Aurangabad is an excellent base for exploring the World Heritage Sites of Ellora and Ajanta.
Aurangabad is an important city in the state of Maharashtra, India. It sees a lot of international tourist traffic due to world heritage sites, Ajanta and Ellora caves. The city is heading towards rapid industrial growth, but retains its past glory and charms, heritage and traditions. Conspicuously seen on the Deccan plateau, it has a rich culture and a plethora of magnificent arts on display.
The city of Aurangabad was founded in 1610 by Malik Amber, the prime minister of Murtaza Nizam Shah II. The town was named as ‘Khirki’ and was stated a capital. Aurangabad lay low through most of the tumultuous history of medieval India and only hit the spotlight when the last Mughal emperor, Aurangzeb, became Viceroy of the Deccan plateau and made the city his capital from 1653 to 1707 naming it Aurangabad. This was the golden time in the history of Aurangabad when the city flourished the most in terms of culture, architecture and art. With the emperor’s death came the city’s rapid decline, but the brief period of glory saw the building of some fascinating monuments.
The entire city of Aurangabad was fortified and huge entrance gates were erected. Except for Bharkal gate all the other gates are associated with the period of Aurangzeb. In all there were 54 gates in Aurangabad. Out of 54 gates only 13 have survived over the period of time.
The best time to visit Aurangabad is during the winter months from November to February. The average winter temperature ranges from a maximum of 22°C to a minimum of 10°C making it a comfortable experience to visit the attractions in and around Aurangabad.
Aurangabad is well connected by air, rail and road to other parts of the country. Direct flights from Mumbai and Delhi are available on a daily basis. Daily trains run from Aurangabad to many parts of the country including major cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Hyderabad. Aurangabad also has a good network of National and State highways connecting all parts of the country so it is possible to take a private chauffeured car to Aurangabad from one of the nearby cities.
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