Published on 01/27/2022
Ajanta Caves
Ajanta and Ellora Grottoes Overview
The Ajanta Grottoes, home to some of the finest Buddhist murals in India.
It is believed to have been built around 200 B.C. to 650 A.D., but was forgotten until it was "discovered" in 1819 with the decline of Buddhism.
As a result, it has left behind some wonderful murals that have transcended time.
The other is the Ellora Caves.
This is the only place in the world where the cave temples of the three major ancient religions, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Jainism, are all located.
It is a large group of grottoes that were opened between the 6th and 10th centuries, and they were not destroyed by each other, and they are clustered together, stretching 2 km from north to south.
airportAurangabad Airport
Also known as "Chicarsana Airport," this airport serves only domestic flights and is located approximately 10 km from the city center.
Aurangabad is a highland city located about 350 km east of Mumbai, and the airport is about 600 m above sea level.
From Mumbai, Air India has one daily flight and Jet Airways has two daily flights.
Air India operates one flight daily from Delhi.
Aurangabad is a historic city that has flourished since ancient times, with Buddhist caves dating back to the 6th century.
Many tourists visiting the city use it as a base from which to explore the caves of Ellora and the caves of Ajanta.
To get to these World Heritage sites, visitors must first go from the airport to the bus station in the city center and then take a tourist bus.
From the AirportTo the GrottoesDirections for
The distance from Aurangabad's airport to the city center is about 10 km; it is possible to enter the city by cab or auto-rickshaw.
We do not recommend auto-rickshaws for those who are not familiar with them.
It is not uncommon for those who are not accustomed to this to be uncomfortable as they try to negotiate prices despite the meter, go out of their way to make a detour, or flatly demand a price that differs from the meter.
Cabs at the airport will take approximately 20-30 minutes to reach the city.
Cabs are also metered, but in reality prices are often negotiated.
Aurangabad is known as a city where foreign travelers are relatively unlikely to get into trouble, but even so, cab drivers who approach you after you get off the airport will first offer you a much higher fare than usual when they see you are a foreigner.
Therefore, it is necessary to know the approximate market price in advance.
From the airport to the bus station (City Bus Stand = CBS), you can expect to pay approximately 100-500 rupees.
There is a local bus service from the bus station to the Caves of Ellora about once an hour between 5:00 a.m. and 10:00 p.m.
The ride takes 50 minutes to one hour. Sightseeing buses are also available.
The Caves of Ajanta are about 100 km from Aurangabad, so it will take 2.5 to 3 hours.
There is also a bus every 30 minutes during the day from the bus station here.
The caves of Ellora and Ajanta are among the most magnificent in the world, and if you have the time and budget, we recommend taking a tour with a guide who can explain the ruins.
Map of Ajanta and Ellora Grottoes
Ajanta Grottoes
In 1819, a British officer on a tiger hunt in the Deccan Plateau of central India was attacked by a tiger and fled to the Ajanta Caves, which were registered as a World Heritage Site in 1983 as one of the greatest treasures of Indian Buddhist art.
The 30 large and small caves, built over a 550-meter cliff along the Waghora River where he hid, were the oldest Buddhist cave temples in India.
The caves were constructed from the 2nd century BC to the 2nd century AD (Early Period) and from the 5th to the 7th century AD (Late Period). The Vihara Cave is a space for ascetic practices and the Chaitya Cave is a sacred space for the Buddha. The later caves are decorated with reliefs and colorful wall paintings based on Buddhist legends.
Cave 1, which is representative of the Late Vihara Caves, has walls and ceilings covered with murals, including the "Lotus Hand Bodhisattva" statue, which is considered a masterpiece.
Cave 26, the culmination of the later Chaitiya Caves, is decorated with exquisite reliefs and contains one of the largest statues of the Reclining Buddha in India.
Around the 7th century, Buddhism began to decline with the rise of Hinduism, and the cave temples of Ajanta were abandoned and covered by overgrown trees.
The temple has been buried in the jungle for more than 1,000 years and is well preserved. The magnificent reliefs and colorful murals bring back to life a bygone era when Buddhist culture flourished, and the origins of the Buddhist culture that spread far to the east can be seen here.
Ellora Grottoes
For 500 years between the 6th and 10th centuries AD, Buddhist, Hindu, and Jain monks carved monasteries, chapels, and temples into the 2 km wide cliff.
Ellora has 34 caves, of which 12 are Buddhist caves, 17 are Hindu caves, and five are Jain caves.
Unlike Ajanta, Elora has few interior murals because the existence of the grottoes has been known for a long time.