For over 2000 years, Varanasi, the 'Eternal City', has been the religious capital of India. Built on the banks of the sacred Ganges, it is said to combine the virtues of all other places of pilgrimage and anyone who ends their days here, regardless of creed and however great their misdeeds, is transported straight to heaven.

The easternmost city in Uttar Pradesh, Varanasi is an important seat of learning, and is the home of novelists, philosophers and grammarians. Varanasi has over 100 bathing and burning ghats but the Manikarnika Ghat is the most sacred of them all.

Haridwar's auspicious location, at the point where the Ganges emerges from the Himalaya to begin its slow progress across the plains makes it a particularly holy place and one of the most famous pilgrimage centers India has to offer.

The word Haridwar means 'Gateway to the Gods' and the town has a sizeable number of Ashrams and Bathing Ghats to justify its religious as well as spiritual importance. Haridwar is also one of the four centers where the Kumbh Mela is held once in 12 years, when devotees from near and far come here to bathe in the Holy Ganges. The highlight of this region includes the main Ghat, 'Har ki Pauri' and the 'Ganga Aarti', which is performed every evening during sunset, by priests.

Frequently described as the 'Yoga Capital of the world', Rishikesh is a quiet and easy-going town surrounded by hills of scenic beauty on its three sides.The Holy Ganges, which is almost clear here, flows through the town. Like Haridwar, Rishikesh houses many ashrams and bathing ghats on the banks of the river.

It is an excellent place to study Yoga and meditation or to simply unwind from the hectic pace of city life. For the adventurous, Rishikesh also offers white water rafting! Its many attractions include The Triveni Ghat, The Lakshman Jhula, Lakshman Temple and the Kailashanand Mission Ashram.

Sanchi is topped by some of the oldest and most interesting Buddhist Structures in India. It was the great Emperor Ashoka, Buddhism’s most famous convert, who built the first Stupas here in the 3rd century B.C. and a great number of Stupas and other religious structures were added over the succeeding centuries. For the wealth of its varying Buddhist monuments, Sanchi is a very special place and is not to be missed by the religiously or the spiritually inclined.