Buddhist Pilgrimage Tour

Duration of Trip: 11 Nights / 12 Days
Places Covered: Delhi - Agra - Varanasi - Bodhgaya - Nalanda - Rajgir - Patna- Vashali - Kushinagar - Lumbini - Balrampur - Lucknow

This exceptional Buddhist Pilgrimage Tour Packages covers the footprints of Lord Buddha and the major Buddhist pilgrimage centers in India. The tour covers the birthplaces of Lord Buddha and Lord Mahavir, the Bodhi Tree at Bodhgaya under which Lord Buddha attained enlightenment, and Nalanda, one of the most famous universities of ancient times. The itinerary also covers Patna, which was once known as Pataliputra and had one of the strongest positions in Indian politics and Vaishali, the first republic of the world. This Buddhist Pilgrimage Tour is the best deal for those who are interested in learning more about the life of Lord Buddha and how Buddhism originated.

Day 01: Delhi
Arrival in Delhi late night or early in the morning. Meet on arrival by company representatives. Proceed to hotel and relax. Overnight will be at Delhi.

Day 02: Delhi – Agra – Varanasi
Early morning after breakfast proceed to Agra by road. En-route visit Sikandra, upon arrival visit Taj Mahal, Agra Fort and Itmad-ud-Daullah tomb. Evening you will be transferred to railway station to take the overnight train for Varanasi.

Day 03: Varanasi
Morning reach at Varanasi, upon arrival check in hotel and relax. After lunch proceed for Sarnath. Evening back to hotel or evening spends time on Varanasi Street. Overnight will be at Varanasi.

Day 04: Varanasi - Bodhgaya
Morning boat ride on the Sacred River Ganges to rituals performed by priests and devotees. Half day guided tour of Varanasi including the Kashi Vishwanath Temple, Gyanvapi Mosque and Benaras Hindu University. After lunch proceed for Bodhgaya. Upon arrival check in hotel and relax.

Bodhgaya is one of the sacred places for the Buddhists as well as for the Hindus. Here under the Bodhi Tree, Gautama attained supreme knowledge to become Budhha, the `Enlighted One'.

Overnight at Bodhgaya.

Day 05: Bodhgaya
Sightseeing of Maha Bodhi Temple and Tree. Visit the Chinese Temple. In the afternoon visit Niranjana Temple and River. Visit the school of the destitute. Overnight will be at Bodhgaya.

Day 06: Bodhgaya - Nalanda - Rajgir - Patna
Early morning proceed to visit the historical towns of Nalanda & Rajgir. Have lunch at Rajgir. Proceed to Patna, upon arrival check in hotel and relax. Overnight will be at Patna.

Patna, the capital city of Bihar, is a historical city, which has like Delhi, experienced the trauma and pain of being conquered. The heritage of Patna or Pataliputra as it was known, goes back to two millennia. This city was the seat of administration for many rulers and each of them ascended with a new name for their capital. Kusumpura became Pushpapura, Patliputra, Azeemabad and now Patna. Pataliputra was the capital of Magadha, a kingdom, which dominated and influenced the politics of India for a long time. Located on the banks where rivers Sone and Ganga merge, this city has witnessed the rules of Chanakya, Chandragupta, Ashoka and the Nanda rulers

Day 07: Patna - Vaishali - Kushinagar
After breakfast proceed for Kushinagar en-route visit Vaishali.
VAISHALI - Vaishali has a past that pre-dates recorded history.

VAISHALI - Vaishali has a past that pre-dates recorded history.
It is held that the town derives its name from King Vishal, whose heroic deeds are narrated in the Hindu epic Ramayana. However, history records that around the time Pataliputra was the centre of political activity in the Gangetic plains, Vaishali came into existence as centre of the Ganga, it was the seat of the Republic of Vajji. Vaishali is credited with being the World's First Republic to have a duly elected assembly of representatives and efficient administration.

The Lord Buddha visited Vaishali more than once during his lifetime and announced his approaching Mahaparinirvana to the great followers he had here.

Hundred years after he attained Mahaparinirvana, it was the venue of the second Buddhist Council. According to one belief, the Jain Tirthankar, Lord Mahavir was born at Vaishali. The Chinese travellers Fa-Hien and Hieun Tsang also visited this place in early 5th and 7th centuries respectively and wrote about Vaishali.

While talking of the famous men and women associated with Vaishali, Amrapali was the cynosure not only of Vaishali but of the neighbouring kingdoms as well. Therefore, to avert bloodshed, the parliament of Vaishali declared her to be a Court dancer besides consigning her to lifelong spinsterhood. Later she became a devout Buddhist and served the Lord Buddha. This small town in the former kingdom of the Mallas was surrounded by dense forest. It remained oblivous to the outside world until it was rediscovered by the archaeologists in the nineteenth century.

The modern Indo-Japan-srilanka Buddhist centre, Kushinagar is rediscovering its roots, and is home to many viharas, including a Tibetan gompa devoted to Sakyamuni, a Burmese vihara, and temples from China and Japan. Kushinagar Travel packages

Day 08: Kushinagar - Lumbini
After breakfast proceed for Lumbini. Upon arrival sightseeing.

The birthplace of the Gautama Buddha, Lumbini, is the Mecca of every Buddhist, being one of the four holy places of Buddhism. Buddha himself identified four places of future pilgrimage: the sites of his birth, enlightenment, first discourse, and death. Hence the birth of Gautam Buddha makes it one of the most sacred places in the world. The Sal tree where Siddhartha was born is difficult to locate now. But Ashoka, in the 21st year of his reign visited the forest and raised a pillar on the spot where Siddhartha was born.

The Mayadevi Temple : This Mayadevi temple dedicated to the mother of the Buddha has been digged out and restored. The temple has a stone artifact depicting the nativity of the Buddha. Maya Devi, his mother, gave birth to the child on her way to her parent's home in Devadaha while taking rest in Lumbini under a Sal tree in the month of May in the year 642 BC. The beauty of Lumbini is described in Pali and Sanskrit literature. Maya Devi- it is said was spellbound to see the natural splendor of Lumbini. While she was standing, she felt labor pains and catching hold of a drooping branch of a Sal tree, the baby, the future Buddha, was born.


In the evening check in hotel and relax. Overnight will be at LUMBINI.

Day 09: Lumbini – Sravasti - Balrampur
After breakfast proceed by road to Balrampur, en- route visit Sravasti During the time of Sakyamuni, a rich and pious merchant named Sudatta lived in Sravasti. While on a visit to Rajgir, he heard the Buddha's sermon and decided to become the Lord's disciple. But he was caught in a dilemma and asked the Lord whether he could become a follower without forsaking worldly life. To his query, the Buddha replied that it was enough that he followed his vocation in a righteous manner.

Sudatta invited the Buddha to Sravasti and began to look for a suitable place to build a vihara. A beautiful park at the southern edge of Sravasti attracted his attention. The park belonged to Jeta, son of King Prasenjit of Sravasti. Jeta demanded that Sudatta cover the entire park with gold coins. Sudatta painstakingly paved every inch of the land with gold. Then Jeta said that since the trees wereBuddhist Temple, Balrampur Tour Packages left uncovered they belonged to him. But finally, he had a change of heart and donated valuable wood to build the vihara. The park came to be known as Jetavana Vihara in recognition of Prince Jeta's donation to the sangh.

Sravasti was also under the influence of Lord Mahavira the last Jain Tirthankar, and the splendid Shwetambara temple here attracts thousands of Jain pilgrims. The Sobhnath Temple is believed to the birthplace of the Jain Tirthankar Sambhavnath.

Upon arrival Sight seeing of Sravasti visit : Saheth & Maheth. Later continue your drive towards Balrampur upon arrival check in hotel and relax. Overnight will be at Balrampur.

Day 10: Balrampur - Lucknow
Breakfast will be at hotel. Proceed for Lucknow reach and sight Seeing : explore this royal city of Nawabs.

Lucknow is caught in a time warp. It exists in an in-between land of the past and the present looking back constantly to the memories of a colonial-Nawabi past. There is at the same time a sense of pride at the thought of being after Delhi, the most important center of power in free India. Politics has indeed been Lucknow's forte but culture has been its historical identification.

Despite the Indo-Persian legacy, Lucknow has a composite Indian culture. The welding of various cultural strains nurtured by centuries of Mughal and later Delhi Sultanate rule, to the folk traditions of the Indo-Gangetic plains has produced a complex, yet rich synthesis. The Urdu language acquired its baffling phonetic nuances and suave perfection here. It was in Nawab Wajed Ali Shah's court that the most advanced of all classical Indian dance forms, the Kathak, took shape. The popular Parsi theatre originated from the Urdu theatre of this city. The tabla and the sitar were first heard on the streets of Lucknow. Later check in hotel and relax. Overnight will at Lucknow.

Day 11: Lucknow - Delhi
After breakfast at the time of your flight you will be transferred to airport to take the flight for Delhi. Upon arrival proceed for sightseeing of Old & New Delhi. Visit Raj Ghat, Jama Masjid, Red Fort, Humayun's Tomb, India Gate, Parliament House, Lotus Temple, Shantivan, Laxmi Narayan Temple.

Later Check in hotel and relax. Overnight will be at Delhi .

Day 12: Delhi
DELHI - Free to explore city and last minute shopping. In the evening enjoy the Dance of India show. Later enjoy the farewell dinner with company executive. At the time of your flight you will be transferred to International airport to take the flight back to home, with sweet memories of India Tour.

TOUR ENDS

THE TOUR INCLUDES:

1. ACCOMMODATION AT SUGGESTED HOTELS,
2. DAILY BREAKFAST AT HOTEL
3. SIGHTSEEING TOURS AS MENTIONED IN THE ITINERARY,,
4. ENGLISH SPEAKING GUIDES
5. PRIVATE CAR WITH DRIVER
6. CHANDNI CHOWK RICKSHAW RIDE
7. BATTERY VAN RIDE IN AGRA
8. BOAT RIDE ON SACRED RIVER GANGES
9. ALL APPLICABLE TAXES AND SERVICE CHARGES
10. ALL ROAD TAXES, GOVERNMENT TAXES AND DRIVER ALLOWANCES,
11. ONE FAREWELL DINNER FROM TNS GROUP.

EXCLUDES:
Lunches and dinners are not included (except where mentioned in the inclusion list) along with personal expenses, camera, etc. tips, (if any) at places where applicable. All hotels are subject to availability and all flights are subject to confirmation. Airfare is included in the tour price. It is not separate.