Sendero budista de 2000 años a las cuevas de Karla y Bhaja como una excursión de un día desde Mumbai
Descripción
Hace dos mil años los monjes budistas construyeron monasterios a lo largo de las rutas comerciales a través de los Ghats occidentales para dar refugio a los comerciantes que los financiaban. Estas cuevas sobre Lonavala son lo que queda. Dentro de la gran sala de oración de Karla —la chaitya tallada en roca más grande de la India— las costillas de madera del techo instaladas por los constructores originales siguen en su lugar después de dos milenios. En Bhaja, una talla muestra a una mujer tocando lo que los historiadores han identificado como una tabla, haciendo retroceder la historia conocida del tambor más célebre de la India en más de mil años. Este tour por las cuevas de Karla y Bhaja desde Mumbai cubre ambos sitios con un guía experto que da vida a la historia completa del monacato de la ruta comercial budista y la historia de la música india antigua. Coche privado, guía experto, todas las entradas y almuerzo incluido. 5 Senses Tours es reconocido por el Departamento de Turismo, ganador del Premio Outlook Turismo Responsable y el Premio Tripadvisor Travellers Choice.
Opciones de la excursión
Itinerario
730AM- Recogida en el hotel 945AM– Llegamos a la base de las cuevas de Karla. Hay un conjunto de 200 escalones para subir desde el área de estacionamiento. Las cuevas de Karla se construyeron entre los siglos II y V bajo el patrocinio de los reinos de la época. Estas cuevas fueron un centro clave para el budismo en la India occidental. Hay 16 magníficas cuevas budistas, la más antigua se remonta al año 160 dC. El primer conjunto de cuevas fue construido por Theravadas, una antigua secta de budistas, mientras que el grupo de budistas Mahayana construyó el último conjunto de cuevas. Las esculturas en las cuevas son notables. Las ventanas con forma de herradura atraen la luz del sol hacia la cueva y proporcionan un ambiente refrescante. El punto culminante de esta visita será la sala de oración en la Cueva principal, que es una de las estructuras de corte de roca más grandes de la India. El objeto de la adoración es una estupa justo al final de la sala de oración. Cueva no 12 es la otra experiencia inolvidable. Tiene una característica muy interesante. El techo de esta cueva tiene costillas de madera en el techo. ¡La madera ha sobrevivido durante 2 milenios!
Después del almuerzo, visitamos las cuevas de Bhaja, el otro centro budista importante en esta parte del mundo. 200 pasos intrincadamente tallados deben ser superados antes de que alcancemos este magnífico ejemplar de cuevas budistas talladas en la roca. Visitamos un conjunto de 22 cuevas ubicadas a 400 pies sobre el pueblo de Bhaja, que data del siglo II aC y que fue construido por un grupo de budistas Hinayana. Mientras que 10 de estas cuevas eran Viharas o residencias para los monjes, las otras 12 son Chaityas o salas de oración. La cueva 12 es un espléndido ejemplar de arquitectura de madera y techo abovedado de herradura. También tiene un pilar que muestra a Buda en diferentes formas como el árbol Bodhi, loto, elefante, rueda y trono. Una de las tallas en las cuevas de Bhaja muestra a una mujer tocando una tabla, el clásico instrumento musical hindustani. Esto ha retrasado la comprensión actual del origen de la Tabla como un instrumento en la antigua India. 730 PM- Fin de la gira de Karla y Bhaja Caves y lo llevamos de regreso al hotel
Lo más destacado
Qué incluye
Lugares y horarios de recogida
Todos los hoteles en Mumbai
Valoraciones de viajeros
Información importante
- Hay opciones de transporte público disponibles en las cercanías
- No se recomienda para viajeros con lesiones de la columna vertebral
- No es recomendable para embarazadas
- Los viajeros deben tener al menos un nivel de condición física medio
- Una cantidad moderada de caminar está involucrado. 200 pasos cada uno en Karla y Bhaja
Opiniones(15)
This was a last minute booking and I was very happy that this tour company could accommodate me. I had a wonderful time with a guide and a driver all to myself all day long and the guide Pankaj was incredibly knowledgeable about the destination and its cultural and religious significance which really added value to the trip. There was a landslide that closed on of the intended destinations but my guide was able to make a suggested new destination right away that was just as good if not better, which really salvaged the experience.
Fantastic experience, flawless service, and incredible guide. Pankaj was very attentive , polite , and knowledgeable. The caves were very impressive! A must if you are in Mumbai and if interested in ancient architecture and history.
Great trip to travel with a kind, friendly, helpful and knowledgeable guide Mr.Pankaj and also very lucky to have the careful and skillful driver Mr.Prashant.
we had a wonderful experience visiting Elephanta caves. Our pickup driver arrived ontime, our guide Rajat met us at the entry to the ferry. He made sure we had comfortable seats, helped us disembark and even had a stool to help us board the train on the island. He carried our bags and jackets as the weather was too hot for us. Rajat showed us an option to be carried up the stairs, which we passed on. He then patiently helped us reach the cave giving us time to rest, have water etc. in the caves Rajat gave us a beautiful explanation of the site demonstrating knowledge and passion for his national history. Rajat also took amazing pictures, the best we got during our 2weeks visit to India. This is a very interesting place, highly recommend to visit it. Tons of interesting shops along the way to the caves as well.
The trip was well panned. The guide was very knowledgeable. We had a great time. It was a detailed trip showing us all the different caves and their history. Will definitely repeat.
Our guide Pankaj from 5 Senses Tours created a truly memorable experience. Not only did he provide valuable insight into the development of Buddhism in India but he also gave great descriptions of the amazing artistry of these 2000 year old carved Caves. Pankaj introduced us to some delicious local cuisine at a popular Lonavala restaurant. On our drive back to the Colaba area of Mumbai, he pointed out important attractions and recommended restaurants and monuments. He also ensured that we got properly checked in to our hotel.
Ajit our tour guide was extremely knowledgeable not just about the Karla, Bhatia caves but the Maratha empire, the Buddhist religion spreading throughout India and a deep dive of the Indian freedom movement and Pune, Maratha empires role in it. Akshay our driver was really good as well. After taking many tours throughout India, in Rajasthan, etc, I found 5 senses to be one of the best companies so far - from professional tour guides to great attention to detail.
We went to visit Bhaja and Karla caves. Our tour guide pankaj was a huge help in learning more about these caves and how they have changed throughout the years. He was also extremely helpful in choosing a great restaurant as well as picking out some of the best local food options!!! At the end of the tour he mapped out other sites and hidden gems for us that were in walking distance to our hotel! Great experience all around
I highly recommend this tour. The guide was wonderful and was able to provide a lot of insolite and history because of his experiences you couldn't get if just doing the Caves by yourself. Both Caves are very different. Our favorite was Karla since more peaceful but Bhaja had beautiful artwork and a huge hall. We went to elephanta Island on our own the day before and that was very different then both of these. There isn't a lot of walking but what walking they did have was very steep and so some older members of our group had a difficult time but even with having a knee surgery 2 months ago was doable for them. The vehicle was very nice for india and we had plenty of legroom which isn't always the case The guide went out of his way when I had a crazy request for some salt and pepper shakers at a place we stopped to eat and when restaurant wouldn't sell them (understably) he was able to find out where they got them from which happened to be near our hotel. We also hadn't eaten breakfast and guide stopped so we could get a bite and made sure we tried something local to mumbai area we couldn't get somewhere else Recommend if you are ok with a little bit of physical activity and are into history and culture.
Thanks so much for the detailed feedback. It was our pleasure hosting you. I am glad you enjoyed the Karla and bhaja caves day trip from Mumbai with Pankaj.
Karla and Bhaja are 2000 year old Buddhist caves. We had a fantastic time exploring the remarkable sculpture and ancient architecture. Both caves are located on top of hills and the set in idyllic village. The scenery was breathtaking and the guide was very knowledgeable about Buddhism. We learnt a lot about the origin of Buddhism and it's philosophy and it's dynamics with Hinduism the dominant religion of the land. The highway is very good for the drive and the people super friendly. Highly recommended
