Varanasi, or Banaras, is one of the oldest living cities in the world. Varanasi's prominence in Hindu mythology is virtually unrivalled. Mark Twain, the English author and literature, who was enthralled by the legend and sanctity of Banaras, once wrote: "Banaras is older than history, older than tradition, older even than legend and looks twice as old as all of them put together". One of the earliest descriptions of Varanasi is found in the Buddhist scriptures as also in the epic, 'Mahabharat'. The 'Pali' version of Varanasi was 'Baranasi' which ultimately gave birth to the name 'Banaras'.

Travel links
By Air : Varanasi is well connected by air to several cities in India. It is on the popular daily tourist service Delhi-Agra-Khajuraho-Varanasi route.
By Rail : Varanasi has two railway stations-Kashi and Varanasi Junction (also Cantonment Station). We would provide you all India tourist permit vehicles for the local transportations and also for the intercity drives too.

Must visit
Kashi Vishwanath Temple:The temple is located in the premises of the Banaras Hindu University and is about thirty minutes walk from the gates of the university. The temple, built by the Birlas, was planned by Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya. Unlike many other temples in Varanasi, this temple is open to all irrespective of caste or creed.

Ghats : The long string of ghats?the chain of stone steps?along the western bank of the Ganges forms the major attraction of Varanasi. There are about hundred ghats in the city and each of them is marked by a lingam and occupies its own special place in the religious geography of the city.

Durga Temple : The eighteenth century Durga Temple is also known as the Monkey Temple due to the presence of the many monkeys that live here. Durga is represented as the embodiment of shakti or female power, clad in red, riding a tiger and fully armed with Shiva's trident, Vishnu's discus and a sword.

Bharat Mata Temple : This unique temple has a huge relief map in marble of the whole of Indian subcontinent and Tibetan plateau installed instead of icons of gods and goddesses.

Alamgir Mosque : The Alamgir Mosque is also known as Beni Madhav Ka Darera and is a blend of the Hindu and Mughal styles of the architecture. The mosque was built by Aurangzeb on the site of the Vishnu Temple.

Tulsi Manas Temple : This temple is dedicated to Lord Rama and is situated where the great medieval seer Tulsidas is believed to have lived and written the great epic "Shri Ramcharitmanas".

Vishwanath Temple : The temple is located in the premises of the Banaras Hindu University and was by the Birlas. It was planned by Pandit Madan Mohan Malaviya and is open to all irrespective of caste or creed.

Banaras Hindu University : The Banaras Hindu University is one of the oldest educational cent res in India which was built in 1917. Its campus is spread over five square kilometers and houses the Bharat Kala Bhawan, which has a fine collection of miniature paintings, sculptures from first to fifteenth centuries, old photographs of Varanasi and brocade textiles.

Accommodation options
A hot-spot travel destination of India travel packages, Varanasi is dotted with several hotels catering to the huge influx of tourists. The various hotels in Varanasi offer varied accommodation options and hotel packages to visitors on Varanasi vacation. We, at indiahotelsandpackages.com, offer the best accommodation facilities to our clients, coupled with attractive Varanasi and other India vacation packages in the best hotels of Varanasi for a memorable stay. For visitors looking forward to a combination of class and comfort, we have tied up with some of the best hotels in Varanasi. Most of the Varanasi hotels are in close proximity of the tourist attractions of the city.