Haridwar (Uttarakhand) - Gateway To Garhwal

Situated at he base of Shivalik range of Himalayas, Haridwar in Uttarakhand is the gateway to Garhwal Himalayas. Sacred Ganges touches the plane land here in Haridwar. Every 12 years Kumbha Mela is held here. The next Kumbha Mela in Haridwar is due on 2010.



The main attraction of Haridwar is Har - ki - pauri Ghat, From here to Vishnughat along the banks of Ganges there are market, hotels and temples. You will love to stay here for a day or two. Non vegetarian food is not allowed in this part of India and not sold too. You can get eggs at some places.



Every evening at 6 - 30 pm at Har Ki Pauri Ghat a fascinating aarati to Devi Ganga is held and thousands of small boats made with leaves with lighted candles (diya) are floated in the river by the devotees. Thousands of diyas floating on the river is a wonderful experience one can ever had.



Many devotees and tourists take holy bath in Ganges here in Haridwar. A word of caution is while taking bath don't ever leave the chain, which is provided for bathing.

A rope way service to Mansa Temple at the top of Bilwa Hill (175 meters) is available from HarPuari Ghat. It is a nice ride of 600 meters. From the top you can see the whole Haridwar town and the Ganges flowing. Chand temple is another temple 6 Km from here, you can reach by rope way. Anjani Devi temple is near Chand temple. The other temples in Haridwar can be very easily seen by hiring a taxi or, auto rickshaw are Baishnovevi temple, Kankhal, Bharatmata temple, Pawandham, Saptarshi Ashram etc.

3 Km from Haridwar is Nildhara bird sanctuary. Migratory birds flock here in winter, is a worth visiting spot.

How to Reach Haridwar:

Haridwar is well connected by Railways from all over the country. From ISBT Bus stand Delhi bus service is also available to reach Haridwar in 5 Hours.

Distance of some important places from Haridwar:

• Haridwar To Hrishikesh: 24 Km.
• Haridwar To Dehradun: 52 km.
• Haridwar To Delhi: 203 Km.
• Haridwar To Luxar: 28 km.
• Haridwar To Lucknow: 595 km
• Haridwar To Uttarkashi: 172 km
• Haridwar To Jankibai choti ( Yamunotri): 240 km.
• Haridwar To Gangotri: 272 km.
• Haridwar To Rudraprayag: 163 km.
• Haridwar To Gourikund: 233 km.
• Haridwar To Badrinath: 326 km.
• Haridwar To Mussourie: 86 km.
• Haridwar To Kedarnath: 247 km.

Where to stay ( Hotels) at Haridwar:

STD code of Haridwar: +91334

• GMVN Tourist Rest House Rahi Motel: Ph: 228686/ 226430 @ A/C DB INR 1000- 1200; Other rooms DB @ INR 600 - 1200 ; Dormitory @ INR 150/ bed.

Other Hotels DB @ INR 500 onwards

• Ganga Gaurav: Ph: 226166
• Lion Ph: 227534
• Trishul Ph: 224811
• Saraswati Ph: 220948
• Vasubndhara Ph: 226010
• Panama Ph: 227506
• Vikrant Ph:266183
• City center Ph: 227906
• Bhaskara: Ph: 221800
• Tirtha Ph: 225211
• Midtown Ph: 227507
• Himalaya Ph: 226816
• Tirtha Ph: 225211
• Ashok Ph: 227328
  

There are plenty such hotels in Haridwar. There will never be dearth of accommodation. Stay in Haridwar will fit all kind of budgets.

Important information regarding hiring car from Haridwar:

Before hiring car please chalk out you route of travel as you may like to visit some off the route places while you are going to some destination and you may not like to return through the same route. in all such cases it is better to clear the things with the driver and the car owner before starting of journey to avoid unnecessary problems later on.

The approximate fare for a 5 seater car per day at present @ INR 1500 and 8 seater car @ INR 1800.