Must-see attractions in Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

  • Interior of royal bath

    Golconda Fort

    Hyderabad

    Hyderabad's most impressive sight, this monumental fort lies on the western edge of town. In the 16th century the Qutb Shahs made Golconda a fortified…

  • India, Andhra Pradesh, Hyderabad. The Charminar, or four minars, is no longer a mosque but remains one of Indias best known buildings.

    Charminar

    Hyderabad

    Hyderabad’s principal landmark and city symbol was built by Mohammed Quli Qutb Shah in 1591 to commemorate the founding of Hyderabad and the end of…

  • Qutb Shahi Tombs

    Hyderabad

    The subject of one of India's most ambitious heritage projects, these magnificent domed granite tombs form part of a huge archaeological park that is…

  • Chowmahalla Palace

    Hyderabad

    This opulent 18th- and 19th-century palace compound, the main residence of several nizams, comprises several grandiose buildings and four garden…

  • Paigah Tombs

    Hyderabad

    The aristocratic Paigah family, purportedly descendants of the second Caliph of Islam, were fierce loyalists of the nizams, serving as statespeople,…

  • Sankaram

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This stunning Buddhist complex is 40km west of Vizag and occupies a rocky outcrop about 300m long. Sankaram is also known by the names of its two parts,…

  • Undavalli Cave Temples

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This stunning four-storey cave temple was probably originally carved out of the hillside for Buddhist monks in the 2nd century AD, then converted to Hindu…

  • Ramappa Temple

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    The stunning Ramappa Temple, about 70km north-east of Warangal, was built in the early 13th century, and is the outstanding gem of Kakatiya architecture…

  • Dargah Yousufain Sharifain

    Hyderabad

    This is perhaps the most famous dargah (Sufi shrine) in Hyderabad, the resting place of two Sufi saints. Qawwali singers and musicians gather here every…

  • Lamakaan

    Hyderabad

    This noncommercial 'inclusive cultural space' is an open centre that hosts plays, films, musical events, exhibitions, organic markets and lectures; some…

  • Venkateshwara Temple

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    Legends about the hill itself and the surrounding area appear in the Puranas, and the temple’s history may date back 2000 years. Devotees flock to…

  • Guntupalli

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This former monastic compound, on a hilltop overlooking a vast expanse of forest and paddy fields, is well off the beaten path and makes a very scenic…

  • HEH The Nizam’s Museum

    Hyderabad

    The Purani Haveli was a home of the sixth nizam, Mahbub Ali Khan (r 1869–1911). He was rumoured to have never worn the same thing twice: hence the 54m…

  • Mecca Masjid

    Hyderabad

    This mosque is one of the world’s largest, with 10,000 men praying here at major Muslim festivals, and also one of Hyderabad's oldest buildings, begun in…

  • Sri Kalahasteeswara Temple

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    The holy town of Sri Kalahasti, 37km east of Tirupati, is known for its Sri Kalahasteeswara Temple, dedicated to Shiva. There's been a temple here since…

  • Thotlakonda

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This scenic hilltop site, once a large monastery, merits visiting for those interested in Buddhism or archaeology. Its name comes from the nine cisterns…

  • Kalakriti Art Gallery

    Hyderabad

    One of the city's best contemporary galleries, Kalakriti hosts excellent exhibitions by some of India's leading artists, and collaborative programme's…

  • British Residency

    Hyderabad

    This palatial Palladian residence, built in 1803–06 by James Achilles Kirkpatrick, the British Resident (official East India Company representative) in…

  • Amaravathi Stupa

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This historic site was the earliest centre of Buddhism in southern India, with the nation's biggest stupa, 27m high and 49m across, constructed in the 3rd…

  • Moula Ali Dargah

    Hyderabad

    Out on the city's northeastern fringes, the dramatic rock mound of Moula Ali hill has long-distance views, cool breezes and at the top, up 500 steps, a…

  • Veerbhadra Temple

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This temple’s Naga-lingam (a phallic representation of Shiva) is crowned with a seven-headed cobra. Check out its unfinished Kalyana Mandapam (Marriage…

  • Fort

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    Warangal’s fort, on the southern edge of town, was a massive construction with three circles of walls (the outermost 7km in circumference). Most of it now…

  • Badshahi Ashurkhana

    Hyderabad

    The 1594 Badshahi Ashurkhana (literally Royal House of Mourning) was one of the first structures built by the Qutb Shahs in their new city of Hyderabad…

  • Buddha Statue & Hussain Sagar

    Hyderabad

    Set magnificently on a plinth in the Hussain Sagar, a lake created by the Qutb Shahs, is a colossal stone statue of the Buddha (18m tall). The Dalai Lama…

  • State Museum

    Hyderabad

    This sprawling museum is in a fanciful Indo-Saracenic building constructed by the seventh nizam as a playhouse for one of his daughters. It hosts a…

  • Birla Mandir

    Hyderabad

    The ethereal Birla Mandir, constructed of white Rajasthani marble in 1976, graces Kalapahad (Black Mountain), one of two rocky hills overlooking the lake…

  • Salar Jung Museum

    Hyderabad

    This vast collection was amassed by Mir Yousuf Ali Khan (Salar Jung III), who was briefly grand vizier to the seventh nizam. The 39 galleries include…

  • Nagarjunakonda Museum

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    The thoughtfully laid-out Nagarjunakonda Museum has Buddha statues and some superbly detailed carvings depicting local contemporary life and the Buddha's…

  • Sri Parvata Arama

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This Buddhism heritage park, featuring a recreation of the huge Amaravathi stupa, is 8km north of the dam. It's been under construction by the state…

  • 1000-Pillared Temple

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    The 1000-Pillared Temple, constructed in the 12th century, is in a leafy setting and is a fine example of Kakatiya architecture and sculpture. Unusually,…

  • Amaravathi Museum

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This small museum has a fine collection of intricate stone sculptures from the adjacent site and other pieces from across the state, most dating from the…

  • Bhongir Fort

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    The ramparts and ruined remains of this fantastical-looking 12th-century Chalukyan hill fort sit on what resembles a gargantuan stone egg on the eastern…

  • Palace Area

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    At the Chandragiri Fort complex, the palace area contains nice gardens and the Raja Mahal, a heavily restored Vijayanagar palace reminiscent of Hampi…

  • Bavikonda

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    Bavikonda was a hilltop Buddhist monastery with massive rainwater tanks and a natural well. It flourished from around the 3rd century BC to the 3rd…

  • Svayambhu Temple

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    At the centre of Warangal fort are the partly reassembled remains of this huge Shaivite temple, with four handsome, large torana gateways standing at its…

  • Borra Caves

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    Illuminated with fancy lighting, the huge million-year-old limestone Borra Caves are 38km before Araku town and can be combined with a visit to the Araku…

  • Museum of Habitat

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This museum has extensive exhibits on the tribal peoples of eastern Andhra Pradesh, including full-scale mock-ups of hunting, ceremonial and other scenes,…

  • Mir Alam Mandi

    Hyderabad

    On the east side of Patthargatti, the (mainly) wholesale vegetable market of Mir Alam Mandi has all kinds of fresh produce sold by market traders. There…

  • Coffee Museum

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    Small museum inside the Araku Valley Coffee House. The origin of coffee in East Africa and its cultivation in the Araku Valley are explained. Most local…

  • Dhyana Buddha Statue

    Telangana & Andhra Pradesh

    This giant 38m statue of a seated Buddha is located on the edge of town, on the site where the Dalai Lama spoke in 2006. Its base is hollow, and when you…

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