Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Sights & Activities
Auroville in general is not geared for tourism - most inhabitants are just busy getting on
with their lives - but it does have a good
Visitors Centre
( 2622239; 9am-6pm)
with inform-
ation services, exhibitions and a few shops selling Auroville products. You can buy a
handbook and map here, and after watching a 10-minute video you can get a pass for ex-
ternal viewing of the
Matrimandir
( passes issued 9.30am-12.30pm daily & 2-4pm Mon-Sat)
, Aur-
oville's 'soul', a 1km walk away through the woodlands.
The large, golden, almost spherical Matrimindir has been likened to a golf ball or a
UFO. You might equally feel that its grand simplicity of form, surrounded by pristine
green parkland, does indeed evoke the divine consciousness it's intended to represent. The
orb's main inner chamber, lined with white marble, houses a large glass crystal that suf-
fuses a beam of sunlight around the chamber. It's conceived as a place for individual silent
concentration and if, after viewing the Matrimandir from the gardens, you want to spend
time inside, you must make a reservation at least one day ahead at the
Matrimandir access of-
fice
( 2622268; Visitors Centre; 10-11am & 2-3pm Wed-Mon)
.
Visitors are quite free to wander round Auroville's network of roads and tracks and
look at some of the unusual and original buildings. It's a large area, about 20 sq km, but
with two million trees planted since Auroville's foundation it has an attractive forested
ambience.
If you're interested in getting to know more about Auroville, they recommend you stay
at least 10 days and join one of their introduction programs or retreats. To get seriously in-
volved, you normally need to come as a volunteer, in any of a wide variety of programs,
usually for two to 12 months. The
Auroville Guest Service
(
2622675;
www.aurovilleguestservice.org
;
9.30am-12.45am Mon-Sat)
provides information and
Solar Kitchen Bldg, 2km east of Visitors Centre;
help on active participation.
Sleeping & Eating
Auroville has over 40
guesthouses
(per person ?300-1000)
of varying comfort levels, offering
from two to 46 beds. You can book them through the
Guest Accommodation Service
( 2622704;
www.aurovilleguesthouses.org
;
Visitors Centre; 9.30am-12.30pm & 2-5pm)
or directly with individual
guesthouses. For the peak seasons, December to March and August and September, reser-
vations three or four months ahead are advised.
