Attractions for Tourists to Visit in Araku Valley

The Araku valley is one of the most preferred places for honeymoon, holiday and a getaway place from the busy schedules of city life. The serene environment encompasses of deep valleys, high mountains, the fresh aroma of coffee gardens and other places categorized as Araku Valley tourist attractions. 

Apart from the famous Borra Caves, there are a number of places to visit in Araku valley and to visit these lesser known places, one has to spend over a week in this area. Located in the state of Andhra Pradesh, Araku Valley offers trekking, bird watching, museum, temples and waterfalls as part of holidaying experience. 

The sharp bends on the mountain roads are exciting to travel and one can opt for the customized tour packages offered by the Andhra Pradesh State Tourism Development Corporation or other private players. The Araku Valley tourist attractions include the historical temple of Matsyalingeshwara Swamy, dedicated to Lord Shiva who was the rescuer of the Fishermen seeking shelter from the attack of snakes. The temple is said to be centuries old standing as a witness to the fearful life led by the fishermen of yesteryears threatened by the attack of snakes. 

The Tyda village and park is the picnic spot where one can adventure trekking, viewing the wildlife and birds. The nurseries and tribal lifestyle is best depicted here. The Padmapuram botanical gardens maintain the tree huts hired to couples. 

No need to mention the excitement at naturally formed caves named as Borra caves. The depth and height of the caves is a wonder while it is believed that the Shiva deity at the entrance protects the visitors entering the caves. 

Sangda waterfalls, Dumbriguda Falls and the Katiki falls offer the best picnic spots for the tourists coming to Araku valley. The roads leading to these falls are filled with loads of coffee plantations. The berries hanging from these plantations emanate the aroma of fresh coffee and one would not want to miss out a hot cup of coffee sitting in the lap of Mother Nature. One can also get the feel of Portuguese life style at Bheemipuram beach which houses the historical structures which was inhabited by Portuguese few centuries ago. 

Coming to food, one can tickle their taste buds with the spicy bamboo chicken (chicken cooked on wild bamboo sticks). Places to visit in Araku Valley also include the tribal museum depicting the handicrafts where the tourists can pick up a few items made of clay as gifting options.

Araku Tribal Museum - Explores the Tribal Culture of Eastern Ghats

The museum was started in February 1996 and is famous to be home to the marvelous tribes of Araku Valley. The Araku Tribal museum is unique in its own way displaying the lifestyle of the natives of the valley natives. It shows how the tribes lived, their cultural customs, traditions, social and economic lifestyle. Building the museum with mud and metals was an excellent way of portraying the authenticity and feel of the local tribes.

The aim of any museum is to preserve the city or region’s tradition and culture and any arts and artefacts of the natives found in and around the region and Araku Tribal Museum display all of these. The museum showcases the handicrafts and arts of the ancient tribes, it shows the original and significant nature of the local tribes. It also houses the finest textiles from the Northern Andhra. 

Architecture of Museum

The architecture of the museum has two levels out of which one showcases artefacts from tribal culture of Eastern Ghats. It displays beautifully designed tribal ware including the kitchen utensils which are made of iron or mud, the passage joining various sections of the museum is decorated with tribal art and drawings. While one of the sections has the houses on display showing the different hierarchies in the tribal system, other section shows colorful mannequins decorated in vibrant tribal clothes displaying the local folk/tribal dances.

Next level of museum has various stalls setup for the local tribal artisans to promote and sell their handicrafts or art work. A Tribal Arts and Craft Center is also set up to promote the unknown facts and history of the local tribal art and culture of the region. They also offer stay to the visitors, accommodation includes 10 double rooms, cafeteria and other public conveniences.

Attractions

There are other attractions for visitors like a fortune teller, the interesting fact about them is that they have parrots which can speak in the local language. There also is a coffee museum and a shop where a visitor can refresh and relish the local delicacies.

Best Time to Visit

Araku Valley has a pleasant climate throughout the year but October to March would be the best time to visit the museum.

Timings

Tourists and visitors are allowed entry into the museum from 10:00 am to 5:00 pm every day.

Tourist Attractions Around Araku Valley

The narrow roads and dangerous bends of the mountain roads are exciting to travel. There are a number of tour packages offering excitement and local tour to Araku valleys. Apart from the hilly roads, there are other attractions awaiting the tourists, discussed here:

Sri Matyalingeshwara Swamy

This century old temple has the presiding deity of Lord Sri Matyalingeshwara Swamy, considered to have rescued the fishermen from snakes. The deity then conceded to the request of the fishermen to visit their village and the village is named after Him as Matsya gundam, translated to English as “pool of fish”.

Coffee Plantations 

Araku Valleys are known for coffee plantations and the fresh aroma of coffee that emanates there from. The berries hanging from the shrubs and trees of coffee plants are a sight to watch.

Padmapuran Botanical Garden 

This Garden is maintained by the administrative wing of the State Tourism department housing a couple of tree huts. The kids can enjoy toy train ride while adults can spend time in the nurseries looking at variety of flowers and swings in the park.

Tyda Village and Park 

This is a picnic spot developed by the Tourism Department to encourage the tribal communities. Bird watching, trekking and wildlife viewing is some of the activities that is offered by this welcoming village of Araku Valleys.

Borra Caves 

Borra caves are formed naturally and is a must visit place in Araku. The Shiva temple at the entrance of cave is considered to protect people entering the cave from all dangers. The height and depth of the cave is a wonder to watch.

Dumbriguda Fall

The waterfalls in Paderu Village are a picnic spot that washes away all the thoughts of tension in life. This is a tiny village offering excellent picnic opportunity where one can spend one whole day without getting bored.

Sangda Waterfalls 

Sangda Waterfalls are smaller in height and is located in Sangda Village, making it a picnic spot to spend time in Araku valley region.

Katiki Falls

At this place, apart from viewing the waterfalls, one can taste the tribal spicy food of Bamboo-chicken.

Matsyagundam 

This place is famous for the folk tale relating to the fight between snakes and fishermen. Though there is no fishing allowed or snakes in this village, people still visit to bask in the joy of nature.

Bheemunipatnam Beach 

Considered to be inhabited by Portuguese in the past, this place is in proximity to Araku valley. The tall coconut trees and remnants of Portugal history makes this place a tourist spot.

Araku Tribal Museum 

The art and craft of the tribal people can be seen in person at the Araku Tribal Museum. Shopping enthusiasts can pick some handicraft or clay made items to take back home. The life and style of tribal’s are well depicted in the museum, making it a house of information.

Araku Valley - Soothing Hill Station of South

Located in Vizag district in the state of Andhra Pradesh, Araku Valley is one of the well known hill stations in Southern part of India. It is located in Eastern Ghats on the geographical borders of Orissa and Andhra Pradesh. This place is inhabited by various tribal communities. Araku is placed at an altitude of about 600-900 m above sea level and covers an area of 36 kilometers. The Araku valley is yet to tap its commercial and tourism potential. With its thick forests and Ghat roads, Araku makes an interesting trekking destination for enthusiasts looking for trekking adventures. Coffee plantations at Ananatagiri hills and Borra caves are other nearby attractions for tourists. One has to passby 46 tunnels and an equal number of bridges through the Eastern Ghats to reach this less polluted tourist spot. One can enjoy the pollution free weather, smooth valleys and exciting hills in Araku Valley.

Location

The forests of Sunkarimetta and Ananatagiri hills forming part of Araku Valley are known for various biological species of animals, birds, flowers and plants. Galikonda hills located at height of 5000 ft (1500 m) are the highest amongst Sunkarimetta, Chitamogondi and Raktakonda hills of Araku Valley. It is also the highest mountain in the State of Andhra Pradesh. Located at a height of 911 metres (2989 ft) above sea level, Araku receives most of the rainfall during June to October, when the rainfall reaches an average of 1700mm (1500m). The Araku valley is geographically located at 82.8667°E and 18.3333°N.

Best time to Visit

When whole of India sweats out in summer, Araku stays away from sweat with temperature ranging from 18-28 degrees Celsius, peak being 24°C. This makes summer of Araku a lucrative time to visit. In contrast, during winter season, the temperature in Araku drops to 5° C requiring people to be equipped with protective clothing to spend the night. During June to October, Araku Valley experiences Monsoon when heavy rainfalls cause occasional landslides. These result in disturbance to routine schedule and travel also. Therefore, tourists are advised to opt either summer or winter seasons to visit Araku valley and avoid Monsoon season.

Weather

As mentioned already, the altitude of Araku valley is 2900 ft above sea level and this makes even the summer as cool as winter in other parts of South India. The winters, no need to mention will have dropping temperatures up to 5 °C in December to February months. Travelers are advised to carry along warm rugs, shoes and avail heater equipped hotel/resort rooms to withstand the rapidly dropping night temperatures in Araku.

In contrast, the summer season has an average temperature of 24°C with peaks going to 28 °C. This is the pleasant time to visit Araku valley. Lucky tourists can also experience cool breeze due to the tall trees during summer, which is quite rare occasion. Some summers here also experienced slight rainfall, a wonder in Eastern Ghats.

The monsoon months experience bad weather with constant rainfalls and occasional landslides making it dangerous for tourists to enjoy the nature. October is the peak of monsoon season where the cool breeze suddenly turns to heavy downpour. Hence, raingears and protective clothing is suggested for rain sensitive tourists. People are advised to avoid visiting this place and risk their lives during monsoon season.

Festivals

The Dhimsa dance performed during April month signifies the hunting festival of Itika Pongal by the tribal communities in Araku. This is an age-old fashioned dance flowing down the generations of the folk-lore in Araku. Andhra Pradesh tourism also encourages the celebration of Visakha Utsav in Vizag during January, exclusively for “Vizagites”.

Places to Stay

Araku is a hill station in Andhra Pradesh famous for coffee plantations and pure honey, derived fresh from forests. Some of the hotels and resorts providing such facilities are the State owned Harita Valley Resort, Jungle Bells in Tyda or the privately owned Punnami resorts, Mayuri Hill resorts, Ushodaya Resorts, Chandrika guest House, Holiday Inn Vihar or the ITDC tribal cottages. One has many options to choose from during the stay at Araku, but when a visit is planned in peak holiday season, it is advised to have a pre-booking done to avoid last moment disappointments.

Activities to Do

Adventurous tourists can try their hands at trekking, and rock climbing during their stay at Araku Valley. Alternatively, for nature lovers, Araku offers wild life viewing and bird watching at Tyda Park on the roads to Araku Valley. Wild animals and wild birds of exclusive species, not seen in any other part of India can be viewed here. Araku and Tyda, a house for biological diversity, offers both camping option with proximity to wild life, a best combination for nature lovers. Also, one can explore the tribal culture through a visit to the tribal museum which is a house of tribal handicrafts.

How to Reach

To reach Araku by air, one has to take a flight from their respective place to reach Visakhapatnam airport, the nearest one. From there, take the local transport of road or rely on Eastern Coastal railways. Alternatively, one can opt for privately hired vehicles or other public transport through the Eastern Ghats from Vizag that pass through curvy and exciting roads. Also, the East Coast Railway has provided a couple of trains commuting to and from Araku Valley and Vizag. This route is mesmerizing with tunnels and bridges with forests on either side covering the Ghat section.