From Wikitravel

Jagdalpur is a city in Bastar district in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh.

[edit] Get in

From Visakhapatnam, catch the 1 Vishakapatnam - Kirandul Passenger (1VK) having Reserved First Class & Sleeper Class accommodation. 1 VK departs Vishakapatnam at around 06:45 am and reaches Jagdalpur by around 05:30 pm

From Hyderabad, you have to reach Bhadrachalam first and then drive down close to 250 Kms on the single -laned NH 212, via Konta & Sukma to reach Jagdalpur. Road conditions are bad,and be prepared for frequent checks by the law enforcement authorities. Your vehicle of choice for a trip to Jagdalpur should ideally be a vehicle having a high ground clearance, and SUVs like the TATA Safari & Ford Endeavour fit the bill perfectly.

From Raipur (Capital of Chhattisgarh state), the road to Jagdalpur is good enough. You have regular overnight non-a/c sleeper buses running between Raipur/Bilaspur & Jagdalpur.

[edit] Get around

Check out the Anthropological museum (Located about 3 Kms from the city centre - closed on Sundays); there is also a big lake within Jagdalpur, with boating facilities. Take a walk down the Sanjay market area. No public transport in Jagdalpur; you can hire cycle-rickshaws though.

[edit][add listing] See

• The 'USP' of Bastar district - Chitrakote Waterfalls, situated about 38 Kms from Jagdalpur.

• The desi version of the Niagara Falls - Chitrakote falls will not disappoint you. Accommodation available, a couple of hundred metres away from the falls. Chhattisgarh Tourism Board (CTB) offers Log Huts (on stilts) with a tarrif of Rs 1000/- + Luxury Tax of Rs 50/- (As on July 2007 - check up with Chhattisgarh Tourism Board for the latest tarrif).

• Tirathgarh Waterfalls, situated about 35 Kms from Jagdalpur (You need to take a detour from NH 212 - the road to Bhadrachalam) is another must-watch. Get down to the base of the falls, and spend time observing the falls in their full glory. Directions - Boards to the falls are virtually non-existent, so be prepared to ask around a bit - locals are co-operative though!

• There is a weekly 'Haat' every Sunday at Narayanpur, about 120(?) kms from Jagdalpur, on the road to Raipur. Worth a visit if you want to see live Bastar in action.

• There is huge Ganesh Temple at Barsur - enquire at Jagdalpur for driving directions to Barsur
• There is another temple (dedicated to Goddess Danteshwari) located at Dantewada, about 60 Kms from Jagdalpur, on the way to Bailadila.

• There are lots of facinating caves close to Jagdalpur(nearly 35 km from city)called kotamsar caves and dandak caves, the caves are a mush watch as you would not see things like this generally.

[edit][add listing] Do

[edit][add listing] Buy

[edit][add listing] Eat

[edit][add listing] Drink

Mahua - the traditional Bastar drink. Have it strong or mix it with water or soft drinks.

[edit][add listing] Sleep

• Hotel Rainbow Rs. 480-1300
• Hotel Suri International Rs.650-1150
• Naman Bastar Rs.1200-2000

[edit] Get out

If not on your own conveyance,and intend to get to Raipur, catch one of those numerous sleeper non-a/c buses to Raipur.

If you intend to go to Vishakapatnam, catch the return 2VK passenger that arrives at Jagdalpur at around 09:30 am (Daily service)

If you intend to go to Hyderabad/Vijayawada, start early, catch the NH 212 to Bhadrachalam, and onwards to Hyderabad/Vijayawada.

BEWARE OF NH-16 TOWARDS NIZAMABAD - Never even think of going west, towards Nizamabad (In Andhra Pradesh). Maps show the existance of NH16, linking Jagdalpur & Nizamabad via Gidam,Bijapur,Madded & Bhopalapatnam, but in reality, the road (NH-16) starts gettting bad to worse from Bijapur onwards, and abruptly comes to a halt at Bhopalapatnam. Lack of a bridge across the Indrawati near Bhopalapatnam is the main culprit.

So, if you are planning to get to Hyderabad via Bhopalapatnam & Warangal (NH - 202) - don't even think about it!

I agree with the above NH-16, I myself was a victim of maps of india. We went upto chennur and found that there is no bridge connecting to bhopalapatnam...had to come back to bhadrachalam and then travel to jagdalpur...