Murud-Janjira
Murud is a beautiful place in Raigad district in Maharashtra state. Murud is popular amongst tourists for the alluring beautiful beaches, coconut and beetle nut plantations and the mind blowing casurina trees.
Murud-Janjira is located about 60 kms from Alibaug. It is a small village on a hill top in Konkan area. There is a very beautiful fort the fort of Janjira. The fort is build in the sea some 2 kms inside the water. It is one of the very important sea forts in Maharashtra. The fort is old and is still in good state. There are 19 burj in the fort and every burj has huge guns on it. The guns Kalal Bangadi, Chavari and Landa Kadam are very famous. There are 2 huge water tanks in the fort which has sweet water in it. There are some monuments inside the fort area. There are three tombs inside the Janjira fort. These are the Khokari tombs and belong to the early rulers of Janjira. These tombs are 500 years old and have inscriptions on it. The monuments are of Indo-Saracenic style and are restored by the Archeological Survey of India.
There is one more fort, Padmadurg built by Shivaji Maharaj. It is to the North West to the fort of Janjira. There is Victoria water works at Gambhari nearly 8 kms from Murud. Sawat Kada water falls nearby are best to visit after the monsoon rains. The most visited place nearby is the Birla mandir and Siddhi Vinayak mandir. These are sea facing and are a tourist delight in the area.
If you love wildlife and want to enjoy it while you want to enjoy the beaches, you should visit the Phansad wildlife sanctuary near Nandgaon that is just 20 kms from Murud. There are some interesting spots like the Nandgaon Ganpati temple. A large fair is held every year in honor of this Ganpati. Other tourist places in Murud Janjira are the beautiful and nude beaches of Nandgaon and Kashid. These beaches are less frequented and a perfect haven for you if you are seeking solitude with comfort.
There are some Buddhist caves to visit near Kude that is 28 kms from Murud. The Kude caves are 2000 years old and there are in all 26 caves dating back to the 1st century. These caves are about 150 feet above sea level into the side of a 250 feet high hill. There are 22 lenis (living caves) have doors and verandah for a monk to sleep. There are Sanskrit inscriptions and a few of them even have Buddhist stupas while some have basic figurines and carvings.
Other tourist place is the Temple of Lord Dattatreya. It is one of the important shrines of the area and the deity is supposed to be the incarnation of Lord Bhrama, Vishnu and Mahesh.
The best thing about Murud-Janjira is the local food. Fresh seafood is available here and it is a place a seafood lover should visit. Prawns, Surmai, Pomfret, crabs and lobsters are available here. Fruits like coconut, mangoes, watermelons, jackfruit, Kokum, spices and nuts are also available.