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The historical city is located in the northern part of the state of Maharashtra in the western region of India. The city, proud of its ancient history, is situated on the bank of the Kham river. The city was an important seat of the Mughal Empire for a short duration. Thus, it holds many monuments that speaks volumes of its cultural heritage and grandeur of the Mughal architecture.
Due to its strategic position, Aurangabad was known as Khirki, since it provides a window to the Deccan plateau. Initially, Aurangabad was ruled by the Mauryans, who introduced Buddhism there. The Buddhist caves and temples, today give ample testimony to this fact. Later, many temples were also built by the Satvahana and the Rastrakuta rulers.
Climate of Aurangabad
The climate of Aurangabad is temperate with moderate winters in the months of November and hot summers from April through out till June. Maximum temperature in the summers goes to 39șC while in the winters it reaches a low of Minimum 10șC. The best time to visit the place is during October to March.
Major Tourist Attractions of Aurangabad
Aurangabad Caves - The 12 Buddhist caves in the middle of the hills date back to the 1st century. The temples are influenced with the tantric spiritualism and can be seen through the iconographical design of the caves. In some of the caves, Lord Buddha is seen seated on an intrinsically carved throne. The imposing Maqbara can be spotted from these caves.
Bibi-Ka-Maqbara - The tomb was constructed by Aurangzeb in memory of his begum Rabia-ud-Daurani. The tomb bears resemblance to the Taj Mahal in Delhi. The splendidly built tomb is surrounded by garden while its architecture is awesome.
Panchakki - The water wheel is one of the major attraction of Aurangabad. The mill is an amazing creation of the engineering skills of man. The waters to the wheel is bought through a canal from a river lying 6 km far. Finally, the water is poured in the wheel enabling it to move with high speed. The overall look gives an impression of a water fall.
Himroo Factory - Situated in the old town near Zaffer gate, the factory produces traditional hand woven Himroo shawls from cotton and silver threads. This art, known as Kam Khab, is considered cheaper to the brocades of silk and gold thread. These shawls are popular through out the country and are available in any cloth store in the place.
Ajanta Caves - A two hours ride brings one to the caves of Ajanta which are situated at a distance of about 100 km from Aurangabad. The Ajanta caves dates back to the 2nd century are found near the cliff. The caves are protected monuments and are included in the world heritage sites. These caves were silent retreats of the Buddhist monks.
Ellora Caves - More splendid in architecture, these caves built in the 5th or 8th century lies at a distance of 30 km from Aurangabad. A total of 34 caves are carved on the slopes of the hill out of which 16 belong to the Hindus. The rest includes five of the Jains caves and 13 Buddhist caves. There is no sign of religious hostility and perfect tranquility prevails around the caves.
Shopping
Aurangabad is famous for its Himroo shawls, Mashru & Kimkhab weaves, Bidriware, agate stone and Paithani silk sarees. The exquisite Paithani sarees impress most women, as do the wide array of semi precious stones displayed in rough, polished and jewellery form. All of these are the best buys at Aurangabad.
Accommodation
Aurangabad welcomes its guest with all kinds of facilities - from luxury to comfort. Some of the prominent hotels around the place are the Taj Residency, The Meadows, Quality Inn, Hotel President Park, The ambassador. These hotel looks after each small necessities in the guests and makes their tour a memory.
How to Reach
By Air - Aurangabad airport is situated 10 km east of the city. Many leading carriers have a daily flight to
Mumbai.
By Rail - Aurangabad is at a section on the Nanmad - Kachiguda line.. Aurangabad is directly connected to Mumbai by rail. There are two direct trains between Aurangabad and
Mumbai.
By Road - Aurangabad is well connected with some of the major cities by road. Distance from Aurangabad to major places are Pune 214 km, Nasik 218 km and Mumbai at 403 km.
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