Lapped by the Bay of Bengel, on the eastern part of Andhra Pradesh lies the beach city, Vishakapatnam. Ages ago there stood a temple on the shores dedicated to Vaisaka, the God of Valour in the Hindu pantheon. The mighty sea has since swept away the shrine, but the name survived for identifying the now sprawling City of Visakhapatnam.

GENERAL INFORMATION

Altitude: 4.5. metres.
Temparature (deg C): Summer- Max.39, Min.28; Winter- Max.29, min.19.
Rainfall: 89 cms.
Season: All round the year.
STD Code:

HOW TO GET THERE

 
• Air : Vishakapatnam is air linked with Calcutta, Hyderabad and Madras, which in turn is connected by Indian Airlines with Bombay.

Fare: Calcutta-Vishakhapatnam Rs.1693/- Madras-Vishakhapatnam Rs.1336/-
• Rail: Visakhapatnam is well connected with all the important cities of India, some of which are Vijayawada, Vizianagaram, Cuttack, Bhubaneswar, Berhampur (for Gopalpur), Warangal, Hyderabad, Pune, Bombay, Calcutta, Delhi, Madras, Nellore, Tirupati, Guwahati and Trivandrum.
• Road: Vishakapatnam is connected by good motorable road with some cities, few kilometre distances:- Araku Valley- 120 kms, Arasavalli- 110 kms, Bheemunipatnam- 29 kms, Bhubaneshwar- 426 kms, Calcutta- 879 kms, Cuttack- 444 kms, Delhi- 1861 kms, Hyderabad- 637 kms, Jagdalpur- 304 kms, Kakinad- 165 kms, Koraput- 198 kms, Madras- 799 kms, Rajamundhry- 199 kms, Tirupati - 746 kms, Simhachalam- 16 kms, Vijayawada- 366 kms, Vizianagaram- 60 kms, Warangal- 619 kms.
• Sea : Vishakapatnam is connected by sea to Calcutta, Madras, Port Blair, Ganjam, and Kakinada among other places.
• Bus : Regular State Transport buses run between Vishakapatnam and Hyderabad, Madras, Bhubaneswar, Jagdalpur, Koraput, Berhampur, Tirupati, Nellore, Vijayawada, Rajamundhry, Eleru, Kakinada, Warangal, Srikakulam, Araku, Vizianagaram, Bheemunipatnam, Simhachalam, Tuni, Machilipatnam, Guntur and among other places. Also regular city bus services connect places of interest in the City with each other.
• Local Transport: Coaches, Tourist Taxis, Metred Taxis, Autorickshaws, Cycle rickshaws available.

Andhra Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation (APTDC) conducts following sight seeing tours, Tel: 46446.

Tours Frequency Tariff Full Half
1. City Tour Daily Rs. 50/- Rs. 25/-
2. Konark-Puri- Every Saturday Rs. 400/- Rs. 275/-

Bhubaneshwar 
3. Araku Valley Daily Rs. 85/- Rs. 45/-
4. South India Tour Every 3rd Saturday Rs. 2300/- Rs. 1800/-
5. Arasuvelli Rs. 75/- Rs. 40/-
6. Annavaram Rs. 75/- Rs. 40/-
7. Andhra Pradesh Every month Rs. 1270/- Rs. 825/-

Temple Tour 

WHAT TO SEE

Andhra University Building- 4 kms, Dolphin's Nose, Sri Venkateswara

Konda, Hindusthan Shipyard- 6.4 kms, Simachalam Temple (The temple is dedicated to Lord Narashimha)- 16 kms, The Three Hillocks- 5 kms, Indira Gandhi Zoological Gardens, Port- 6.4 kms, Visakha refinery.

EXCURSIONS

Anantagiri (88 km.), Araku Valley (120 km.), Arasavalli (110 km.), Bheemunipatnam (29 km.), Borra Caves (90 km.), Chintapalli (165 km.), Coringa (177 km.), Draksharama (176 km.), Kakinada (165 km.), Kalingapatnam (143 km.), Kondakarla Ava (48 km.), Sankaram (45 km.), Vizianagaram (60 km.), Yanam (213 km).

TOURIST INFORMATION CENTRES

Reginal Tourist information Bureau, Govt. of Andhra Pradesh,Hotel Apsara Arcade, Vishakapatnam- 24 Tel.63016.
 
HOTELS IN VISAKHAPATNAM

Some of the Hotels in Visakhapatnam