Temple, the only surviving temple out of the original seven (the rest have sunk under the sea). The Shore Temple is among the oldest temples of South India and represents the final flowering of Pallava art. Arjuna's Penance, one of the world's biggest bas-reliefs depicts the story of the descent of the River Ganges from Heaven to Earth.

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At a glance

Duration: 9 hours
Confirmation: Instant confirmation
Ticket: Mobile or paper ticket accepted
Group: Your group only
People per booking: 1–15
Guide: English, French
Written guide: English
Operated by: Wonder tours

Ages: Children (2–12 years) · Adults (18–78 years)

What is included

Included

Included: Private transportation
Included: Headsets to hear the guide clearly
Included: Local tour guide
Included: Lunch
Included: Entry/Admission - Monuments

Not included

Not included: Personal expenses
Not included: Gratuities
Not included: Beverages

Itinerary

Pancha Rathas

30 min Admission included

Make the first stop of the day at the Pancharathas, or five chariots, a series of monolithic temples built by the Pallavas.These are rock cut monolith temples structures built in the 7th century. Each of the 5 rathas or chariots are dedicated to the lead cast of the Mahabharat epic- Draupadi, Arjuna, Nakul-Sahadeva, Bhima and Yudhister. There is also a sculpture of an elephant next to the ratha of Nakul-Sahadeva. Once you stand towards the rear of the elephant you will notice that there is an uncanny resemblance between the rear of the chariot and the elephant.
Arjuna's Penance

30 min Admission included

We next visit Arjuna’s Penace, a bas-relief monument that’s considered one of India’s most magnificent pieces of ancient art, depicting vivid scenes from the Mahabharata. The relief is 100 feet long and 45 feet tall! The main story being told is how Arjuna, one of the Pandava brothers, performed severe austerities in order to obtain Lord Shiva's weapon.
India Seashell Museum

30 min Admission included

The 40000+ collection of Sea Shells is a singular effort of Raja Mohamad who spent 33 years to collect these items from around the world.
Krishna's Butter Ball

15 min Admission included

The next stop is Krishna’s Butterball, a granite boulder that’s poised on a stony slope. This curious boulder seems to defy Newton's laws of gravity and has not moved an inch despite being in this precarious position on the slope for more than a thousand years.
Shore Temple

45 min Admission included

The magnificent temple overlooks the Bay of Bengal and was an important centre during the reign of the Pallavas when Mahabalipuram was the main port of their Kingdom. Built by King Raja Simha during the early 8th century, the Shore Temple is a landmark in the architectural landscape of India. Marco Polo referred to this as the seven pagodas. The existing temple is the last surviving of the 7 which once stood as a beacon for sea farers.
Vivekananda House

30 min Admission included

We will explore the memorial for Swami Vivekananda who was a great philosopher. His speeches at the World’s Parliament of Religions held in September 1893 made him famous as an orator by divine right and as a messenger of Indian wisdom to the western world.
Stop 7

30 min Admission included

We head towards Mylapore an ancient residential neighborhood of Chennai whose history goes back to Roman times when it used to trade pepper and fine cloth with Rome for Gold! We visit the magnificent Kapaleeshwar temple. Built in the 7th century this temple is dedicated to Lord Shiva. Built in Dravidian style architecture it has a towering “Gopuram”. Guests can expect a mesmerizing experience of rituals and serenity inside the temple. Our cultural evangelist will demystify the happenings in the temple!
Stop 8

30 min Admission included

We visit the famous San Thome Basilica, the principal church of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Madras and Mylapore. We can see relics of St Thomas here. It is one of only three churches in the world that has been constructed on the tomb of an apostle. The other two are St. Peter’s Basilica in the Vatican, and Santiago de Compostela Cathedral in Spain.
Fort St. George

30 min Admission included

Fort St George is the first English Fortress built in 1644 by the East India Company. We will visit St Mary’s Church, the oldest Anglican Church of India. Our cultural evangelist will take you to a quaint museum rich with relics of the colonial times and retell the story of how the East Indian company morphed from a trading company into the ruler of India!
Stop 10

30 min

Walk on the Marina Beach, along the 3km-long main stretch of Marina Beach and you’ll pass cricket matches, flying kites, fortune-tellers, fish markets, corn-roasters and families enjoying the sea breeze.