One river, and everything it grew.
From the gorge to the sea.
East Godavari Tourism: Rajamahendravaram, the Godavari and the delta
Papikondalu
పాపికొండలు
A DAY ON THE WATEROCT TO JANFORESTED GORGE
The hills close behind the boat like a door. After that, the only sound is water.
రాజమహేంద్రవరం
Rajamahendravaram
CULTURAL CAPITAL3 BRIDGESNANNAYA, 11TH C.
Nannaya began the Telugu Mahabharatam on this bank. Every evening the city walks back down to it.
ధవళేశ్వరం
Dowleswaram
COTTON’S ANICUTBEGUN IN 1847THE DELTA’S LIFELINE
In the 1840s an English engineer taught the flood to run in channels. The rice bowl of Andhra starts here.
కడియం
Kadiyam
600+ NURSERIESGO AT DAWNFLOWER COUNTRY
Six hundred nurseries, and the lanes smell of wet earth. Come at dawn, before the lorries leave.
01Welcome to East Godavari
Andhra Pradesh’s cultural capital
Rajamahendravaram, still Rajahmundry to most, sits where the Godavari runs wide as a sea. It is the city of Nannaya, who began the Telugu Mahabharatam here a thousand years ago, and of the evening harathi on its ghats. In 2027 the Pushkaralu bring millions here to bathe.
- the Godavari, India’s second-longest river
- 1,465 km
- plant nurseries around Kadiyam
- 600+
- over the river at Rajamahendravaram: 1900, 1974, 1997
- 3 bridges
02Places to visit26 places
Where the river takes you
Temples on the water, a gorge in the hills, nursery gardens, heritage bridges and the backwaters of the delta, all within a day of Rajamahendravaram.
Showing 9 of 26 places
HeritageIn the cityగోదావరి వంతెనలుThe three bridges
Havelock in 1900, road-cum-rail in 1974, the arches of 1997. Best from the ghats at dusk.East Godavari
River & nature40 kmపాపికొండలుPapikondalu
A full day on the Godavari, through forested hills that close in on the river. October to January.Day trip · Polavaram
River & natureIn the cityపుష్కర ఘాట్Pushkar Ghat
Lamps raised to the river after sundown, trains crossing the bridges behind.East Godavari
River & nature15 kmకడియంKadiyam nurseries
Hundreds of family nurseries on the Godavari’s silt, a century in the making. Go early.East Godavari
Heritage8 kmధవళేశ్వరంDowleswaram
Arthur Cotton’s anicut, now a barrage in his name, and the museum that tells its story.East Godavari
Devotional21 kmకోరుకొండKorukonda
A long climb of steps to an old hilltop Narasimha shrine.East Godavari
Hills & forest82 kmమారేడుమిల్లిMaredumilli
Waterfalls, bamboo chicken and forest stays, two hours up the ghat road. Best after the rains.Day trip · Polavaram
Devotional44 kmద్రాక్షారామంDraksharamam
A Pancharama and a Shakti Peetha in one walled temple, beside the Sapta Godavari tank.Day trip · Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema
Coast & delta100 kmఅంతర్వేదిAntarvedi
A Narasimha temple where the Vasishta Godavari meets the sea, and a lighthouse you can climb.Day trip · Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema
Distances are approximate, by road from Rajamahendravaram.
03Godavari Pushkaralu 2027
A new riverfront is rising
Pushkar Ghat, Rajamahendravaram: a walkthrough of the redeveloped riverfront (architect’s rendering)
26 June – 7 July 2027
Once in twelve years the Godavari’s great bathing festival comes home to Rajamahendravaram. For 2027 the ghats, the old Havelock Bridge and the places around them are being rebuilt for pilgrims and travellers alike.
12
days of holy dips in the Godavari
₹94.44
crore for the Akhanda Godavari project at Havelock Bridge and Pushkar Ghat, sanctioned by the Union Ministry of Tourism
1900
the year Havelock Bridge opened; it is being reborn as a heritage walk
Pushkaralu 2027 · the works13 renders
What’s being built
Artist’s impressions. Designs are indicative and may change as the works progress.
01 / 13
04Experiences11 ways
Ways to spend a day
Two whole days you can step into right here, and nine more to pick from: temples and nurseries, the river, kitchens and craft villages.
Plan your days
01SpiritualFull-screen story
Full day
A day on the ghats
Sunrise on the stone steps, the old temples by the water, an Andhra lunch on a banana leaf, and the evening harathi as lamps are raised to the river.
Rajamahendravaram · Sunrise to after dark
See the place: Pushkar Ghat02NatureFull-screen story
Full day on the water
Gateway to Papikondalu
Board a launch upriver, have breakfast on deck, and watch the banks rise into the forested hills of the Papikondalu gorge.
October to January
See the place: Papikondalu
- See the place: A morning in the nursery capital
03Nature
A morning in the nursery capital
Grafting and bonsai up close in working nurseries, beds in bloom.
A morning · Go early
- See the place: Cotton’s anicut at Dowleswaram
04Heritage
Cotton’s anicut at Dowleswaram
The weir begun in 1847 that watered the delta, with the Sir Arthur Cotton Museum beside it.
1 to 2 hours · No guide needed
- See the place: The temple trail
05Spiritual
The temple trail
Uma Markandeyeswara and Kotilingeswara on the ghats, Korukonda’s hilltop Narasimha shrine and the Eastern Chalukya temples at Biccavolu.
Full day · Four stops
06Village life
Fishing on the Godavari
Watch cast nets fly from country boats below the bridges as the sun goes down.
An evening · On the river
07Craft
Pulugurtha’s Malkha cotton
A weavers’ cooperative that spins, dyes and weaves its own cotton: East Godavari’s One District One Product.
Half day · Anaparthi mandal
08Food
The Godavari food trail
A Godavari thali with gongura and avakaya, and pulasa if the monsoon brings it.
Any day · No guide needed
09Food
Tapeswaram’s sweet-makers
The village’s famous layered kaja, folded fine and soaked in syrup.
Half day
10Craft
Ajjaram, the village that rings
A village of brass and bronze casters; its temple bells travel far.
Half day
- See the place: Konaseema’s coconut country
11Village life
Konaseema’s coconut country
Drive the canal-bank roads under the palms; with luck you’ll see a climber at work, and tender coconut is sold by the road.
An afternoon
05Festivals & events11 festivals
A year marked by the river
Harvest bonfires in January, temple weddings in spring, the monsoon’s pulasa, lamps on the water in Karthika, and once in twelve years the Pushkaralu.
Next festival
Next — in 14 days
Dasara at Devi Chowk
దసరా · దేవీ శరన్నవరాత్రులు
- When
- Navaratri 11–20 October 2026Vijayadasami 20 October
- Where
- Devi Chowk, Rajamahendravaram
At Devi Chowk, in the heart of the old city, Sri Bala Tripura Sundari is worshipped through the nine nights of Navaratri, a tradition now in its tenth decade, known for its lights and its mythological and historical plays. It ends on Vijayadasami.
11 festivals
Most festival dates follow the Telugu lunar calendar and are fixed by each temple every year. Please confirm locally before you travel.
06Plan your trip
Before you set out
How to get here, the best months to come, a three-day plan to start from, where to stay, and the answers to the questions everyone asks.
Three days, one river
A first visit, from the gorge to the delta. Swap days around to suit the boats and the festivals.
3 days · 11 stops
Day 13 stops
Into the Papikondalu gorge
7 am
Leave Rajamahendravaram for the Gandi Pochamma boat point
PapikondaluAll day
Cruise the gorge, with breakfast and lunch on board
Evening
Back in the city by about 8 pm
Day 24 stops
Gardens, the barrage and the harathi
Early morning
Walk the Kadiyam nurseries while it is cool
Kadiyam nurseriesMidday
Cotton’s barrage and the Sir Arthur Cotton Museum at Dowleswaram
DowleswaramAfternoon
The three bridges from the riverfront
The three bridgesSunset
The Godavari harathi at Pushkar Ghat
Pushkar Ghat
Day 34 stops
Temples and the delta
Morning
Draksharamam, one of the five Pancharama temples
DraksharamamMidday
Ryali’s Jaganmohini Kesava temple
RyaliAfternoon
Drive the coconut country of Konaseema
KonaseemaEvening
Back to Rajamahendravaram, or stay on the river at Dindi
Dindi backwaters
By air
Rajahmundry Airport (RJA) is at Madhurapudi, about 15 km from the city. IndiGo flies direct to Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Chennai, Delhi and Mumbai; Fly91 to Hyderabad and Tirupati; Alliance Air to Tirupati. Schedules change, so check with the airline.
By rail
Rajahmundry station (RJY) is on the Howrah–Chennai main line, and the city has a second station, Godavari (GVN), right by the ghats. Coming from the Vijayawada side, the train crosses the Godavari on the long bridges into the city.
By road
Rajamahendravaram sits on NH16, the Chennai–Kolkata highway, with direct roads to Vijayawada and Visakhapatnam and buses from across Andhra Pradesh and Telangana.
On the river
Papikondalu cruises leave from the Gandi Pochamma boat point, upriver in Polavaram district; APTDC’s day tour picks up in Rajamahendravaram at 7 am and is back by about 8 pm. Boats pause whenever the river runs high, usually from July, so check before you plan.
Book on APTDC
Distances from Rajamahendravaram
Approximate road distances.
- Rajamahendravaram’s museumsIn the city
- Pushkar GhatIn the city
- The three bridgesIn the city
- KotilingeswaraIn the city
- Gowthami GhatIn the city
- Dowleswaram8 km
- Kovvur8 km
- Kadiyam nurseries15 km
- Korukonda21 km
- Vadapalli29 km
- Pattiseema34 km
- Papikondalu40 km
- Biccavolu40 km
- Ryali40 km
- Draksharamam44 km
- Kotipalli50 km
- Samalkot50 km
- Pithapuram60 km
- Konaseema64 km
- Coringa mangroves72 km
- Annavaram80 km
- Dindi backwaters80 km
- Maredumilli82 km
- Adurru stupa83 km
- Antarvedi100 km
October – February
The best months
Clear, comfortable days with highs of about 27–30°C: river weather, and the season for the Papikondalu cruises, Karthika’s lamps and Sankranti in the villages. Early October can still bring heavy rain.
March – June
Hot
Highs around 38°C in April and 40°C in May. Go out early and late, and spend the middle of the day indoors. Temple festivals at Korukonda and Annavaram fall in these months.
July – September
Monsoon
The river runs high and the delta is at its greenest; it is pulasa season. Boats may be suspended.
Hotels in the city for the ghats and the day trips, and a night on the river in the delta.
City
Hotels in Rajamahendravaram
Rajamahendravaram
Rooms at every price, a short ride from the ghats, the stations and the airport, and the natural base for day trips.
APTDC resort
Haritha Coconut Country Resort
Dindi, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema district
AP Tourism’s own resort among the coconut groves on the Vasishta Godavari, about 80 km from the city, with air-conditioned rooms, a pool and a restaurant.
Houseboat
Dindi houseboats
Dindi, Dr. B.R. Ambedkar Konaseema district
AP Tourism houseboats on the Vasishta Godavari, for a 12-hour trip or 24 hours with a night on board; each takes up to four adults and four children.
Resort
Sterling Palavelli Godavari
Across the river from Dindi, West Godavari district
A thirteen-acre riverside estate with rooms built around courtyards in the old zamindari style, a pool, and boats on the Godavari from the resort.
Riverside camp
Kolluru bamboo huts
Papikonda hills, Polavaram district
Simple bamboo huts on the Godavari’s bank in the Papikonda hills, reached only by boat: the overnight stop on two-day Papikondalu trips, when the river allows.
Boats and the river
Papikondalu boats run only when the Godavari is below its safety level at the Polavaram project, so services pause in high water, often from July into the autumn. Everyone on board wears a life jacket. Check with APTDC or your operator the day before.
Visiting temples
Cover shoulders and knees, leave footwear at the gate, and keep phones away inside the sanctum. Festival days bring long queues: go early.
Language
Telugu is spoken everywhere, in the soft Godavari accent. English and Hindi work in hotels and on the boats, and a “namaskaram” opens most doors.
Money
UPI works almost everywhere, small eateries included. Carry some cash for ferries, temple counters and roadside coconut, and use ATMs in the towns.
Food
Pack Tapeswaram’s kaja and Atreyapuram’s pootharekulu for the road, and in the monsoon ask for pulasa.
If something goes wrong
Dial 112 for police, fire or ambulance (108 also reaches an ambulance). The big hospitals are in Rajamahendravaram and Kakinada. On Hope Island, don’t count on shade or food until your boat returns.
- AP Tourism toll-free
- 1800-42-545454
- Emergency
- 112
07Gallery
Through the lens
Dancers under bridges, pigeons over pavilions, the school run by boat: moments from along the Godavari.
