Experience the best of Gaya

Gaya lies in Bihar, on the banks of the Phalgu River, whose wide sandy bed is usually dry outside the rains. For Hindus it is one of the most important places to perform rites for departed ancestors, and the Vishnupad Temple, with a footprint of Vishnu set in a block of basalt, stands on the riverbank. The temple was rebuilt in the eighteenth century by Ahilyabai Holkar of Indore.

Bodh Gaya, where the Buddha is said to have gained enlightenment beneath the Bodhi tree, lies a short distance south, with the Mahabodhi Temple on UNESCO's World Heritage list, and Gaya's airport serves it. The Barabar Hills to the north hold some of India's oldest rock-cut caves, cut in the Mauryan period, while the ruins of Nalanda and the hills of Rajgir lie further north-east.

Tilkut, a crunchy sweet of pounded sesame and jaggery, is the city's famed treat, especially in winter, and litti chokha, roasted wheat balls with mashed vegetables, is the local staple. During Pitru Paksha, a fortnight in the autumn, pilgrims crowd the riverside.