Kanyakumari has many tourist attractions luring innumerable tourists, well promoted by tourism department of Tamil Nadu. Among the most important are the Kumari Amman or the Kanyakumari Temple, located on the sea shore. It is dedicated to a manifestation of Parvati, the virgin goddess who did penance to obtain Lord Shiva's hand in marriage.
Some of the important festivals celebrated here are the Chaitra Purnima Festival celebrated in the first week of May, Navratri celebrated in the last week of October and the Holy Annual Festival of the Roman Catholic Church celebrated in the fourth week of December. These are the notable festivals celebrated in Kanyakumari. |
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| Sightseeing: |
| Gandhi Mandapam |
| It enshrines the spot where the urn containing the ashes of Mahatma Gandhi was kept for public view before immersing its contents in the three seas. Built like an Oriyan temple, the uniqueness in its construction lies in the fact that on October 2nd, Gandhiji's birthday, the sun's rays fall on the place where his ashes were kept. |
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| Vattakottai |
| 6 km from the city, Vattakottai is an 18th century fort overlooking the sea. Those who would like to swim and bathe in the sea can come here, as the sea here is calm and suitable for bathing. |
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| Alvar Tirunagari |
| One of the celebrated Vaishnav temples of Kannyakumari, Alvar Tirunagari temple is one of the nine sung of by the saint Namalvar. It is said that the saint attained enlightenment under a tree enshrined here. |
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| Swami Vivekananda Rock Memorial |
| The memorial was erected to commemorate the evening of December 25, 1892, when Swami Vivekananda visited Kanyakumari as a pilgrim and swam to the rock in the sea and spent the whole night there in deep meditation. Only after that, he resolved to serve his Motherland and spread the message of Vedanta. |
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Temple Of Goddess Bhagavathi |
| Goddess Bhagavathi Temple in Kanyakumari is picturesquely located at the confluence of the three oceans - the Indian Ocean, the Bay of Bengal and the Arabian Sea. Originally built by Pandyas, it was expanded later by Nayaks. The eastern gate of the temple facing the Bay of Bengal is opened only five times a year. |
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Kumari Amman Temple |
| Kumari Amman Temple dedicated to Goddess Parvati as Devi Kanya (the Virgin Goddess) is an important shrine here. |
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| How to Reach Kanyakumari |
Kanyakumari is the southernmost point of peninsular India and the meeting point of three oceans-the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. |
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| By Air: The nearest airport from Kanyakumari is situated at Trivandrum about 80 kms away. It is directly connected with Bangalore, Mumbai, Cochin, Delhi, Goa, and Chennai by regular flights. |
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| By Train: Kanyakumari is well connected by rail to major parts of the country. Kanyakumari is connected to Thiruvananthapuram, Delhi, and Mumbai by broad-gauge railway network. Superfast trains connect the southern most railhead of India with northern cities like Jammu and Delhi. |
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| By Road: Kanyakumari has a good road network which connects it to the major cities and towns in South India like Chennai, Bangalore, Madurai, Pondicherry, Thiruvanathapuram and and so on. Tourist taxis and autorickshaws are available for travel in Kanyakumari. |
