Madurai is one of the oldest city recording its history before 2000 years.It is also known as temple city being full of temples which explains about the architectures of Tamil people.In olden days,Madurai was the capital city of Pandya kingdom,one of the main kingdom in sangam period.An important fact about Madurai city is-this city is well planned one in the sangam period itself with Sri Meenakshi Amman temple at its center and four streets around it.Also,it is referred as sleepless city because we can afford food items anytime irrespective of timings and anytime, workers will be engaged in work.Even at 3.00 am ,workers will be at some work.Due to these reasons,Madurai has a high attraction towards tourists to visit Madurai.There are many number of places to visit here.Some best places to visit in Madurai are given below,
1. Sri Meenakshi Amman Temple
One of the Oldest temple in TamilNadu which is situated in the center of the Madurai City.It covers six hectares and has four main Gopurams(towers) in four directions and other 12 gopurams(towers) which was built by various kings in different years.Visiting hours :5.30 am to 12.30 pm and 4 pm to 10 pm.During the first tamil month Chithirai (April),Festival will be held in Madurai
2.AlagarKovil
AlagarKovil is a small hill situated nearby Madurai with a travel distance of 20 km.No specific timings are there to see Alagarkovil. A temple is situated in the top of the hill.
3.Thirumalai Nayakar Mahal
It is a palace situated in Madurai which was built by thirumalai nayakar of nayakar dynasty during 17th century.This palace is referred as "Tajmahal of South" with wonderful architecture.Due to some reasons,only one fourth of the palace remains.Visiting hours 9 am to 5 pm.During night,light show will be shown at the palace.
4.Aayiram Kaal Mandapam
It is referred as Temple's Museum with 1000 pillars in it.This is the best place of example for architecture with rich statues and carvings.It is nearby Sri Meenakshi Amman Temple.
How to reach Madurai?
Reaching Madurai is very easy since Madurai is connected with other major cities like Chennai,Coimbatore etc., by air,road and railway.