Traccia buddista di 2000 anni alle grotte di Karla e Bhaja come gita di un giorno da Mumbai
Descrizione
Duemila anni fa monaci buddisti costruirono monasteri lungo le rotte commerciali attraverso i Ghati occidentali per dare riparo ai mercanti che li finanziavano. Queste grotte sopra Lonavala sono ciò che rimane. All'interno della grande sala di preghiera di Karla - il più grande chaitya scavato nella roccia in India - costoloni del soffitto in legno installati dai costruttori originali sono ancora in posizione dopo due millenni. A Bhaja, una scultura mostra una donna che suona quella che gli storici hanno identificato come una tabla, spingendo la storia conosciuta del tamburo più celebrato dell'India indietro di oltre mille anni. Questo tour delle grotte di Karla e Bhaja da Mumbai copre entrambi i siti con una Guida Esperta che porta in vita la storia completa del monachesimo buddista sulle rotte commerciali e dell'antica storia della musica indiana. Auto privata, Guida Esperta, tutti i biglietti di ingresso e pranzo inclusi. 5 Senses Tours è riconosciuto dal Dipartimento del Turismo, vincitore del premio Outlook Turismo Responsabile e del premio Tripadvisor Travellers Choice.
Opzioni del tour
Itinerario
730AM- Ritiro dall'hotel 945AM - Raggiungiamo la base delle grotte di Karla. Ci sono una serie di 200 passi per essere scalati dall'area di parcheggio. Le grotte di Karla sono state costruite tra il 2 ° e il 5 ° secolo sotto il patronato dei regni del giorno. Queste grotte erano un centro chiave per il buddismo nell'India occidentale. Ci sono 16 magnifiche grotte buddiste con la più antica risalente al 160 d.C. Il primo gruppo di grotte fu costruito dai Theravada, un'antica setta di buddisti mentre il gruppo di Mahayana di buddisti costruì la serie successiva di caverne. Le sculture nelle grotte sono notevoli. Le finestre a forma di ferro di cavallo portano la luce del sole nella grotta fornendo un ambiente rinfrescante. Il momento culminante di questa visita sarà la sala di preghiera nella Grotta principale, che è una delle più grandi strutture scavate nella roccia in India. L'oggetto di culto è uno Stupa proprio alla fine della sala di preghiera. Cave no 12 è l'altra esperienza indimenticabile. Ha una caratteristica molto interessante. Il soffitto di questa grotta ha costole di legno sul soffitto. Il legno è sopravvissuto per 2 millenni!
Dopo pranzo, visitiamo Bhaja Caves, l'altro importante centro buddista in questa parte del mondo. 200 passi complicati devono essere sormontati prima di raggiungere questo magnifico esemplare di grotte buddiste scavate nella roccia. Visitiamo una serie di 22 caverne situate a 400 piedi sopra il villaggio di Bhaja, risalente al 2 ° secolo aC e costruita dal gruppo di buddisti Hinayana. Mentre 10 di queste grotte erano Viharas o residenze per i monaci, le altre 12 sono Chaityas o sale di preghiera. La grotta 12 è uno splendido esempio di architettura in legno e soffitto a volta a ferro di cavallo. Ha anche un pilastro che mostra il Buddha in diverse forme come l'albero della Bodhi, il loto, l'elefante, la ruota e il trono. Uno degli intagli delle grotte di Bhaja mostra una donna che suona un Tabla dello strumento musicale Hindustani classico. Ciò ha respinto l'attuale comprensione dell'origine di Tabla come strumento nell'antica India. 730 PM - Fine del tour di Karla e Bhaja Caves e ritorno in hotel
Punti salienti
Cosa è incluso
Luoghi e orari di ritiro
Tutti gli hotel a Mumbai
Valutazioni dei viaggiatori
Informazioni importanti
- Sono disponibili trasporti pubblici nelle vicinanze
- Sconsigliato ai viaggiatori con problemi alla schiena
- Sconsigliato in gravidanza
- I viaggiatori devono avere una buona forma fisica
- Una moderata quantità di deambulazione è coinvolta. 200 passi ciascuno in Karla e Bhaja
Recensioni(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
