Guwahati

State : Assam in India.
Best time to Travel : October to April.
Weather Conditions : The city experienc s an annual rainfall of 180 cm (from May to September). While summer temperatures range from 22 to 38°C, in winters the mercury ranges from 10 to 25°C.
Location : Situated on the banks of the mighty Brahmaputra, Guwahati is the junction of three important roads, National Highways 31, 37 and 40.

Know Guwahati
Guwahati is the commercial capital city of the northeastern state of Assam. Formerly known as Pragjyotishpur (the City of Eastern Light), Guwahati is the biggest city of Assam in India. Its etymological root is derived from two Assamese words, "Guwa," meaning areca nut and "Haat," meaning market. Fixed between the picturesque hills of the eastern flanks of the Himalayan mountain range, Guwahati houses the political capital of the state, Dispur. The gateway to the seven other northeastern states, also referred as seven sisters, Guwahati is a vital tourist base point, besides being an attraction in its own. Journey to Guwahati
Airport
Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport of Guwahati is well connected by air with New Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai. Indian Air Lines, Sahara And Jet Airways operate regular flights to Guwahati. The other towns to which these airways operate flights are Jorhat, Dibrugarh, Tezpur, North Lakhimpur and Silchar. Air India operates direct flight between Guwahati and Bangkok on Mondays and Thursdays.

Railhead
The busy and overcrowded Paltan Bazar railway station is the nearest railhead for many trains from every part of India. There are direct train services from New Delhi and Kolkata with connectivity to Mumbai, Chennai, Bangalore, Kochi and Thiruvananthapuram etc.

Road Transport
All India tourist permit vehicles are available for the local transportations and also for the inter city transportations too. Guwahati is connected by regular bus services with Shillong, Silchar, Dibrugarh, Jorhat, Tezpur, Siliguri, Sibsagar, Dimapur, Kohima, Imphal, Aizawal, Itanagar, Barpetta Road and Cooch Bihar.

Staying in Guwahati
Guwahati offers several private hotels ranging from luxury to budget-friendly ones. Fish is a major delicacy in Assam and one can savour mouthwatering curries in and around Paltan Bazar at cheap rates. There are excellent accommodation facilities in and around Guwahati in Assam.

Sightseeing in Guwahati
Kamakhya Temple
Guwahati is particularly famous for its Kamakhya temple located atop the Nilachal hill, at a distance of 10 km from the railway station. Known to be the most revered among the tantrik shrines of Shakti worship in the world, Kamakhya, was built in the 10th century by the Koch king, Naranarayan. Animal sacrifice is a common practice here to appease the Goddess. Bhubaneshwari Temple
Above Kamakhya is another small temple, Bhubaneshwari, from where one can have a bird's eye view of the Guwahati.

Shiva Temple
The Shiva temple of Umananda, reached by motor boats and public ferries from Umananda Ghat, stands on an island in the middle of the Brahmaputra.

Navagraha Temple
Atop a hill in east Guwahati is the Navagraha temple - the "temple of nine planets," - an ancient seat of astrology and astronomy. Housed in a red beehive-shaped dome, the central lingam is encircled by further nine representing the planets (graha) - Sun (Surya, Ravi), Moon (Chandra, Soma), Mercury (Buddh), Venus (Sukra), Mars (Mangal), Jupiter (Brhaspati) and Saturn (Sani). Two more were added, Rahu and Ketu, the dragon's head and the dragon's tail, or the ascending and descending nodes of the moon.

Vashistha Ashram
At a distance of 12 km from the railway station is the Vashistha Ashram (the abode of sage Vashistha), an interesting old shrine, with plenty of greenness and three beautiful streams, Lalita, Kanta and Sandhya. Several other temples like the Ugratara temple, famous for its golden idol and buffalo sacrifices, are also spread across the city.

Guwahati Zoo
One must visit the Guwahati Zoo, which is the largest natural zoo of the country.

Some Important Destinations near to Guwahati
Guwahati in Assam is divided into two parts by the river (Brahmaputra). North Guwahati is almost a separate town. One can visit it via the Saraighat Bridge or by the ferries that ply on the river. The nearest major city is Kolkata (1182 km), while the capitals of the other northeastern states are at distances varying from 110 km to 650 km