Triveni Ghat

The main ghat in the town area, this place is flocked by hundreds of pilgrims every evening to see the famous Ganga Aarti. A sacred place for holy dips since it lies at the confluence of three holy rivers in India — The Ganga, The Yamuna and The Saraswati, it is believed that one dip into the holy waters will wash away your sins. However, even if the spiritual part of you does not call you out here the pure aesthetic beauty and serenity of the place surely will, especially at the time of morning Aarti where the light of a thousand lamps surrounding the peaceful waters is like an image from the movies.

Trayambakeshawar Temple

Lying on the east banks of the Ganges at the Lakshman Jhula Bridge, this temple is an amazing architectural and religious feat. A building that is 13 stories high, with different deities throughout, it is a perfect place for sunset views as well, especially during the winters. Popular among the domestic pilgrims with the name the ‘Tehra Manzil Temple’, one can have an excellent view of the entire area from the top floor of the temple complex.

Bharat Mandir

Gracing the banks of the Ganges and in the heart of the old town lies the Bharat Mandir, which was built by Adiguru Shankracharya around the Twelfth century. The town of Rishikesh gets its name from this very temple of Lord Hrishikesh Narayan Bharat Ji, who is an incarnation of Lord Vishnu and not the younger brother of Lord Rama as sometimes misunderstood to be.

The inner sanctum of the temple has the idol of Lord Vishnu. What is special about this idol is that it is carved out of a single Saligram. In addition to this the inner canopy (above the idol) has a Shree Yantra installed by Adi Shankrayacharya. What is truly fascinating is that most of the temple was destroyed by Tamurlane in 1398 A.D. and lots of old statues, coins, pots etc. have been found in recently conducted excavations only.

Ram Jhula: Situated around 3 Km north of Rishikesh, is Ram Jhula — an iron suspension bridge. Made over river Ganges, it is one of the most famous landmarks of Rishikesh. With the sound of flowing water, the scenic beauty around and the fresh air, a walk on the bridge is worth it.

Laxman Jhula

A 450 ft long hanging bridge on the river Ganga built in 1939 is again one of the major attraction points of Rishikesh.. According to myths and legends Laksman, brother of Lord Rama crossed Ganga River on a jute rope from this point. A 13 storied temple is located near Laxman Jhula where the idols of several Gods and Goddesses are kept. The bridge gives a magnificent view of the Ganges, greeting you with the cool breeze. Today, German bakeries, interesting riverside cafe’ and exotic souvenir stores dot the landscape of Laxman Jhula area, making it an exciting and mystical hangout for the younger generation as well.

Rishikund

The name literally means The Sage’s Pond. Situated close to the Triveni Ghat, it is one of the most ancient places. With ancient records that say that the waters of the Yamuna drenched this pond on the request of Kubz saint. Shani Mandir is also situated here. The pond reflects the temple of Raghunath, dedicated to Lord Ram and his wife.

Geeta Bhawan

One of the oldest temple complexes situated by the side of Ram Jhula, it lies on the banks of the sacred river Ganga. Dedicated as a museum for ‘Pauranic’ and mythological awareness of common public, the building consists of a very large complex comprising discourse halls and over 1,000 rooms that are available free of charge for the stay of devotees. Moreover simple vegetarian food, kitchen and grocery items and Indian sweets are available at very moderate price for the convenience of the devotees.

Neelkanth Mahadev

Visited by thousands of devotees every month, it is situated on the summit of the mountain across the sacred Ganga River. According to mythology this is the place where Lord Shiva drank the venom produced during 'Sagar Manthan' or the churning of the sea, which turned his throat blue and was thus he got the name - Neelkanth. Many dedicated pilgrims take water from the Ganges to offer at Neelkantha Mahadev Temple, a 7 km, three hour walk along a forest path from Swargashram. The temple is about a 10 km drive from Aranyam.

Vashishta Cave

This place is a famous attraction for meditation, located at the bank of River Ganga, this gufa is situated at a distance of about 20 km from Aranyam. It takes about an hour drive from Aranyam, on the Badrinath Highway to reach Vashishta Gufa and the entire drive is along the Ganges.

Kunjapuri Devi Temple

Located on a hillock around 15 km away from Rishikesh, this temple is dedicated to one of the thirteen most important Goddesses of Shivalik range. The temple is well-known among the travellers as it gives a beautiful views of the region. An excellent place to witness a beautiful sunrise or sunset in the Greater Himalyan Peaks and the vast Gangetic plains, one can even see most of the peaks of Garhwal Himalyas from here like Banderpunch, Gangotri, Chaukhamba, among others.

Parmarth Niketan

Across the Ram Jhula Bridge stands the mammoth Parmarth Niketan Ashram. The ashram has hundreds of rooms and conducts many religious programmes. The ashram is best known for the Ganga Aarti and ‘Havan’ organized on the Parmarth Ghat every evening, which lends an ephemeral beauty to the place.

Devprayag

One of the Panchprayags (Five confluences), Devprayaga is an ancient town situated at the confluence of Alaknanda and Bhagirathi rivers making the holy Ganges. There is also an ancient temple of Lord Rama at the beginning of the holy Ganges. The entire drive is along the beautiful river Ganga right upto Devprayag.

Swarg Ashram

A pleasant 2 km walk south of Lakshman Jhula along the path skirting the Eastern bank of the Ganges leads to the spiritual community of Swarg Ashram, made up of temples, ashrams, shops and the bathing ghats where religious ceremonies are performed at dawn and dusk. The colourful Ganga Aarti ceremony is held at the riverside temple of the Parmarth Niketan Ashram, with singing, chanting, musicians and the lighting of oil lamps.

Shivananda Ashram

Modestly started by Swami Shivananda as an ashram, it has today grown into the Divine Life Society with branches in India and abroad. The activities of the society include studies of Vedanta and Yoga, a hospital and the production of herbal medicines.