Chittoor

Introduction

Chittoor is a city in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, where it serves as the headquarters of its district as well as of the surrounding mandal and revenue division. As a district and divisional centre, it functions as an administrative hub for the wider area around it.

Getting there

Chittoor sits on several bus corridors, and most travellers arrive by road. From Chennai, take Route No. 144 from Koyembedu Bus Stand (CMBT), or the Lalbagh train to Katpadi, from where buses to Chittoor are frequent. From Bangalore, board a KSRTC bus from Majestic heading to Tirupati, Nellore, Vijayawada or Guntur and get down at CTR; APSRTC buses on the same routes also stop there. From Hyderabad, several private operators run overnight services from Ameerpet X roads, APSRTC buses leave from MGBS, and the Venkatadri Express departs Kachiguda in the evening and reaches Chittoor the following morning. From Tirupati, APSRTC buses run every ten minutes in both directions.

From Vijayawada, Vizag and Machilipatnam, take any APSRTC or private bus bound for Bangalore and alight at CTR; two APSRTC buses, one in the morning and one in the evening, start from Vijayawada for Chittoor, and trains such as the Sheshadri, Hatia, Sabari and KK Express also serve the town. Wherever you board, government buses are the better choice — private services tend to stop at too many places along the way, and the private bus from Kalasipalya is best avoided for the same reason. Kanipakkam, 12 km away, has direct buses to Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Bangalore, Chennai, Nellore and Ananathapur.

Getting around

Chittoor has no metro or tram network, so getting around means buses, trains, auto-rickshaws and taxis. The city is well connected by national and state highways, and the road network inside it is extensive. For day-to-day movement, use APSRTC buses for anything along the main routes and for reaching nearby towns and temples, auto-rickshaws and taxis for short hops and places buses do not serve directly, and walking for the immediate area around your accommodation and the main commercial streets. Chittoor bus station is the departure point for APSRTC services and many private operators; local buses to nearby places such as Kanipakam are frequent and inexpensive, and on longer intercity routes government buses are often the better choice than private ones, which tend to stop at many places along the way. Intercity tickets can be booked online, including AC and electric bus options, and some operators offer real-time bus tracking and round-the-clock customer support. For longer journeys, private operators and travel companies can be booked in advance online, which is the most dependable option without local knowledge; for short local trips, arrange transport directly rather than relying on an app.

Chittoor railway station is a national railway station on the Gudur–Katpadi branch line, under the Guntakal division of the South Central Railway zone, with daily trains to destinations including Vijayawada, Kakinada, Rajamahendravaram, Guntur, Tenali, Visakhapatnam, Kacheguda (Hyderabad), Bengaluru, Mysuru and Thiruvananthapuram, plus long-distance services such as the HimSagar Express. Weekly, biweekly and triweekly trains connect the city with Mannargudi, Jammu, Katra, Tirunelveli, Mangalore, Ernakulam, Hatia Ranchi, Santragachi (Kolkata) and the Jayanthi Janata Express. If your plans need a wider choice of trains, Katpadi Junction in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, just south of Chittoor, is the nearest major junction, and many travellers use it as their railhead and cover the final leg by road. Chittoor is compact in its central parts, so walking works well for the immediate surroundings and the main commercial area, but beyond that the city spreads out; given the heat and the distances, most visitors combine walking with buses or hired vehicles.

Where to stay

Food & drink

Chittoor's eating scene splits neatly between vegetarian tiffin rooms and biryani-and-grill places, with a few addresses worth knowing. For morning tiffen items, Gopal Naidu Hotel opposite Darga, near Darga Circle, is well regarded and tasty. Vegetarian options cluster around Chandana Ramesh Shopping Mall, where you'll find Hotel Lakshmi Vishnu Bhavan and Hotel Vishnu Bhavan, along with Sri Valli Bhavan, a pure vegetarian hotel. On High Road, Nandini Restaurant serves quality food, while Hotel Sindhu Towers sits opposite the Railway Station Entrance. For non-vegetarian food, Pratap Restaurant opposite the old Bus Stand has been maintained for two decades, offering good quality at low prices and closing on Sundays. NPS near MSR junction is also famous for biryani, and Five Star Hyderabadi biryani center is on High Road beside the J.B.T office near the old bus stand. Lakshmi Saraswathi Depot on OTK road is good for milk products, and opposite the old Bus Stand you'll find a coffee bar known for its lemon tea. Other options include Bans 4 Seasons Coffee Shop, Hotel Ajanta, Hotel Alankar, and Hotel Menaka.

For drinks, Bans Spiritz Bar & Restaurant is a three-star spot, and Blue Heaven restaurants can be found on Church street. N.P.S bar and restaurant has locations at Kongareddypalli opposite the Chittoor tennis club and at Naidu buildings. Nandi bar and restaurant sits beside MSR Movieland theater, Nirmala bar and restaurant is on Palamaner Road, and Mayuri bar and restaurant is on Bye pass road in Reddigunta.

What to see and do

Chittoor's religious life centres on its temples, and several are worth seeking out. The Varasiddi Vinayaka Swamy Temple at Kanipakam, about 9 km from town, is a powerful temple where the deity is swayambu, or self-manifested, and is known for doing justice. Further out, the Ardhagiri Anjenaya Swamy Temple at Aragonda sits 20 km away, the Lakshmi Narayana Swamy Temple at Vepanjeri is 12 km from town, and the Subramanya Swamy Temple stands on a hill. Within Chittoor itself you can visit the Durgamma Gudi at Greamspet, the Muthyalamma Temple at Thenabanda, the Ponniamma Gudi, the RamulaVari Gudi on Bazaar Veedhi, the Hanuman Temple near Ponniyamman Temple street, the Sai Baba and Shirdi Sai Baba temples at Kattamanchi, the Vinayaka Temple in Ram Nagar Colony, the Eswar Temple at Eruvaram, and the Venkateswara temples at Thangal and near the Government Hospital. Elsewhere in town you'll find a church on Church Street, a darga near Srinivasa theater, a Deer Park, a Forest Reserve, the Masonics Chittoor Sports Stadium, and the Nutrine Confectionery site, now home to Godrej and Hersheys Foods.

For something more active, Chittoor has a handful of climbs and walks. Bodi konda, near Ram Nagar Colony, is a great hill to climb, with Kings School as the best landmark. Chase pillar, 2 km from B.V. Reddy school in Konga Reddy Palli, is a beautiful trek where you can see a lake on the hill; the pillar was built by the British in the 18th century, and camp areas they built can be seen along the way. Puligundu, 17 km from Chittoor on the road to Penumur, is a tall, huge rock that is a challenge to climb, and Penumur itself is a historical village. Turtle Neck Hill in Durganagar Colony, Greamspet, takes its name from rocks at the top formed like a turtle's neck, while Yelampalli forest, 20 km away near Aragonda, is where people go hunting white pigs and other wild animals. Closer in, a walking trail runs inside town through a red sandalwood forest near Mesanicals ground, and Kannan College Grounds is a very big ground for a pleasant morning walk. If you want a movie, Chanakya, VijayaLakshmi, Raghava and MSR are nice theatres to watch films.

Three days in Chittoor

Day one: Arrive in Chittoor, the district headquarters of Andhra Pradesh, and use it as your base. If you are coming from Chennai, buses leave from Koyembedu Bus Stand (CMBT); from Bangalore, KSRTC services run from Majestic and Kalasipalya; from Hyderabad, APSRTC buses depart from Ameerpet and MGBS, and the Venkatadri Express connects Kachiguda. Trains also reach you via Katpadi. Spend the afternoon settling in and getting your bearings in town before an early night.

Day two: Make the short trip to Kanipakkam and its temple, one of the region's best-known pilgrimage stops. Return to Chittoor for the evening and eat locally — the cuisine is Indian and typical of Andhra Pradesh, so expect rice-based meals with the heat and tang the state is known for.

Day three: Use Chittoor's position on the route between Bangalore and Tirupati to move on. Buses and trains link you onward to Tirupati, Nellore, Vijayawada, Guntur, Ananathapur, Vizag and Machilipatnam, with services such as the Sheshadri, Hatia, Sabari and KK Express among your options. If you have time before departing, a stop at Lalbagh is a pleasant way to close the trip.