ALSphere Foundation
Several places in the world gain importance due to their association with famous personalities. Porbandar is such a place, which is a small coastal city in the Saurashtra region of Gujarat and the birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi. This town has a rich cultural heritage, which attracts tourists throughout the year.
Porbandar was a princely state in India during the British period. After independence, it was merged with India in 1948.
Our Plan & Journey
We planned to visit Porbandar during the Puja Vacation in October 2024 along with Dwaraka, Veraval-Somnath and Diu. All these are coastal towns in Saurashtra region. We preferred a road journey between these places as these are connected by a nice coastal highway with a beautiful view of nature.
We took a flight from Bhubaneswar to Ahmedabad, and then from Ahmedabad to Dwarka we boarded the train. After a two-day stay at Dwarka, we took a taxi at 9:00 AM for Porbandar, about 103 km away.
On the Way
A drive through the coastal roads of NH-51 was really enjoyable–the scenic beauty of nature, small villages, coconut trees, and windmills had refreshed our minds and hearts. On the way, we visited Harsiddhi Mata Temple at Gandhvi, and Mul Dwarka temple complex at Visavada.
Harsiddhi Mata is one of the aspects of Goddess Durga, widely worshipped in Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh.
Mul Dwarka temple complex houses several temples dedicated to Shri Krishna and other Gods and Goddesses. The place is believed to be a temporary stay for Shri Krishna and Balaram before they finally settled at Dwarka.
The two-and-a-half-hour journey from Dwarka to Porbandar was extended to four hours since we visited other places on the way.
Stay & Visit In Porbandar
We reached Porbandar at 1:00 PM. The taxi driver covered a few more places in the city, viz. Kirti Mandir, Annexed Birthplace of Mahatma Gandhi, Birthplace of Kasturba Gandhi nearby and Sudama Temple near the bus stand. He dropped us off at 2:15 PM at our pre-booked budget hotel nearby. The 103-km taxi ride with on-the-way places of visit cost us Rs.2500 (including GST) and the standard Double Bed AC room in a budget hotel cost us Rs.2000 + GST per night.
PC: Kishor Kumar Mishra
Kirti Mandir is a magnificent memorial museum built in the memory of Mahatma Gandhi. The birthplace of Mahatma, a three-storey ancestral building and the three-storey Kasturba’s birthplace have been converted into museums too.
PC: Kishor Kumar Mishra
Sudama temple, dedicated to Sudama, the childhood friend of Bhagwan Shri Krishna is a beautiful temple with simple architecture and carved marble pillars. A beautiful mural depicting Lord Krishna washing Sudama’s feet is seen here. There is a maze in the premises, and it is believed that crossing the maze removes all sins.
PC: Kishor Kumar Mishra
After lunch and an hour of rest, we visited Porbandar beach, but it was not well maintained. The Hujoor Palace, an old magnificent palace belonging to the Porbandar Royalty is 1 km from the beach. Access to its premises is not permitted, but you can take photographs from outside. All the places we visited were within 1-2 km from our hotel.
Tasted Local Food
Dense clouds formed as the evening approached. Sensing an imminent downpour, we returned to the hotel. The clouds disappeared after a little rain, and we moved out to take a stroll in the nearby market, and had evening tea and snacks. We returned to the hotel early as we had to leave for Veraval-Somnath the next morning.
We had ‘Gujarati Thali’ for lunch, ‘Mini Idli’ ‘Dhokla’ and ‘Kathiawadi Tea’ at snack time. ‘Chapati’ and curry served our purpose of a light dinner.
Last Words
Porbandar can be visited throughout the year except for monsoon. A 1N/2D visit is sufficient for tourists, but we restricted it to a 1N/1D visit as we had a composite plan with other places. We covered important places of visit in the city, but skipped Tara Mandir (planetarium), Bharat Temple, Bird Sanctuary etc. and Jambavan Cave, which is 17 km away.
Kishor Kumar Mishra
