The fast-growing and bustling city of Raipur is the capital of one of India's youngest states, Chhattisgarh. There is something here for everyone.

The devoted can visit shrines like Mahamaya temple, Dudadhari temple, ISKCON temple, Banjari Mata temple, Vallabhacharya temple, the Shadani Darbar temple, Mahadev temple, Dargah Sharif and Govind Nagar Gurudwara, each with its own unique history and legend.

For the history buff here are several architecturally excellent colonial structures like the Rajkumar College, the Collectorate and the Mahakoshal Art Gallery, and the Mahant Ghasidas State Museum which houses artifacts and antiques from all over the state.

For the nature lover, apart from the many parks and ponds dotting the city, there are the Budha Talab, the small but busy Marine Drive and the Jeep Safari in Naya Raipur.

Those looking for shopping and entertainment, the city has the Jaistambh Chowk, Gol Bazaar and Sadar markets that are walking distance from the hotel, fancy malls with cineplexes like 36 Mall, Magneto Mall, Ambuja Mall, Decathelon and City Mall, and fun parks like Wonderland and MM Fun City. The state emporium Shabari has a great range of local craft products.

In Raipur District

The temple towns of Champaran (58 km) and Rajim (50 km) are very close by and make excellent day-trips. Champaran is the center of the Vallabh sect and Rajim has the ancient Rajiv Lochan temple on the banks of the holy river Mahanadi.

In the nearby districts

In the neighboring districts of Mahasamund are the internationally famous ancient Buddhist ruins of Suirpur (83 km), in Bhilai (33 km), one of India's largest and oldest steel plants and industrial districts, and a delightful zoological park, and in Rajnandgaon, the Dongarhgarh Bamleshwari temple (108 km).

The Royal-Nature circuits

Chhattisgarh is a land of hills, forests and rivers, and also royalty, a fact not very well known. Most of its ancient kingdoms, that have left behind a remarkable cultural heritage, incidentally, were based in the hill and forest regions. Today, many of the former royal families have opened their heritage properties for tourists. A visit to Kanker Palace, Chhuikhadan Palace, Palace Kawardha and Bastar Place not only promises an exciting journey back into Chhattisgarh's past but also a trip to some India's most pristine and biologically diverse nature zones.

Kanker Palace (140 km) is a quaint colonial-princely property with an old-world charm and an internationally famous hospitality from where you can visit some of central India's oldest pre-historic rock shelters with wonderful art, and local tribal villages with rich cultures.

The recently opened palace at Chhuikhadan (98 km) boasts rooms adorned with medieval Vaishnava mural art.

The Bastar Palace in Jagdalpur (300 km) is a gateway to Bastar's fabled waterfalls and cataratcs, tribal art and culture, and national parks and wildlife sanctuaries.

Palace Kawardha (117 km), Chhattisgarh's oldest heritage property, is an architectural wonder, and serves as an entry point to the medieval Bhoramdeo temples and the Kanha National Park, both tourist destinations of international interest.

This Divine Land is also enriched with Natural Beauty which makes it a paradise for tourists. The deep forest area between bushes and bamboos where one always feel the absence of sunlight , wide and thick forests , between high mountains cool flowing streams , sky-touching mountains , caves , high waterfalls , and in the valleys the spread of greenary and in between this , the huts made by bamboo sticks, the fearless life style of the tribals and their culture, one's heart and mind would be filled with new wonders and pleasure.

The village is identified with Champaranya, the birth place of the Saint Vallabhacharya, the reformer and founder of the Vallabh Sect for whom this place has religious sanctity. A temple was constructed in honour of Guru Swamy Vallabhacharya. Near to this Temple, there is the temple of Champakeshwara Mahadeva.

An annual fair is held every year in the month of Magh (January - February). Birth Anniversary of Mahapprabhu Vallabhacharya is celebrated every year on Eleventh bright day of Baisakh (April-May) and a large number of followers of the Sect assemble here to pay homage.

This is the largest waterfall in India, justly likened to the Niagara falls. About 38 km to the west of Jagdalpur - a one hour drive on an excellent road - this spectacular fall is formed when the river Indravati abruptly collapses into a 100 feet deep cavern. The mouth of the fall, when in full profusion, is over 1,000 feet wide. The rainbow colors of the falls attracts the tourists at the first sight itself. This is the prime attraction for all tourists and worth seeing in rainy season, between July and October.

The park is a paradise for the nature lovers. The moist peninsular sal forests and the South Indian tropical moist deciduous forests are seen in their finest form here. The park is situated in a transition zone where southern limit of sal forests and northern limit of sal forests and northern limit of teak forests overlap, hence both sal and teak are seen together in this valley. The valley is in fact one of the last pockets of almost virgin forests still left in the peninsular region.

The lush sal and bamboo forests, grassy meadows and ravines of Kanha provided inspiration to Rudyard Kipling for his famous novel "Jungle Book". The Kanha National Park in Madhya Pradesh came into being in 1955 and forms the core of the Kanha Tiger Reserve, created in 1974 under Project Tiger. The Park's landmark achievement is the preservation of the rare hardground Swamp Deer (Barasingha), saving it from near extinction. Stringent conservation programs for the overall protection of the Park's fauna and flora, makes Kanha one of the most well maintained National Parks in Asia.

A heightened attraction within the Park is Bamni Dadar, popularly known as Sunset Point that offers the most awe-inspiring backdrop of the sunset against grazing Sambhars and Gaurs, magnifying the natural splendor of the area. Aside from its diverse wildlife and bird population, the frequent sightings of Tigers roaming in the wild at Kanha Wildlife Sanctuary remain the most popular draw.

The region of Kanker and Bastar, situated in the dense tropical forestlands of Central India, is a land of unsurpassed natural beauty. Since time immemorial pristine tribal societies have created and sustained delicate rhythms of life in harmony with nature. On coming to this land, one gets an exhilarating sense of coming into something wondrous and untouched…