Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
views. For Jungle Bells, get off at Tyda station, 500m from the resort. Frequent buses
(?90, 4½ hours) leave Araku for Vizag every half-hour until 7pm.
OFF THE BEATEN TRACK
MAREDUMILLI
A little
nature circuit
(
088642449968;
www.vanavihari.com
; admission to all sites ?25, guides per day ?250,
r & cottages ?562-1124) has been set up in the village of Maredumilli by the local tribal community and
AP's Forest Department. A guesthouse, with cottages in a woodsy setting and excellent meals (?50), is at one end
of a 16km road lined by eight lush natural sites, including: a 70-hectare coffee plantation with pepper vines, wild
mango and orange trees, and great trekking; a medicinal-plant garden; two waterfalls tucked away in the forest;
and a 260-hectare medicinal-plant conservation area, with walking trails, 203 plant species and 170 species of
birds.
The sites have been developed mindfully, with natural materials, and it's easy to immerse yourself in the forest.
Some trails require a guide, which the guesthouse can arrange; it also hires bicycles and can set up autorickshaw
day hire (?450).
The Maredumilli area is known for its 'bamboo chicken' - chicken roasted in a bamboo trunk. October to
February is toddy season.
Maredumilli is about 80km from Rajahumundry, which is about halfway between Vijayawada and Visakhapat-
nam. From Rajahmundry, take any Bhadrachalam bus to Maredumilli (?63, three hours, every two hours until
4pm). If you need to stay the night in Rajahmundry,
Akanksha Inn
( 0883-2477775/6;
akank-
sha.inn@gmail.com
;
Alcot Gardens, opp railway station, Rajahmundry; s/d with AC from ?400/1000;
),
across from the train station, will do fine.
TOP OF CHAPTER
Vijayawada
0866 / POP 1.05 MILLION
Vijayawada is a busy city and an important port, but it's also intersected by canals, lined
with ghats and ringed by fields of rice and palm. The surrounding area is intensely lush
and green.
Vijayawada is low on sights, but it has an important Durga temple and is considered by
many to be the heart of Andhra culture and language. It's a good base for visiting the
area's important Buddhist sites.
Sights
Undavalli Cave Temples
HISTORIC SITE, HINDU
