Chennai
A Bay of Bengal capital of forts, bronzes and temples
A Chennai tour in Tamil Nadu's capital pairs the 13 km Marina Beach and Fort St George with the Government Museum's bronzes and Mylapore's temples.
Overview
Chennai is the capital of Tamil Nadu, a city in Chennai district on the Bay of Bengal coast. It works for visitors who want museums, old temples and a long public beach within one city, and walking is easier from November to February, since highs climb to about 41 C by May.
The Marina is where most visits begin, a beach of roughly 13 km along the Coromandel shore, backed by a walkway of about 6 km that is dotted with memorials and statues. It is one for strolling, because bathing is legally prohibited on account of a strong undercurrent. A little inland, Fort St George was finished by the East India Company in 1644 and now houses the Tamil Nadu legislative assembly, with a separate museum of colonial-era weapons, coins and uniforms. Its teak flagstaff rises 46 m, and the fort grounds hold St Mary's Church, built between 1678 and 1680 and described as the oldest Anglican church in India.
The Government Museum at Egmore dates from 1851 and spreads over six buildings and 46 galleries. Its bronze gallery is the section most people single out, with Chola figures including Shiva as Nataraja, and a National Art Gallery hangs works by Raja Ravi Varma. For a different kind of museum, DakshinaChitra lies about 25 km south on the East Coast Road and has 18 relocated heritage houses from Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Kerala, together with craft demonstrations.
Two religious landmarks are worth the detour. The Kapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore is a Dravidian-style temple, probably built in the 7th century under the Pallavas, and its stucco gateway tower of 120 ft dates from 1906. In Santhome, the neo-Gothic basilica was rebuilt between 1893 and 1896 over a tomb that tradition holds to be that of St Thomas the Apostle, and it became India's first minor basilica in 1956.
The practical side is simple. Chennai International Airport lies around 21 km south-west of the centre, and its metro station concourse connects directly to the terminals. Chennai Central station, opened in 1873, sits in Periamet. Rain comes mainly with the north-east monsoon from October to December, adding up to about 120 cm a year.
Known for
A beach of roughly 13 km with a walkway of memorials and statues
Happening soon
Updated Oct 7, 2026Freshworks Chennai Marathon (15th edition)
sportsA Sunday road race in Chennai with 10 km, half marathon, 32 km and full marathon routes, all finishing at India Maritime University in Uthandi.
Coming up, dates to be confirmed
Mylapore Festival
culturalA neighbourhood festival in Mylapore with heritage walks, a food walk, board-game contests and a quiz, held around the temple streets in early January.
Usually early to mid January. The 2026 festival had a prelude on 3 and 4 January and the main days on 8 to 11 January. No 2027 dates found.
Reach out to us for the confirmed datesPanguni Brahmotsavam at the Kapaleeshwarar Temple
festivalA ten-day festival at Mylapore's Kapaleeshwarar Temple, with a chariot procession, the Arupathu Moovar procession of 63 saints and a wedding rite to close.
Usually March to April, in the Tamil month of Panguni. In 2026 it ran from 23 March to 1 April, with the chariot on 29 March. No 2027 schedule found.
Reach out to us for the confirmed datesQuick facts
Hot and humid, with monthly highs of about 41.7 C in May and about 31 C in December, and most of the roughly 120 cm of yearly rain falling in the north-east monsoon from October to December.
Chennai International Airport (MAA), about 20 to 21 km south-west of the city centre
Chennai Central (MAS), in Periamet, with Egmore and other terminals also serving the city (distance from the main sights to be supplied)
National highways link Chennai with Tiruchirappalli, Bengaluru, Coimbatore and Tiruvallur, and the East Coast Road runs south through Mahabalipuram to Puducherry, about 170 km away. Kanchipuram is about 72 km south-west. Drive times (to be supplied).
Treat Marina Beach as a place to walk rather than swim, since bathing there is legally prohibited because of the undercurrent
Set aside a half day for the Government Museum at Egmore, as it has six buildings and 46 galleries, and head first for the bronze gallery
Take the metro for airport transfers, because the airport station's concourse is linked directly to the terminals
Location
Packages that visit Chennai
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