Varanasi Sunrise Boat Tour

Highlights

Inclusions

Itinerary

1. Dashaswamedh Ghat:- Dashashwamedh ghat is one of the oldest, most spectacular and important ghat, located at the bank of the river Gange near to the old Vishwanath Temple in the Kashi. The literal meaning of the Dashashwamedh is the Ghat (river front) of the ten sacrificed horses (dash means 10, ashwa means horse, medh means sacrifice). There are two mythologies about the ghat is that the Lord Brahma was created the Dashashwamedh ghat in order to welcome the Lord Shiva, and the second one is the Lord Brahma was sacrificed the ten horses in a yajna here. This ghat is famous for the Agni Pooja which is held here daily in the evening by a group of the priest who are dedicated to the Lord Shiva, River Ganges, Surya, Agni as well as the whole universe.

   20 min

2. Built under the directions of the Peshwa Amritrao of Pune in 1807 RajaGhat was described as Amritrao Ghat by James Prinsep in 1831 and Grimes in 1909. Scattered in a massive area, the south of Ghat has Annapurna Math and the northern part has a fortress.

   20 min

3. Harish Chandra ghat is one of the two cremation ghats and is also known as Adi Manikarnika, which means the original creation ground. It is much smaller than Manikarnika that is a more significant ghat for cremation. However, Hindus come from distant places to this ghat to have their dead cremated here as many believe that they would get moksha (salvation). This is one of the oldest ghats in the holy city of Varanasi and has been named after mythological king Harish Chandra. It is said that the king once worked on this ghat for the perseverance of truth and charity. The gods impressed with his endeavours rewarded him and restored his lost kingdom and dead son to him. The ghat was modernised in 1980s when an electric crematorium was established here.

   20 min

4. Manikarnika is one of the five major and oldest pilgrimages and ghats of Kashi. This ghat was named Manikarnika because of the Manikarnika Kund situated on the ghat and the story associated with it. It is known that in the beginning this ghat was one of the major Vishnu pilgrimages and Manikarnika Kund situated at the ghat was known as Chakrapushkarni. According to the belief, when Shiva Parvati was observing the pond, the gem of Parvati's ear fell in Chakrapushkarni. It was named Manikarnika because of the fall of Parvati's ear gem. Presently, this ghat of Kashi is famous for both pilgrimage and cremation ground. This ghat has special importance from the point of view of religious-cultural activities and bathers. There is a special importance of bathing here on the festivals of Sun-lunar eclipse, Prabodhini and Nirjala Ekadashi, Makar and Aries Sankranti, Ganga Dussehra, Teej, Kajri, Chhath, Bhaiya Dooj etc.

   20 min

Cancellation

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

Reviews

Ratings come from 15 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 46% below the median of the 494 experiences we list in Varanasi.
• It is shorter than most of them.
• By number of reviews it ranks 80 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