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Places to Visit Near Aurangabad

Well-known as a revered temple, Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Temple is one of the tourist places near aurangabad which lies close to the 12 caves of Buddhist group of Ellora Caves. Halfway your route to the temple, you can find Dashavtaras all carved out in pure red stone.

Besides, dashavtaras, there are many other beautiful sculptures and statues here to stare at. Pillars here have adorable carvings to take you back to the ancient era.

Attractions: Mughal Silk Bazaar, Ellora Caves, Bhadra Maruti temple, Daulatabad Fort, Tomb of Malik Ambar, Tomb of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, Jain Temple, Chini Mahal.  

Location: Verul, Maharashtra

Distance from Aurangabad: 30.7 km (46 min)

Yet another popular tourist destination of Maharashtra, Daulatabad Fort is a real treasure for all the historical freaks. Reflecting a triangular shape, this fort represents the cultural heritage of Maharashtra.

Fort has many beautiful monuments located within it namely Chini Mahal, Chand Minar, and Elephant Tank. The path to the top of the Fort is a narrow bridge allowing only two persons at one time to walk through. This fort has a wide ditch beside it and remains full of crocodiles.

Attractions: Jain temple, Ellora Caves, Damri Mahal, Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Museum, Bibi ka Maqbara, Ajanta Caves, Bhadra Maruti, Hemadpanthi Temple.

Location: MH SH 22, Daulatabad, Maharashtra 431002

Distance from Aurangabad: 17.0 km (29 min)

Bhadra Maruti Temple is one of those rarest places to visit near Aurangabad which is entirely dedicated to the Hindu deity, Lord Hanuman. The statue of Lord Hanuman rests here in a sleeping position and is covered all over by Sindoor.

As there is religious significance behind this posture of Lord Hanuman, locals make it a point to reach here with great devotion. If you are fortunate enough, do try to plan your trip during Hanuman Jayanti or Ram Navami. The beauty of this place and its spirituality increases multi-fold and indulges you in its spiritual aura.

Attractions: Tomb of Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb, Ellora Caves, Grishneshwar Jyotirlinga Temple, Tomb of Malik Ambar, Daulatabad Fort, Mughal Silk Bazaar, Jain Temple, Chini Mahal.

Location: Khuldabad Road, Khuldabad, Maharashtra 431101

Distance from Aurangabad: 28.1 km (44 min)

Comprising of famous rock shrines, Ellora Caves represents a blend of three different religions – Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism. Buddhist group consists of the first 12 caves, Hindu group the next 17 caves, while the Jain group has 5 caves. If you are quick enough, you can easily wind up your Ellora Caves tour for 34 caves within 3 hours.

This is amongst those few places to visit near Aurangabad which witnesses a fresh and pleasant climate all around 365 days of the year. Although the rainy season is the first choice of most of the tourists, be careful enough as your route might turn slippery.  

Attractions: Ellora caves, Kailashnatha temple, Chota Kailash, Dhumar Lena, Dashavtara, Waterfall, and Jain Group of Ellora Caves.

Location: Northwest Aurangabad, Maharashtra.

Distance from Aurangabad: 30 km from Central Aurangabad in the north-west direction.

Gautala Autramghat Wildlife Sanctuary is one of the suitable dwelling tourist places near aurangabad for many wildlife species such as mammals, birds, and reptiles. To list a few of them are Panther, Barking deer, Wild dog, Wild cat, Chital, Peacock and so on.

This wildlife sanctuary is best to visit anywhere in between August to February. Make sure that you do not visit this sanctuary during traffic hours to avoid being late for your onward journey. The forest homes to Antur Fort which is a protected monument and a temple and this is one of the best places to visit near Aurangabad

Attractions: Antur fort, Sita Nanhi, Mhaisghat, Sitakhori waterfalls, Bibi ka Maqbara, Panchakki.

Location: Kannad, Maharashtra 431103

Distance from Aurangabad: 68.5 km (1 hr 49 min)

A lagoon lake, Lonar Crater Lake is the output of a meteorite attack and represents as a significant hover back amidst the basalt rocks. The water of this alkaline and the region is declared as a Wildlife Sanctuary. You thus have an opportunity to explore a wide array of flora and fauna endemic to this region and this is one of the best places to visit near Aurangabad

Majority of the tourists visiting Aurangabad miss on this natural wonder blessed with a jaw-dropping beauty to keep staring at. This is a bang on region to explore migratory as well as local bird species; so wildlife researchers have surely a lot of things to do here. If you are fortunate enough, you may notice the presence of one of the most prominent reptiles of this lake – monitor lizard.

Attractions: Gomukh temple, Daitya Sudhan temple, Vishnu temple.

Location: Buldhana District, Maharashtra

Distance from Aurangabad: 139.4 km (3 hr 18 min)

Reckoned as the historical heritage of Maharashtra, Ajanta Caves exhibits a blend of awe-winning structures and magnificent carvings. Dating back to the ancient era, these caves reflect the richness of ancient Indian culture and this is one of the best places to visit near Aurangabad

The architecture reflects a Buddhist influence and the count of the caves here is around 29. Every single cave is known for its exquisite wall paintings forming the center of tourist attraction. If you are familiar with the tales of Jataka, you can easily co-relate it with the wall paintings.

Attractions: Kailashnatha temple, Grishneshwar Temple, Buddhist caves, Bibi ka Maqbara and Jain Caves.

Location: Maharashtra 431117

Distance from Aurangabad: 102.3 km (3 hr 07 min)

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The beauty of black stone with a high spirituality can be felt at no other place except Shani Shingnapur. What makes this place unique is that you do not need to stand in long queues here to seek divine blessings of Lord Saturn. Within a fraction of minutes, you are done with your visit. Locals here offer pooja and Abhishek on every Saturday and Monday and this is one of the best places to visit near Aurangabad

However, you need to be specific about a few religious traditions here. While offering either a Pooja or Abhishek, you should take a head bath and reach temple while still, you are wet from head to toe. Another thing to take care of is that only male devotees from your family are eligible to step up to the central platform while all females have to stand at a distance apart.

Attractions: Shirdi, Sakori, Ajanta and Ellora Caves,

Location: Shani Shingnapur Post, Sonai, Maharashtra.

Distance from Aurangabad: 80.9 km (1 hr 32 min)

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Land of Sai is not to miss on while planning on your places to visit near Aurangabad. Being a religious site, this place is highly visited by Sai devotees from all over the globe. It is useful if you plan on your visit here in June to March. As soon as you enter the temple premises, you have to wait in queues to reach the main shrine or Samadhi temple. Besides, this zone, there is a marble statue of Sai Baba.

There is a religious significance behind the sitting position of Sai Baba here, and it appears live and energetic. Moving ahead is a Dwarkamayee Masjid, a place from where you can take the holy vibhuti along with you. Very near to the sacred dhuni, you can find a grinding stone, a bathing stone, chulha, a wooden pillar, padukas and a Tulsi plant which were a part of Sai Baba’s daily routine.

Attractions: Gurusthan, Chavdi, Cottage of Adul Baba, Shirdi Sai Baba Samadhi Mandir, House of Laxmibai Shinde, Dixit Wada Museum, Dwarkamai Masjid, and Shani Shingnapur,.

Location: Shirdi, Maharashtra

Distance from Aurangabad: 110.2 km (2 hr 43 min)

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Stand at the top of this magnificently carved Paithan Dam standing juxtaposed a beautifully flowing and pious Godavari River. Locally reckoned as Paithan dam (Jayakwadi Dam), this is a significant irrigation project undertaken by Government of Maharashtra.

A simple reason to visit here with your children is to introduce them with a highly sophisticated irrigation project of the Government to supply water to the nearby agricultural land as well as the drought-prone areas. You can see how the same dam that quenches the thirst of locals also provides water for industrial applications.

This is one of the most fascinating tourist places near aurangabad. Best time to visit here is either morning or evening. There are facilities such as food stalls to satiate your hunger throughout your visit.

Attractions: Paithani Kendra, Eknath Maharaj Temple, Nathsagar Dam, Jnanyeshwari Vatika, Jayakwadi Bird Santuary.

Location: North Jaikwadi Flyover, Sant Dynaneshwar Udyaan, Paithan, Maharashtra 431107

Distance from Aurangabad: 63.0 km (1 hr 45 min)

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Considered as the oldest cave complex, Pitalkhora Caves now stands as a reserved part of forests. Amongst the best places to visit near Aurangabad, this cave exhibits a revolutionary architecture of cave engineering.

The count of cave monuments here is around 14 and are divided into two different groups – one containing 10 cave monuments and the other one containing about 4. There are steep concrete stairs juxtaposed a waterfall. However, be careful; as the stairs might be slippery due to water droplets falling onto it.

Attractions: Ajanta Caves, Ellora Caves, Bani Begum Bagh, Grishneshwar Temple, Daulatabad Fort, Bibi ka Maqbara, and Panchakki.

Location: Chandikawadi, Maharashtra 431103

Distance from Aurangabad: 78.6 km (1 hr 59 min)

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Fans of the history of the Maratha empire have some more places to visit near Aurangabad. One of those historically significant destinations is Shahaji Raje Bhosale Monument. Maloji Raje Bhosale’s stay at Verul is signified by the presence of this monument.

As he was a great devotee of Shivaji Maharaj’s father, Shahaji Raje, you can find a significant memorial of Shahaji Raje Bhosale at the entrance of this place. It is standing high on a towering platform and flanked by a beautiful garden on both sides. Stepping inside the fortress, you can find a lot of historical relics that still mark their presence there inside this protected monument.

Attractions: Gautala Wildlife Sanctuary, Ghrishneshwar Jyotirlinga Temple, Ellora Caves.

Location: Verul (Ellora), Maharashtra.

Distance from Aurangabad: 33.1 km (54 min)