1 Day Trip from Chennai - Chidambaram & Pichavaram


Chidambaram & Pichavaram, a perfect destination for 1-day outing from Chennai.

Chidambaram, It is some 215 km from Chennai. Chidamabarm has ancient 10th century World famous temple "Nataraja Temple(Dancing form of Shiva). It was build in 10th century when Chidambaram was the capital of Chola dynasty.

Temple opening timing:  6:00 AM- 12:00 AM, 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM

So, to reach Chidambaram, you can start early morning around 5 AM from Chennai. Many government and Private buses available which goes to Chidambaram. To and fro journey by Bus can be pre-booked also.

Pichavaram 
It is a small village is approx 15 km from Chidambarm. It has 2nd largest Mangrove forest in the world.  mangroves that are permanently rooted in a few feet of water.  Boating in Mangrove forest is awesome experience.
Boatride time:  9:00 AM- 4:00 PM

Boatride Charges as below, still for latest charges you can refer website or call their number.
Row boat Charges
400Rs - 2 person - 1 hour - 1 km
Motor boat Charges
1800Rs - 8 person - 40 minutes- 2 km

Also note that if weather conditions are not good (Nonstop Rain/Thunderstorms) then boatride might be cancelled, so you can call and confirm in this case.

Here is small video:  

Itinerary:
5 AM  Start early morning from chennai 
9 AM-10 AM  Reach Chidambaram by this time, Get down from Bus infront of Chidamabram Temple instead going to Chidamabram Bus stop.  
12 PM Complete Temple Darshan.
12 PM-1 PM Finish Lunch (As in Pichavaram apart from the snacks you wont get anything to eat for proper lunch) 
1 PM  To head towards Pichavaram, Reach Bus stop (Government and Private buses both goes to Pichavaram) or hire Auto or any vehicle. As it is just 15 km, so it will take max 30-40 min to reach.
2 PM - 4 PM Get Boating ticket, finish the boat ride and enjoy snacks from the shops. 
Now Time to leave from Pichavaram. 
Reach Chidamabaram Bus stop and get return Bus again from Chidmabaram Bus stop.




Pichavaram Mangrove Forest






For any queries, drop in a comment below or reach my instagram handle (instagram @shweta_gpta). I will revert on that.

Thanks for reading it.

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