Kurukshetra

Kurukshetra is a holy city in Haryana. It was the site of a battle described in the Indian epic the Mahabarata. One of the most sacred parts of that story, and one of the most famous passages in all of Hindu scripture, takes place just before the battle. It is called the Bhagavad Gita and is a dialog between the warrior Arjuna and the God Krishna who serves as his charioteer.

Get in

Kurukshetra is approximately 150 km (93 mi) north of New Delhi and is most often reached by road or rail from there.

By train

Kurukshetra is a junction on the main track of the Amritsar - New Delhi rail line, 250 km from Amritsar. A train to Kurukshetra can be taken from either New Delhi Railway Station or from Old Delhi railway station, and Nizzamuddin as well. Train takes two and half hours to reach Kurukshetra from Delhi.

• 1 Kurukshetra Junction railway station. (updated Aug 2024)

By car

The Grand Trunk Road or National Highway No 1 passes by Kurukshetra, so it is easy to reach by road from Amritsar, Ludhiana, Chandigarh or New Delhi, and there is also direct connectivity to Haridwar and Patiala. Kurukshetra is about 90km south of Chandigarh.

By bus

You can catch a bus to Kurukshetra from Indraparasth bus station in New Delhi. You can get a bus from Kashmiri Gate Bus station. Travelling from Delhi to Karnal by bus takes normally 3 to 4 hours depending on the traffic conditions in city range of Delhi. You can catch a bus from Chandigarh ISBT and Delhi ISBT.

Get around

Auto-rickshaws (three-wheelers, shared) are the only available option to move around the city.

See

Bronze Chariot with Lord Krishna and Arjuna

• 1 Crocodile Breeding Centre (Bhor Crocodile Park), Bhor Saidan village. The centre has around 10 male and 10 female mugger crocodiles which you can see up close. The guides are very knowledgeable. (updated May 2020)
• Raja Harsh ka Tilla (Mound of King Harsha), Old Bypass Rd, Darra Khera, Kalyan Nagar, Thanesar. 
• 2 Kalpana Chawla Planetarium, Jyotisar Pehowa Road. (updated Jun 2020)
• 3 Shri Krishna Museum. (updated May 2020)
• Mini Zoo & Black Buck Breeding Centre, Pipli. (updated May 2020)
• Panorama Science Museum (Kurukshetra Panorama and Science Centre), Pehowa Rd, Dukh Bhanjan Colony (near Theme Park), ☏ +91 1744 251 100. (updated May 2020)
• 4 Sheikh Chilli's Tomb. (updated May 2020)

Parks

• Harshwardhan Park.  
• Jindal Park. (updated May 2020)

Temples and religious sites

• Bhadra Kali Mandir. 
• Birla Mandir. 
• Brahm-sarovar. The memoirs of Al Beruni, called 'Kitab-ul-Hind' mentions this sacred water tank. The water tank is dedicated to Lord Shiva. It is said in the scriptures that the holiness of performing 'Ashvamedh Yajna' can be achieved by a dip in this sacred water tank. This place is believed to be the land where civilization was born. Lord Brahma is said to have created the universe from this land. Just in the vicinity of this sacred place are the Birla Gita Mandir and Baba Nath's haveli. The sight of Kurukshetra is exquisite especially in winters when birds migrate from ever different landmasses to take a dip in the waters. This beautiful looks all the attractive during the 'Deep Daan' and Aarti during Gita Jayanti in the later November and early December. 
• Chatti Patshahi Gurudwara. The Sikh Gurus visited Kurukshetra from time to time. Pilgrims go to the Pundits of their area and sign in their register after taking a bath. 
• 5 Jyotisar. A pilgrimage site, where the Bhagavad Gita was spoken. (updated May 2020)
• Sanhit-Sarovar. Situated at a distance of 3 km from Kurukshetra Railway Station on Pehowa Road, Sannihit Sarovar is believed to be the permanent abode of Lord Vishnu. It is believed that entire range of Tirthas assemble here on the Amavas day and if a man performs Shradhs at the time of solar eclipse and takes bath in this tank, he acquires the fruit of 1000 Ashwamedh sacrifices. The tank is 500 yards in length and 150 yards in breath. Pilgrims are led first to this holy spot at the time of solar eclipse. The idols of Lord Vishnu, Druv Bhagat, Lord Hanuman and Goddess Durga are placed here. Pilgrims also visit to Pandas and Tirath. Purohits who have their offices on the banks of Sannhit Sarovar, keeping the records hundreds of years old of the pilgrims coming from various parts of the country. People come here for Shradhs of their ancestors. 
• Sthanswer Mandir. 

Do

Movies

The city has several cinema halls with the classical single screen format. The city has a single mall named Kessel with 3 screen multiplexes, and another multiplex will be opened shortly in another mall called Divine Business Park.

Eat

• Chats around Bramha Sarovar and main city (Thanesar)
• Multicuisine at Kimaya, Mezbaan, Saffron
• Chicken items at Crown Hotel (Pipli)
• Chole Bhature on Railway Road
• Poori with petha and chole in old city (near ambedkar chowk)
• University Cafeteria for south Indian cuisine

Drink

Parakeet resort (Haryana Tourism) serves hard drinks. There are no objections for guests to bring their liquor and consume it in their room. Most of the hotels follow the same pattern.

Sleep

There are many dharmshalas for a budget accommodations, a few are:

• Agarwala Dharamshala, near railway station.
• Brahman Dharamshala, near old bus stand.
• Jat Dharmashala, near Birla Mandir.
• Saini Samaj Bhavan

For a better accommodation hotels are:

• Neelkanth
• 1 Parakeet Resort, Sector 2 (200 m from Pipli bus stand). A government-owned resort. Air-conditioned rooms with Wi-Fi and free parking. It has a big private park where guests often go for a jog or take part in yoga sessions. (updated Jun 2020)

Go next

• Chandigarh (95 km by road or rail)
• Karnal (35 km)
• Ludhiana (181 km)
• New Delhi (150 km)
• Patiala (100 km)
• Kasauli (138 km)