places to visit in tirunelveli in one day Archives

The Only Reason We Chose Tirunelveli For Our 5 Days Road Trip from Bangalore

Renu on August 22, 2019

Last week, we went on a 5 days road trip from Bangalore. We choose this trip only for the love of Papanasam town near Tirunelveli.

We started from Bangalore on Aug 12th 2019, drove about 650 kms to reach Tirunelveli via Madurai.

This was the first time we set a new milestone of driving above 500 kms in one day by car.

We drove alternatively, smooth ride on the NH with good food choices on the Bangalore highways.

This time we had not pre-booked any accommodation in our planned destination – Tirunelveli, since we were not sure of driving 600+ kms in just one day.

We had a plan B of staying in Madurai if we were too tired to drive any further.

Thankfully, we reached the destination as planned.

This is how we spent our 5 days vacation in a road trip from Bangalore.

5 Days road trip from Bangalore for the love of Papansam

We have already been to Tirunelveli in Jan 2017, in our 3 days trip to Rameshwaram.

In this 5 days road trip from Bangalore, we have spent whole 2 days only to sight see the places around Tirunelveli.

Since one cannot miss visiting courtallam falls, we also went to nearby Thenkasi and Papanasam.

Papanasam – we immediately fell in love with the drizzling weather with the spectacular view of greenery mountains and plains.

Unfortunately, we couldn’t enjoy the picturesque small town for long as we were in a hurry to return to the Tirunelveli town for return journey.

So, this trip is all about going to Papanasam exclusively for its serene beauty, a place surrounded by mountains, reserve forests, waterfalls and dams.

Hence, we decided to stay in Tirunelveli, a buzzing small city, 60 km distance from Papanasam, well connected to other cities by roads with good accommodation and restaurant choices.

The Itinerary of Our 5 days Road Trip from Bangalore

Day 1, 12th August 2019, Monday : Drive 650 Kms From Bangalore to Tirunelveli

Day 2, 13th August 2019, Tuesday : Drive to Tiruchendur beach and temple, on the way stop at Srivaikundam temple. Evening darshan in Nellaiappar temple in Tirunelveli.

Day 3, 14th August 2019, Wednesday : Drive to Papanasam via Manimuthar forest and dam and Agasthiyar falls. And darshan Papanasam Sivan temple. Evening return Tirunelveli via Ambasamudram.

Day 4, 15th August 2019, Thursday : Drive to Madurai via Sankaran Kovil and Srivilliputhur, darshan at both the temples. Check-in Madurai, evening roam around the city.

Day 5, 16th August 2019, Friday : Return to Bangalore from Madurai, 450 kms drive via Dindigul, Karur, Namakkal and Salem.

Wanderlust to Papanasam

Here we are, at Papanasam, the place behind our desire to plan 5 days road trip from Bangalore.

Papanasam, a small town located 56 kms from Tirunelveli, adorned with mountains and trees, river and dams, we fell in love with.

After a good night’s rest from previous day’s long car ride to Tirunelveli, we started to Papanasam around noon.

We stuffed our travel bags with some snacks and water bottles, before we headed towards Papanasam.

Decided to go by Pathamadai and Manimuthar forest, just like we always preferred to ride among scenic views. We skipped going to Manjolai, since we didn’t do much research on this place and also had a time constraint.

We spent some time in the Manimuthar dam (did not go to the waterfalls), before we headed towards Papnasam.

When I say Papanasam, the end destination is Papanasam Sivan temple, this is where all the local buses stop for tourists.

A little further Papanasam Sivan temple is Agasthiyar falls, almost 10 min drive uphill.

The drive was smooth since there was no dangerous hair-pin bends to worry about, like in Yercaud hill station.

By the time we reached Agasthiyar falls, it was almost closing time, so we spent only brief period clicking pics in the falls area.

Unlike a pretty long-haul we trekked to talakona falls in Andra Pradesh, Agasthiyar falls was just 1 min walk from the parking area.

Once after reaching Agasthiyar falls, we spent some time enjoying the view and the waterfalls. We then started our car towards Papanasam Sivan temple after clicking some pics.

Returning Back to Tirunelveli

We then took Ambasamudram (ambai) route in the evening to return back to Tirunelveli.

Like we wished, we spent every single minute enjoying the ride among the agri fields and woods accompanied by a pleasant weather.

Desire fulfilled.

Overall it was an adventurous and fun-filled 5 days road trip from Bangalore. And, iIt was worth the pain and headache riding in the sun and the rains.

Drive from tirunelveli to papanasam road, drive among woods and mountains — Tirunelveli to Papansam road, scenic drive

Drive to Thamirabarani river near Manimuthar dam from tirunelveli — Thamirabarani river near Manimuthar dam, Papanasam

Manimuthar dam from tirunelveli in our 5 days road trip from bangalore — View From Top of Manimuthar dam, Towards Manimuthar Forest aand Waterfalls

2 mins walk to Agasthiyar falls from parking area, scenic view — Walk from parking towards Agasthiyar falls images

Drive to papanasam agasthiyar falls from tirunelveli in our 5 days road trip from bangalore — View of Agasthiyar falls, Papanasam

Places to Visit in Tirunelveli In One Day

Renu on August 22, 2019

We have been to Tirunelveli twice so far, including the recent road trip for 5 days from Bangalore. Tirunelveli, capital city of Tirunelveli District, a beautiful city adorned with the Thamirabarani river. Here listed are the places to visit in Tirunelveli in one day from our travel experiences.

Whether you are planning on a luxury trip with family or a holy trip, this guide will be of help to explore the tourist places in tirunelveli district.

Places to Visit in Tirunelveli In One day

There are not many places to visit inside the Tirunelveli City, except for the ancient Nellaiappar temple. The best tourist place in Tirunelveli district to spend time with family and friends, and to have fun are Manimuthar, Papanasam and Courtallam.

Sightseeing places to see in Tirunelveli districts are given below in detail.

This list is a combination of tourist places like waterfalls and dams, and famous Hindu temples.

The Ancient Nellaiappar Temple – The Most famous tourist place in Tirunelveli

The main tourist attraction in Tirunelveli is the ancient Nellaiappar temple, a famous Lord Siva temple. This temple is one of the pancha sabhai sthalam, a must visit temple for its majestic build on a 14 acres land, with the unusual large mandap for goddess parvati.

It will take a minimum of an hour to cover the entire temple, even more time on important occasions.

Must see / specialties inside this majestic temple:

The big ornamental mandap for Goddess Parvathi
Thamirachabai (Copper) mandap of Lord Natarajar
Lord Ranganatha near to the main sactum of the Lord Siva
Beautiful view of temple pond next to Goddess Parvathi mandap
Kubera Lingam
The temple Elephant

Note: You can find Iruttu Kadai halwa shop just opposite this temple’s main entrance. A small shop, open only in the evening for 2 hrs, popular for its renowned wheat halwa since 1900’s. You can only buy a maximum of 2kgs of halwa per person.

Tiruchendur Beach and Temple

Another historical places in Tirunelveli district is Tiruchendur. With the distance of 53 km towards east of Tirunelveli, Tiruchendur is famous for Lord Murugan (Subhramanya swamy) temple. Devotees take a dip in the beach before going inside the temple. You could also travel to Kanyakumari for beach and sunrise view, since this post is about places to visit in Tirunelveli, I am suggesting Tiruchendur.

Places to Visit in Tirunelveli In One Day — Srivaikundam bridge on the way to Tiruchendur

Manimuthar Dam and Waterfalls, Manjolai Hills, Kalakad Tiger reserve

With the distance of 46 kms towards west of Tirunelveli, Manimuthar dam and forest waterfalls are one of the must see places in Tirunelveli district.

You would need one whole day only to see these 3 places – Manimuthar dams and waterfalls, Majolai estate and Kalakad tiger reserve.

Here are the pics from our drive from Tirunelveli to Manimuthar dam.

Manimuthar dam - sightseeing places in Tirunelveli — Manimuthar dam

Papanasam Agasthiyar falls

Papanasam is located 60 kms west of Tirunelveli, famous for Agastiyar falls and Lord shiva temple. Agastiyar falls is just 20 mins drive uphill from Lord Shiva temple, a beautiful small waterfalls with a scenic view.

There is no entry fee at the forest check point, but only at the waterfalls checkpoint. Agasthiyar Waterfalls is open for visitors from 9am to 5pm only.

Courtallam Falls and Thenkasi

About 35 kms from Papnasam and about 75 kms from Tirunelveli Via Alwarkurichi road, Courtallam is yet another famous tourist destination in Tirunelveli district.

Usually the tourists take a dip in the holy waterfalls before going to the nearby Kutralanathar temple, a Lord Shiva temple.

Drive 6kms from Courtallam falls to reach Thenkasi, is famous for the Ulagamman temple, one of the temples with the largest Gopurams in Tamilnadu.

Tirunelveli to Courtallam road trip — Courtallam falls

Tenkasi temple pics — Tenkasi Kasi Vishwanathar temple Gopuram View

Sankaran Kovil

Sankarankovil, situated at 56 km away from Tirunelveli City. It was built by Ukkira Pandiyan AC 900. It houses the deity by the name Sankara Narayanan, which is half – Lord Shiva and the other half – Lord Vishnu. (Source – Wikipedia)

You could also visit Srivilliputhur Andal temple, one of the famous 108 divya desam temples, located 45 kms from this Sankaran Kovil.

Srivilliputhur Andal temple – Places to visit from Tirunelveli in one day

These are the top places to visit in Tirunelveli in one day, if you are planning for more than one day, you could combine with Madurai and Kanyakumari.

Where we ate – Restaurants in Tirunelveli

Best Veg Restaurants in Tirunelveli

Well, I have only 2 suggestions if you are looking for vegetarian places to eat in Tirunelveli.

For vegetarian food choices, we went to Hotel Aarya’s where we had all our breakfast during our stay in Tirunelveli. The best part is we just had to cross the road from the hotel where we stayed, and they were open until 11am with both alacote and buffet service. There were limited food choices for breakfast but variety of choices for dinner, including chinese.

Another good restaurant in Tirunelveli is Annapoorna Hotel and Sweets, with variety of organic food menus for tiffin and snacks. We liked their service and cleanliness. Food prices compared to Aarya’s was lesser but the quality was no lesser than them. Also a good place for evening snacks, tea, coffee and juices. You could even get Madurai famous jigarthanda and arabic grape puply juice.

We had snacks and tea here when we traveled to Papnasam, you can find the restaurant link below.

https://maps.app.goo.gl/z28FYBtrCchThWRT9

Read – Places to visit in Papanasam with Distances (Rivers, Waterfalls, Dams and Temples in Papanasam)

Those two are my top choices if you are roaming the tirunelveli city for one day. Feel free to comment below if you have any suggestions.

Best Non Veg Restaurants in Tirunelveli

The only restaurant we have ever been in both our trip was – Hotel Vairamaligai. It is one of the good non-veg restaurants in Tirunelveli with maximum number of reviews in google. We had dinner once here, food quality and quantity was good. We also loved their fast services. Even the parking area was huge given their location in the middle of the hot city. What we didn’t like here was the ambiance and very noisy atmosphere. Otherwise it is worth the try.

Where We Stayed in Tirunelveli

Of the 5 days road trip from Bangalore, we have stayed 3 days in Tirunelveli. We stayed in MNH Hotels, a decent stay with all the amenities in the main city. Also we were happy to get the good deal for the price way below our budget. Even though MNH hotels had inhouse restaurant with both veg and non-veg food choices, even room-services, but we preferred eating outside.

Sum- Up

Tirunelveli is well connected by roads, railways and air connecting the nearest cities. There are not many interesting places to visit in Tirunelveli in one day, so I have listed all the other famous places in Tirunelveli district. If you want to spice up your travel, you could extend your stay in Kanyakumari or Madurai, another interesting travel destinations to look around.

Note – Only in the recent times we started travelling places by Car. Otherwise we are hardcore bike riders, love to ride bike to far places.

The highest distance we traveled was 450 km from Bangalore to Kumbakonam in one day.

In the year end of 2017 and 2018, we took off from work only to ride bike for 11 days and 12 days respectively. Apart from those long bike rides, we have also been on numerous one day and two day bike trips to many places from Bangalore.