Morning Boat Ride with Temples Tour

Highlights

Inclusions

Itinerary

1. Starting early morning at 5:00 am, driver will pick you up from the hotel. You’ll now proceed to Assi Ghat, for a perfect start to the day, to attend the soul-stirring spectacle of Ganga Aarti (river worship ritual of the holy Ganges) at Assi Ghat. Sight the riverside lit up with earthen lamps, priests perform well-choreographed religious rituals and chant holy mantras with chorus from the devotees and locals gathered there, the echo of the conch shell being played, aroma of fresh flowers and the burning incense sticks, all make for an unforgettable experience of Varanasi.

   1 h

2. After the Ganga Aarti, you’ll proceed for sightseeing of Varanasi on foot. A little ahead near Tulsi Ghat you’ll visit the Lolark Kund - a sacred pond and one of the most ancient site present in Varanasi. Many come here to pray for a son/offspring by taking a dip in the waters at sunrise. Afterward, make an interesting visit to the Akhada (a traditional Indian wrestling joint). At the Akhada, watch wrestlers perform physical training using traditional tools of exercise or even watch them doing kushti (wrestling) on fresh mud pits. Next move towards Tulsi Ghat, one of the most important ghat in Varanasi, named after the great Hindu saint and poet Tulsi Das. Located close to the ghat, you’ll visit the Durga Kund (pool) located on the premises of the old 18th century Durga Temple also known as the Monkey Temple, owing to the presence of large number of monkeys in its premises.

   2 h

3. Now reach Assi Ghat and walk down the stairs of ghat to take a peaceful morning boat ride on the Ganges River. The boat ride is like a ferry pilgrimage, sailing from one ghat to the other, along the course of the Ganges. Observe the captivating morning activities unfold at sunrise on the banks of the river Ganges. Sight pilgrims bathing and offering prayers to the deities, holy men (sadhu and pandits) performing ancient rituals and more. Your boat ride ends at Dashashwamedha Ghat, one of the most prominent and liveliest ghats in Varanasi. The name Dashashwamedha indicates sacrifice of ten horses, which was performed by Lord Brahma, as per Hindu myth. At Dashashwamedh Ghat you’ll take a rickshaw ride till PDR Mall Box Office at Luxa Road. After capturing wonderful memories for the day, driver will drop you at the hotel.

   1.5 h

Cancellation

Free cancellation up to 24 hours before the experience starts, for a full refund.

Reviews

Ratings come from 3 reviews collected by our booking partner. They are travellers' own words, in the order they were written — never reordered to flatter the experience.

Know before you go

How it compares in Varanasi

• Its from-price is 25% above the median of the 494 experiences we list in Varanasi.
• It is shorter than most of them.
• By number of reviews it ranks 180 of 494.
• The operator lists free cancellation on it.

About Varanasi

Varanasi, on the Ganges in Uttar Pradesh, is one of the oldest living cities in the world, a sacred place of river steps, temples and silk looms.

Varanasi, also called Benares or Kashi, has been a place of pilgrimage for thousands of years, and Hindus come to bathe in the Ganges, to pray, and to die. Along the west bank, about eighty ghats, broad stone stairways, descend to the water, among them Dashashwamedh Ghat, where lamps and chanting mark the evening aarti ceremony. The Kashi Vishwanath Temple, dedicated to Shiva, stands in the old city's maze of narrow lanes.

Top-ranked sights in Varanasi: Manikarnika Ghat, Dashashwamedh Ghat, Ganges River (Ganga).

See all 494 experiences in Varanasi