Top 12 Tourist Attractions and Tourism in Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu state of India is the most popular state for tourism in the country and also boasts the largest tourism industry in India. The state is renowned for its temple towns,hill stations, waterfalls, national parks, heritage sites and fabulous wildlife.

Incredible Temples

Brihadeeswarar-Temple

Tamil Nadu is known as the temple state of India, There are thousands of temples in the state with tallest towers and largest complex.

Brihadeeswarar Temple
Meenakshi Amman Temple
Sri Ranganathaswamy Temple
Airavatesvara Temple
Shore Temple
Ekambareswarar Temple
Ramanathaswamy Temple
Palani Murugan Temple
Jambukeshvar Temple
Kailashnathar Temple
Thiruchendur Murugan temple
Thyagaraja Temple
Thillai Nataraja Temple
Ucchi Pillayar Temple
Arunachaleshwara Temple
Ramaswamy Temple Kumbakonam
Annamalaiyar Temple
Sripuram Golden Temple
Arunachaleshwara Temple
Gangaikonda Cholapuram Temple
Amritaghateswarar Abhirami Temple

Forts and Palaces

Padmanabhapuram-Palace

Tamil Nadu host number of most respected historic fort,palaces and fortress, here is the list of famous forts in Tamil Nadu.

Gingee Fort
Ranjankudi Fort
Sankagiri Fort
Udayagiri Fort
Vellore Fort
Dindigul Fort
Alamparai Fort
Namakkal Fort
Tiruchirappalli Fort

Majestic Palaces are the prime attractions of Tamil Nadu tourism, Padmanabhapuram Palace is located in Kanyakumari district but owned and maintained by the Government Of Kerala.

Thanjavur Palace
Thirumalai Palace
Chettinadu Mansion
Fernhills Palace
Tamukkam Palace
Thirumalai Nayakkar Mahal
Padmanabhapuram Palace

Heritage Sites

Group-of-Monuments-at-Mahabalipuram

The state has UNESCO World Heritage Site in the name of Great Living Chola Temples. Here is the complete information about the world heritage sites in Tamil Nadu including tentative list.

Great Living Chola Temples
Nilgiri Mountain Railway
Group of Monuments in Mahabalipuram
Silk Road Sites
Western Ghats
Village Clusters of The Tamil Merchants

Hill Stations

glen-morgan-ooty

The Western and Eastern Ghats of Tamil Nadu are home to most popular Hill Stations of India, Udagamandalam and Kodaikanal are the best queen of hill stations.

Ooty – Princess of Hill Stations
Kodaikanal – Gift of The Forest
Valparai – 40 Hairpin Bends
Meghamalai – High Wavy Mountains
Yercaud – The Lake Forest
Kolli Hills – The Mountain
Coonoor – Nilgiri Tea Estate

Luscious Waterfalls

Hogenakkal_Falls

Tamil Nadu blessed with great natural beauty, lies in western and eastern ghats of India. Here are the list of most beautiful waterfalls in Tamil Nadu.

Thalaiyar Falls
Courtallam Falls
Hogenakkal Falls
Agaya Gangai Falls
Suruli Falls
Kolakambai Waterfalls
Catherine Falls
Tirparappu waterfalls

Exotic Beaches

Marina-beach-chennai

The long coast line beaches of Tamilnadu on Bay of Bengal are one of the most favorite tourist destinations and the natural urban beach of Marina is the world’s longest beach.

Marina Beach
Elliot Beach
Ariyamaan Beach
Covelong Beach
Poompuhar Beach
Dhanushkodi Beach
Mahabalipuram Beach
Kanniyakumari Beach

Spectacular Lakes

ooty_avalanche_lake

The state is home to many water bodies, rivers and lakes, These lakes are either natural or man made, some of them are backwaters of dam.

Chembarambakkam Lake
Maduranthagam Lake
Kodaikanal Lake
Ooty lake
Chetput Aeri
Ambattur Aeri
Singanallur Lake
Veeranam Lake

Famous Museums

Museums of Tamil Nadu are best known for important and heritage collections of rich rail heritage,Roman antiquities and houses rare works of artists like Raja Ravi Varma.

Madras Museum
Government Museum
Regional Railway Museum
Gandhi Memorial Museum

Religious Sites

Velankanni-Church

Tamil Nadu has the credit of having more then 30000 Hindu Temples and lot of religious sites, the state is also home to 5 Basilica churches in India.

Chennai Om Sri Skandhashramam
Rama Bhaktha Anjaneyar Temple
Uppiliappan Temple
Gurudwara Singh Sabha
Gurudwara Pehli Patshahi
Nagore Dargah
Palaiya Jumma Palli
Thousand Lights Mosque
St. Thomas Cathedral Basilica
Basilica of Our Lady of Good Health
Basilica of Our Lady of Lourdes
Our lady of Lourdes Latin Catholic Church

Heritage Structures

The state has rich heritage sites and structures, Chennai alone is home to the second largest collection of heritage buildings in the country various historical and heritage structures in Tamil Nadu are as follows.

Pamban Bridge
War Memorials
Valluvar Kottam
Mathur Aqueduct
Thiruvalluvar Statue
Vainu Bappu Telescope
Vivekananda Rock Memorial

Fabulous Wildlife

Nilgiri-Tahr

Wildlife sanctuaries and national parks of Tamil Nadu are characterised by grasslands and high altitude forest. These parks are home to array of endangered wildlife and keystone species.

Bengal Tiger
Indian Elephant
Nilgiri Tahr
Nilgiri Marten
Nilgiri Langur

The area is also home to many species Avifauna, including hill birds and many species predatory birds.

Nilgiri-Flycatcher

Black Eagle
Kestrel
Nilgiri Pipit
Nilgiri Flycatcher
Nilgiri Wood Pigeon

Wildlife Sanctuaries and National Parks

Mudumalai-wildlife-sanctuary

The Protected areas of Tamil Nadu include Biosphere reserves, National parks and Wildlife sanctuaries. These protected areas are home to incredible wildlife, keystone species and endemic wild animals.

Guindy National Park
Mudumalai National Park
Mukurthi National Park
Anaimalai Tiger Reserve
Vedanthangal Bird Sanctuary
Gulf of Mannar Marine National Park

There are 8 wildlife sanctuaries in Tamil Nadu consisting of mainly dry deciduous forests and home to many species of birds and wild animals.

Tamil Nadu_State

Kanyakumari Wildlife Sanctuary
Vallanadu Wildlife Sanctuary
Kodaikanal Wildlife Sanctuary
Sathyamangalam Wildlife Sanctuary
Indira Gandhi Wildlife Sanctuary
Grizzled Squirrel Wildlife Sanctuary

The Nilgiri Mountains of Tamil Nadu is also home to one of the highest mountain peak of Doddabetta Peak and the protected area is known as Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve.

nilgiris hills

Doddabetta Peak
Nilgiri Mountains
Madras Crocodile Bank
Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve
Pichavaram Mangrove Forest
Arignar Anna Zoological Park

Chennai has the first crocodile breeding centre in Asia with aim of saving three most endangered species of crocodiles found in India, mugger crocodile, saltwater crocodile and the gharial. Pichavaram Mangrove Forest at Chidambaram is the world’s second largest mangrove forest and Nilgiri Sub-Cluster of the Western Ghats are an International Biosphere Reserve.