Badrinath is one of the most popular religious towns of the Hindus located in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand in India. Badrinath is the most important of all the four (Char) Dhams in India. The town of Badrinath lies between Nar and Naryana mountain ranges and in the shadow of the mighty Nilkantha peak, 301 km north of Rishikesh. The town is located at an elevation of 3,133mts above sea level on the left bank of Alakananda River.

Closing date: Badrinath temple has now been closed for pilgrims 2014 on the occasion of Vijay Dashmi on 4th of Oct 2014.

Kapat Opening: The kapat of Shri Badarinath Temple will be opened again at the occasion of Basant Panchami which will be around mid April of 2015.

Place to See

Badrinath Temple: Badrinath is the most sacred Dham of India. It is located at an elevation of 3,133mts above sea level in the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand state. This Dham was established by Adi Shankaracharya in the 9th century. The deity of Badrinath temple is Lord Vishnu. The temple is situated on the right bank of the holy Alaknanda River. The temple and the town is a riot of colours and the colourful 'Singh-Dwara' at the entrance is very artistic creation. Every year millions of tourists and devotees visit this sacred place from May to October month. The temple remains closed during winter months as the region is prone to heavy snowfall.

TaptKund: Tapt Kund is a natural thermal spring where the devotees take a holy dip as it is very important to take a bath before visiting a temple. It is also believed that the kund has medicinal values and can cure allergies of the people. All the devotees take holy dip in the natural hot water together with unknown people. The people may be unknown to each other but their purpose of visit is same, i.e. to worship the sacred Badrinath Dham.

Brahma Kapal: Brahma Kapal is a place where Hindus performs propitiating rites for their deceased ancestors. Brahma Kapal is a flat platform on the bank of river Alaknanda. You can see several pundits (priests) sitting with 'pooja samagri'.

Neelkanth: Situated above the Badrinath Temple, Neelkanth peak is named after Lord Shiva who is also known as Neelkanth. The cliff of the peak is the first place where the sun castes its crimson rays. Neelkanth is a Pyramidal-shaped snowy peak and if you carefully observe the cliff you can see as if Lord Shiva is sitting looking at the sky. Neelkanth peak is situated at an elevation of 6,560mts above sea level. Numerous Brahmakal can be seen at the foot of Neelkanth Peak and the trekking route of 6km can be covered easily.

Mata Murti Temple: Situated 3kms from Badrinath, Mata Murti Temple is dedicated to the mother of Lord Narayan. According to mythology Mata Murti prayed Lord Vishnu to take his next avatar by coming out from her womb. Lord Vishnu then happily agreed and came into world as twins, Nar and Narayan to kill a monster. Every year a fair is held in the month of August at Mata Murti Temple.

Charanpaduka: Situated 3km above Badrinath Temple lies a beautiful meadow carpeted with wild flowers in the summers. A boulder bearing the footprints of Lord Vishnu is located here known as Charanpaduka. It is said that when Lord Vishnu descended from Vaikunth he stepped on this boulder. The area is a steep climb from the town and is full of caves & boulders. This path leads you to the foot of Neelkanth peak where you can find several Brahmakamals.

Narad Kund: Located near Tapt Kund, this kund is believed to be the source of the Badarinath idol. The hot water springs comes out from beneath the Garur Shila and falls into a tank. Darshan of Badarinath is always preceded by a holy dip in this kund. Apart from that there are many other hot water springs. Devotees take a dip in them for their religious and medicinal value.

Mana: Mana is very close to Tibet border and it is one of the last villages of India. Most of the tourists who visit Badrinath also come to see the end of the road at Mana. Mana is inhabited by Indo-Mongolian tribes often called as bhotias. Mana is situated 3kms from Badrinath.

Bheem Pul:Bheem Pul is an enthralling and adventurous place with mythological importance. This is the place where Bheem threw a big massif rock to make a path joining two mountains so that Draupadi could walk easily on it. Below this bridge the Saraswati River comes from between the mountain with immense force to merge with the water of Alanknanda River.

Vyas Cave: Vyas Gufa or Vyas Cave is the place from where Ved Vyas dictated entire Mahabharata to God Ganesha so that he could write. Ved Vyas also meditated in this cave

Ganesha Cave: Ganesha Cave is the natural cave where he wrote Mahabharata as dictated by Ved Vyas from Vyas Gufa.

Sheshnetre: On the opposite bank of the river Alaknanda, in the lap of Nar Parvat, there are two small seasonal lakes. Between these lakes is a boulder having an impression of the legendary snake, Sheshnag. The formation of eye on the boulder is natural.

Panch Dharas & Panch Shilas: The Panch Dharas (five streams) which are famous in Badaripuri are Prahlad, Kurma, Bhrigu, Urvashi & Indira dhara. The most striking of these is the Indira dhara, located about 1.5 km north of the town Badaripuri. Around the Tapt Kund there are five blocks of rocks of mythological importance called Narad, Narsimh, Barah, Garur & Markandeya Shilas (stone).

How to Reach

By Air: Jolly Grant Airport is the nearest Airport to Badrinath situated at a distance of 314kms. Jolly Grant Airport is well connected to Delhi with daily flights and Badrinath is well connected by motorable roads with Jolly Grant Airport. Taxis are available from Jolly Grant Airport to Badrinath.

By Rail: The nearest railway station to Badrinath is Rishikesh. The Rishikesh railway station is situated 295kms before Badrinath on NH58 and is well connected by Indian railway networks with major destinations of India. Trains to Rishikesh are frequent and Badrinath is well connected by motorable roads with Rishikesh. Taxis and buses are available from Rishikesh, Srinagar, Rudraprayag, Chamoli, Joshimath and many other destinations to Badrinath.

By Road: Badrinath is well connected by motorable roads with major destinations of Uttarakhand state. Buses to Haridwar, Rishikesh and Srinagar are available from ISBT Kashmiri Gate. Buses and Taxis to Badrinath are easily available from major destinations of Uttarakhand state like Dehradun, Haridwar, Rishikesh, Pauri, Rudraprayag, Karnaprayag, Ukhimath, Srinagar, Chamoli etc. Badrinath is connected with Ghaziabad by National Highway 58.