60 attractions in Uttaranchal (back)

Badrinath Temple
Badrinath or Badrinarayan Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu which is situated in the town of Badrinath in Uttarakhand, India. The temple and town form one of the four Char Dham and Chota Char Dham pilgrimage sites. The temple is also one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Badrinath—holy shrines for Vaishnavites. It is open for six months every year (between the end of April and the beginning of November), because of extreme weather conditions in the Himalayan region. The temple is located in Garhwal hill tracks in Chamoli district along the banks of Alaknanda River at an elevation of 3,133 m (10,279 ft) above the mean sea level. It is one of the most visited pilgrimage centers of India, having recorded 1,060,000 visits. The image of the presiding deity worshipped in the temple is a 1 ft (0.30 m), the black stone statue of Vishnu in the form of Badrinarayan. The statue is considered by many Hindus to be one of eight swayam vyakta kshetras, or self-manifested statues of Vishnu.Mata Murti Ka Mela, which commemorates the descent of river Ganges on mother earth, is the most prominent festival celebrated in the Badrinath Temple. Although Badrinath is located in North India, the head priest, or Rawal, is traditionally a Nambudiri Brahmin chosen from the South Indian state of Kerala. The temple was included in the Uttar Pradesh state government Act No. 30/1948 as Act no. 16,1939, which later came to be known as Shri Badarinath and Shri Kedarnath Mandir Act. The committee nominated by the state government administers both the temples and has seventeen members on its board. The temple is mentioned in ancient religious texts like Vishnu Purana and Skanda Purana. It is glorified in the Divya Prabandha, an early medieval Tamil canon of the Azhwar saints from the 6th–9th centuries AD.
Jim Corbett National Park
Jim Corbett National Park is the oldest national park in India and was established in 1936 as Hailey National Park to protect the endangered Bengal tiger. It is located in Nainital district and Pauri Garhwal district of Uttarakhand and was named after Jim Corbett, a well known hunter and naturalist. The park was the first to come under the Project Tiger initiative.The park has sub-Himalayan belt geographical and ecological characteristics. An ecotourism destination, it contains 488 different species of plants and a diverse variety of fauna. The increase in tourist activities, among other problems, continues to present a serious challenge to the park's ecological balance.Corbett has been a haunt for tourists and wildlife lovers for a long time. Tourism activity is only allowed in selected areas of Corbett Tiger Reserve so that people get an opportunity to see its landscape and wildlife. In recent years the number of people coming here has increased dramatically. Presently, every season more than 70,000 visitors come to the park. Corbett National Park comprises 520.8 km2 (201.1 sq mi) area of hills, riverine belts, marshy depressions, grasslands and a large lake. The elevation ranges from 1,300 to 4,000 ft (400 to 1,220 m). Winter nights are cold but the days are bright and sunny. It rains from July to September. Dense moist deciduous forest mainly consists of sal, haldu, peepal, rohini and mango trees. Forest covers almost 73% of the park, 10% of the area consists of grasslands. It houses around 110 tree species, 50 species of mammals, 580 bird species and 25 reptile species.
Kedarnath Temple
Kēdārnāth Mandir (Kedarnath Temple) is a Hindu temple (shrine) dedicated to Lord Shiva. Located on the Garhwal Himalayan range near the Mandakini river, Kedarnath is located in the state of Uttarakhand, India. Due to extreme weather conditions, the temple is open to the general public only between the months of April (Akshaya Tritriya) and November (Kartik Purnima, the autumn full moon). During the winters, the vigraha (deity) from Kedarnath temple is carried down to Ukhimath and where the deity is worshiped for the next six months. Kedarnath is seen as a homogenous form of Lord Shiva, the 'Lord of Kedar Khand', the historical name of the region.The temple is not directly accessible by road and has to be reached by a 22 kilometres (14 mi) uphill trek from Gaurikund. Pony and manchan service is available to reach the structure. According to Hindu legends, the temple was initially built by Pandavas, and is one of the twelve Jyotirlingas, the holiest Hindu shrines of Shiva. It is one of the 275 Paadal Petra Sthalams, expounded in Tevaram. Pandavas were supposed to have pleased Shiva by doing penance in Kedarnath. The temple is one of the four major sites in India's Chota Char Dham pilgrimage of Northern Himalayas. This temple is the highest among the 12 Jyotirlingas. Kedarnath was the worst affected area during the 2013 flash floods in North India. The temple complex, surrounding areas, and Kedarnath town suffered extensive damage, but the temple structure did not suffer any "major" damage, apart from a few cracks on one side of the four walls which was caused by the flowing debris from the higher mountains. A large rock among the debris acted as a barrier, protecting the temple from the flood. The surrounding premises and other buildings in the market area were heavily damaged.
Parmarth Niketan Ashram
Parmarth Niketan is an ashram located in Rishikesh, Uttarakhand, India. Parmarth Niketan is situated in the lap of the lush Himalayas, along the banks of the Ganges. The ashram was founded in 1942 by Pujya Swami Shukdevanandji Maharaj (1901–1965). Since 1986, Pujya Swami Chidanand Saraswatiji Maharaj is the President and Spiritual Head of Parmarth Niketan.As the largest ashram in Rishikesh with over 1000 rooms, Parmarth Niketan provides a clean, pure and sacred atmosphere as well as abundant, beautiful gardens to thousands of pilgrims, who come from all corners of the Earth. The daily activities at Parmarth Niketan include daily yoga specializing in Vinyasa yoga, general Hatha yoga and yoga Nidra. Daily activities also include morning universal prayers and meditation classes, daily satsang and lecture programs, kirtan, a Ganga aarti at sunset attended by hundreds of visitors each day at the shore of Ganges, as well as Nature Cure and Ayurvedic treatment and training. Parmarth Niketan is the home to a 14 feet Shiva statue on the banks of the Ganges which provides a perfect view to the ashram. The divine tree of heaven Kalpavriksha was planted at the premises of this ashram by Vijaypal Baghel of Himalaya Vahini. Additionally, there are frequently special cultural and spiritual programs given by visiting revered saints, acclaimed musicians, spiritual and social leaders, and others. There are frequent camps in which pilgrims come from across the world to take part in intensive courses on yoga, meditation, pranayama, stress management, acupressure, Reiki, Ayurveda and other ancient Indian sciences.Parmarth Niketan is also the headquarters of the Swami Shukdevanand Trust, a non-profit, religious/spiritual organization dedicated to religion, spirituality and culture, founded in 1942 by Pujya Swami Shukdevanandji Maharaj and registered in 1962 under the Societies Registration Act.Parmarth Niketan is open to all visitors, with no discrimination on the basis of race, nationality, religion, caste or creed.