Most Popular World Heritage Ajanta & Ellora Caves Tour

Itinerary

Day 1: World heritage Ajanta caves tours

Stop At: Ajanta Caves Road, Ajanta 431001 India
Caves of Ajanta After Breakfast at hotel in Aurangabad we drive through Ajanta 100km 2hour journey from Aurangabad the cotton growing area to Ajanta (UNESCO cultural heritage site). From the 2nd century BC to the 5th century AD, the valley was inhabited by Buddhists. In a U-shaped valley cut steeply into the rock by the river Waguma, one finds numerous large cave temples driven into the rock. In a Mahayan cave you can visit very well preserved murals with scenes from the life of Buddha. The entire complex has been declared a World Heritage Site. Fine old Buddhist murals, fine stone reliefs and sculptures decorate the temples and monasteries carved into the rock. In Ajanta, there are 30 caves, which once belonged to a Buddhist monastery, stand here in the rock face.
Duration: 10 hours

No meals included on this day.
No accommodation included on this day.

Day 2: World heritage Ellora caves, dawltabad fort and bibi ka maqbara tours

Stop At: Ellora Caves, Ellora Cave Rd Ahead of Hiranya Reosrts, Aurangabad 431005 India
HISTORY OF ELLORA CAVES IN SHORT
BEGINNINGS
Rashtrakuta dynasty ruled in large part of contemporary India in the 6th – 10th centuries. These powerful clans had an excellent internal organization. They managed to keep control over the vast area with a sure hand, wisdom and also skilled use of religion as the organizing institute for society. In these times Central India experienced a gradual shift from Buddhism to Hinduism, at the end of this period, Jainism became more widespread. These religions rather peacefully co-existed in Central India and Ellora Caves serve as one of the best examples for this. Ellora, especially the glorious Kailasanatha Temple is the highest architectural attainment throughout the rich history of art during the time of this dynasty.
First caves in Ellora were created shortly after the previous royal shrines of this region – Ajanta Caves – were abandoned. In many aspects, Ellora Caves continue the tendencies originating in Ajanta, but there are numerous influences from other regions of India and new trends in art represented in Ellora.
Duration: 8 hours

Stop At: Bibi Ka Maqbara, Begumpura Gulistan-e-Jauhar KARACHI, Aurangabad 431004 India
The Maqbara was built between 1651-1661 A.D. Aurangzeb was not interested in constructing this mausoleum and hence, he was not keen on spending much wealth. The cost of constructing the Maqbara is believed to be only seven lakhs! A meagre amount as compared to 32 million spent on building the Taj Mahal. He even blocked the movement of marbles from various parts of the country and delayed the construction work. But today, the fact remains that the Bibi-ka-Maqbara is the largest monument that Aurangzeb has to his credit. Azam Shah was strongly influenced by his grandfather Shah Jahan who built the Taj for his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal but surely lacked the access to the royal treasury and the skilled labourers as well. That results in a poor imitation of the original masterpiece. Bibi-ka-Maqbara was designed by Ata-ullah, son of Ustad Ahmed Lahauri, the chief architect behind the Taj Mahal.
Duration: 1 hour

No meals included on this day.
No accommodation included on this day.