Must-see attractions in Maharashtra

  • Kailas Temple, Ellora

    Kailasa Temple

    Maharashtra

    One of India’s greatest monuments, this astonishing temple, carved from solid rock, was built by King Krishna I in AD 760 to represent Mt Kailasa (Kailash…

  • Bibi-qa-Maqbara in Aurangabad

    Bibi-qa-Maqbara

    Aurangabad

    Built by Aurangzeb’s son Azam Khan in 1679 as a mausoleum for his mother Rabia-ud-Daurani, Bibi-qa-Maqbara is widely known as the poor man’s Taj. With its…

  • Ellora caves, Aurangabad

    Ajanta Caves

    Maharashtra

    Ajanta’s caves line a steep face of a horseshoe-shaped gorge bordering the Waghore River. Five of the caves are chaityas (assembly or prayer halls) while…

  • Women and girls washing clothes in holy bathing tank, the Ramkund.

    Ramkund

    Nashik

    This sacred River Godavari bathing ghat in the heart of Nashik’s old quarter, a Kumbh Mela venue, sees hundreds of Hindu pilgrims arriving daily to bathe,…

  • Sula Vineyards

    Nashik

    Sula Vineyards, located 15km west of Nashik, commands around 65% of the Indian wine market. It offers a slick, professional tour (around 45 minutes) of…

  • Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve

    Maharashtra

    One of the best places to see tigers in India, the seldom-visited Tadoba-Andhari Tiger Reserve, 150km south of Nagpur, is now much more accessible thanks…

  • Shree Chhatrapati Shahu Museum

    Maharashtra

    ‘Bizarre’ takes on a whole new meaning at this ‘new’ palace, an Indo-Saracenic behemoth designed by British architect ‘Mad’ Charles Mant for the Kolhapur…

  • Ellora Cave Temples

    Maharashtra

    The saga of the hammer and chisel comes full circle at the Unesco World Heritage-listed Ellora cave temples, located 30km from Aurangabad. The pinnacle of…

  • Joshi's Museum of Miniature Railway

    Pune

    Inside the small Soudamini Instruments factory in eastern Pune is what is claimed to be India's only miniature city, the lifelong obsession of model train…

  • Lion Point

    Maharashtra

    This wildly panoramic viewpoint 12km south of Lonavla is one of the resort town's best non-kitschy sights. On a clear day, small waterfalls are visible…

  • Raja Dinkar Kelkar Museum

    Pune

    An oddball of a museum that’s one of Pune’s true delights, housing only a fraction of the 20,000-odd objects of Indian daily life painstakingly collected…

  • Mahalaxmi Mandir

    Maharashtra

    One of Maharashtra’s most important and vibrant places of worship, the Mahalaxmi Temple is dedicated to Amba Bai (Mother Goddess). The temple’s origins…

  • Fort

    Daulatabad Fort

    Maharashtra

    No trip to Aurangabad is complete without a pit stop at the ruined but truly magnificent hilltop fortress of Daulatabad, about 15km away from town en…

  • May 2017: Visitors explore a temple inside the Ellora Caves.

    Buddhist Caves

    Maharashtra

    Calm and contemplation infuse the 12 Buddhist caves, which stretch to the south of Kailasa. All are Buddhist viharas (monasteries) used for study and…

  • Aga Khan palace

    Aga Khan Palace

    Pune

    The grand Aga Khan Palace is set in a peaceful wooded 6.5-hectare plot northeast of the centre. Built in 1892 by Sultan Aga Khan III, this graceful…

  • Hindu Caves

    Maharashtra

    Drama and excitement characterise the Hindu group (Caves 13 to 29). In terms of scale, creative vision and skill of execution, these caves are in a league…

  • Jain Caves

    Maharashtra

    The five Jain caves, the last created at Ellora, may lack the ambitious size of the best Hindu temples, but they are exceptionally detailed, with some…

  • Trimbakeshwar Temple

    Maharashtra

    The moody Trimbakeshwar Temple stands in the centre of Trimbak, 33km west of Nashik. It’s one of India’s most sacred temples, containing a highly…

  • Sinhagad

    Maharashtra

    The ruined Sinhagad, about 24km southwest of Pune, was wrested by Maratha leader Shivaji from the Bijapur kings in 1670. In the epic battle (where he lost…

  • Karla Caves

    Maharashtra

    Karla Cave, the largest early chaitya (Buddhist temple) in India, is reached by a 20-minute climb from a mini bazaar at the base of a hill. Completed in…

  • Alamgir Dargah

    Maharashtra

    Emperor Aurangzeb, the last of the Mughal greats, is entombed in the courtyard of this simple (and somewhat unwelcoming) shrine. Despite matching the…

  • Pratapgad Fort

    Maharashtra

    Pratapgad Fort, built by Shivaji in 1656 (and still owned by his descendants), straddles a high mountain ridge 24km northwest of the town of Mahabaleshwar…

  • Sevagram Ashram

    Maharashtra

    Sevagram (Village of Service) was chosen by Mahatma Gandhi as his base during the Indian Independence Movement. Throughout the freedom struggle, the…

  • Cave 1

    Maharashtra

    Cave 1, a Mahayana vihara, was one of the last to be excavated and is the most beautifully decorated. This is where you’ll find a rendition of the…

  • Grover Zampa

    Nashik

    Indian wine pioneers first produced juice with imported French vines at their Karnataka estate in 1982. Today it's easily India's most lauded winery (113…

  • Aurangabad Caves

    Aurangabad

    Architecturally speaking, the Aurangabad Caves aren’t a patch on Ellora or Ajanta, but they do shed light on early Buddhist architecture and make for a…

  • Cave 17

    Maharashtra

    With carved dwarfs supporting the pillars, cave 17 has Ajanta’s best-preserved and most varied paintings. Famous images include a princess applying make…

  • Archaeological Excavations at Mansar

    Maharashtra

    Believed to be the excavated 5th-century remains of a temple and residential palace complex known as Pravarapura, once the capital of the Vakataka King…

  • Cave 16

    Maharashtra

    Cave 16, a vihara, contains some of Ajanta’s finest paintings and is thought to have been the original entrance to the entire complex. The best known of…

  • Panchakki

    Aurangabad

    The garden complex of Panchakki, literally meaning ‘water wheel’, takes its name from the ancient hydromill which, in its day, was considered a marvel of…

  • Soma Vine Village

    Nashik

    Soma Vine Village, 17km west of the city centre, is one of Nashik's newer wineries and offers 45-minute tours that end in a sampling plucked from its 11…

  • Lenyadri

    Maharashtra

    This group of interesting Hinayana Buddhist caves sit soaring above Lenyadri. Of the 27 caves, cave 7 is the most impressive and, interestingly, houses an…

  • Shivneri Fort

    Maharashtra

    Shivneri Fort holds the distinction of being the birthplace of Shivaji. The most important structure is Shivkunj, the pavilion in which Shivaji was born…

  • Cave 32

    Maharashtra

    Cave 32, the Indra Sabha (Assembly Hall of Indra), is the finest of the Jain temples. Its ground-floor plan is similar to that of the Kailasa, but the…

  • Pandav Leni

    Nashik

    Dating from the 1st century BC to the 2nd century AD, the 24 early Buddhist caves of Pandav Leni are located about 8km south of Nashik along the Mumbai…

  • York Winery

    Nashik

    York Winery offers tours and wine-tasting sessions in a top-floor room that has scenic views of the lake and surrounding hills. Four reds, including its…

  • Motibag Talim Mandal

    Maharashtra

    Kolhapur is famed for the calibre of its Kushti wrestlers and at the Motibag Thalim you can watch young athletes train in an earthen pit. The akhara …

  • Cave 19

    Maharashtra

    Cave 19, a magnificent chaitya, has a remarkably detailed facade; its dominant feature is an impressive horseshoe-shaped window. Two fine, standing Buddha…

  • Bhaja Caves

    Maharashtra

    On the other side of the expressway from Karla Caves in a lush setting 3km off the main road, Bhaja Caves is the greener and quieter of the region's caves…

  • Cave 10

    Maharashtra

    Cave 10 is thought to be the oldest cave (200 BC) and was the first one to be spotted by the British hunting party. Similar in design to Cave 9, it is the…

    • placement: fullWidth
    • path: Destinations/POIs/superzone
    • possible size: [970, 250], [970, 90], [728, 90], [300, 250], [320, 50], [1, 1],
    • targeting:
      {
        "position": "superzone"
      }

More destinations you need to see