Tourist Attractions in Haridwar

Haridwar, a great center of religious tourism, is home to several tourist attractions like River Ganga, ghats on the Ganga, temples, ashramas, gurukuls (traditional Sanskrit schools), Ganga Aarti, Ayurveda research ceners etc. Haridwar is one of the holy pilgrimages of the Hindus. As the Ganga moves further from Haridwar it enters the north Indian plains. The Hindu Teerth is famous for its ghats and Hindu faithful praying alongside the banks of the still young Ganga (Ganges). These ghats contain stones traditionally impressed by the footsteps of the great God Vishnu himself, objects of the greatest veneration to all those pilgrims who flock to this sacred centre from far and wide. Har Ki Pauri is the most famous ghat of Haridwar. Ganga Aarti at Har ki Pauri is magnanimous and has been inspiration for Varanasi Ganga Aarti. . One of the early names for Haridwar was Gangadwara, which means the Gate of the Ganges, as representing the beginning of the Himalayas journey leading to Gangotri, the the glacier Ganga originates from. This ancient city is situated at the mouth of a gorge through which the river spills out onto the plains. At this point the flood of rushing water splays out into a network of shallow channels — interspersed by a little net of wooded islands — that flow down leisurely into the main stream some miles below. Buried at the foot of the Shivalik hills, the countryside is peaceful and picturesque in the extreme.