Kolkata (Calcutta)
Set very attractively amid palms and manicured lawns, this large religious centre is the headquarters of the Ramakrishna Mission, inspired by 19th-century…
Must-see attractions in Kolkata (Calcutta)
Kolkata (Calcutta)
The incredible Victoria Memorial is a vast, beautifully proportioned festival of white marble: think US Capitol meets Taj Mahal. Had it been built for a…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Despite being an awkward journey by public transport, Kolkata’s lovely 109-hectare Botanical Gardens makes for a great place to escape from the city’s…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Countless clay effigies of deities and demons immersed in the Hooghly during Kolkata’s colourful pujas (offering or prayers) are created in specialist…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Built in 1835 by a raja from the prosperous Mallick family, this resplendent mansion is as grand as it is curious. Its marble-draped halls are overstuffed…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
India's biggest and oldest major museum celebrated its bicentenary in February 2014. It's mostly a lovably old-fashioned place that fills a large…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
The stately 1784 family mansion of Rabindranath Tagore has become a shrine-like museum to India’s greatest modern poet. Even if his personal effects don’t…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
This ancient Kali temple is Kolkata’s holiest spot for Hindus, and possibly the source of the city’s name. Today’s version is the 1809 rebuild, with…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Loosely styled on Sanchi’s iconic Buddhist stupa, this 1962 planetarium presents slow-moving, half-hour audiovisual programs on the wonders of the…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
The 1905 former Chartered Bank Building is a five-storey red-and-white block with side turrets, domes and a vaguely Moorish touch to the design. Higher…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
A vast expanse of green in the heart of the city's brick-and-mortar matrix, the Maidan is where Kolkata's residents congregate for walks, spirited cricket…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Marked by a distinctive red-brick clocktower, this enormous warren of market halls dates to 1874, but was substantially rebuilt after a 1980s fire. By day…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Literally meaning 'House of God', this atmospheric synagogue's front facade looks a little like a 1930s cinema. Within the building (dating back to 1856),…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Howrah Bridge is a 705m-long abstraction of shiny steel cantilevers and rivets, which serves as a carriageway of nonstop human and motorised traffic…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Kolkata’s 16-hectare zoo opened its doors in 1875 as one of British India's showpiece zoological gardens, but has gradually dropped in stature and…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Hidden away amid the bustle of Old China Bazaar St, the 1707 Armenian Church is considered to be Kolkata’s oldest place of Christian worship. It has a…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
The heart of this vibrant riverside complex is the cream-and-red, multiturreted 1847 Kali Temple shaped like the Sacré-Cœur. The site is where the Bengali…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
It’s fascinating to look inside this unpretentious high-ceilinged restaurant that was once a meeting place of alternative Kolkata. The cheap, dishwater…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
This stone-spired 1787 church is ringed by columns and contains a small, portrait-draped room once used as an office by Warren Hastings, India’s first…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Exhibitions of contemporary artworks by Indian and international artists in diverse media are spread through four spacious rooms of this classic Kolkata…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
A graceful 20th-century structure built in cream-coloured sandstone, this temple is consecrated to the Hindu gods Narayan (Vishnu) and his wife Lakshmi…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Dominating the upper Maidan near Esplanade bus station, Shahid Minar is a 48m-tall round-topped hollow column commemorating martyrs of the Indian…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Celebrating the life and vision of controversial Bengali leader and pro-Independence radical Subhas Chandra Bose is this house-turned-museum, which also…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
The lakes here prettily reflect hazy sunrises, while middle-class Kolkatans jog, row and meditate around the tree-shaded parkland that was once the site…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Arguably Kolkata's most iconic Gothic superstructure, decorated with a central crenellated tower, St Paul’s would look quite at home in Cambridgeshire but…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Priceless antique Indian sculptures, brasswork and terracotta objects of art are mundanely displayed along with a diverse array of collected treasures in…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Active from 1767 to about 1840, this historic cemetery remains a wonderful oasis of calm, featuring surreal mossy Raj-era graves from rotundas to soaring…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
The imposing colonnaded cube of the former Town Hall Building dates from 1814. It now hosts Kolkata Panorama, an introduction to the city’s heritage…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Located amid the din and chaos of Rabindra Sarani, the 1926 red-sandstone Nakhoda Mosque rises impressively above the bustling shopfronts of its…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
With graceful corner towers and large window arches, the 1905 Metropolitan Building was originally the Whiteway and Laidlaw department store. It takes its…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
At the rear northwest corner of St John's Church grounds, there's a small gated cemetery partly paved with 18th-century grave stones. The centrepiece of…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
All along the Hooghly riverbanks, strung along leafy cobbled promenades, lie a number of ghats or piers, which make for an excellent outing in the early…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Revolutionary nationalist-turned-guru Sri Aurobindo – who later went on to establish the famous ashram at Auroville near Pondicherry – was born in…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
A cutting-edge contemporary-art gallery located on the 2nd floor of an upmarket South Kolkata building complex, CIMA is a great place to check out works…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
A regular flow of mostly Christian pilgrims visits the Missionaries of Charity’s 'Motherhouse' to pay homage at Mother (and now Saint) Teresa’s large,…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
One of Kolkata’s greatest architectural triumphs, the High Court building was built between 1864 and 1872, loosely modelled on the medieval Cloth Hall in…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
A hidden island of tranquillity in the heart of Kolkata, this delightful garden complex offers visitors an opportunity to acquaint themselves with…
Birla Academy of Art & Culture
Kolkata (Calcutta)
This multistorey gallery displays frequently changing exhibitions from contemporary Indian and international artists. There's also an auditorium to the…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Near the southeast end of Howrah Bridge, this flower market is fascinatingly colourful virtually 24 hours a day. However, if you visit at daybreak, you'll…
Kolkata (Calcutta)
Somewhat resembling the US White House, the grand Raj Bhavan was designed in 1799 along the lines of Kedleston Hall, the Derbyshire home of the Curzon…
