nat3662016
★★★★★5.0Wrote on 16 Dec 2023
Elephanta Caves - great!
Nitin was phenomenal - beautiful historic tour, very erudite, he helped us all the way up all those stairs and gave us an amazing tour full of historical details.
krishna292
★★★★4.0Wrote on 7 Dec 2023
An Archeological Rock Cut Wonder - A Peep into our Glorious Hertage
After Sidhi Vinayaka Temple our next destination was Elephanta Caves and it took us about 45 minutes to reach Gateway of India from where the ferry service was to be taken to reach the Gharapuri island by sea. There is no parking available near the Gateway of India, which has been fenced due to security considerations and we had to enter through a gate after security check. Two categories of mechanised boats are availble from here. We took the ticket for the premium boat, that valued almost double than the general class. Here the seats are supposed to be better. After one hour we reached our destination and saw several huge and small ships in the sea waiting for berth in the dockyard. After getting down at the pier, we were directed to wait for a narrow gauge train to reach the caves. Of course, the distance is just about half a km but we took the train that runs to and fro with a frequency of 20 minutes and the ticket cost is also nominal. For visiting the caves we bought a ticket cosing 50/- . There are about 4-5 caves but the most visited cave is known as Main Cave and it houses the well known sculpture dedicated to Lord Shiva. In fact there are many rock-cut sculptues at different walls in high relief and they show the syncretism of Hindu and Budhist ideas as well as iconography, hewn from solid basalt rocks. All caves are in Mandals pattern and narrate Hindu mythologies with large monolithik structures of about 16 feet height, such as Trimurti (3 faces of Shiva denoting Sadashiva, Natraja (Lord of Dance) and Yogishwara (Lord of yoga). These sculptures are believed to have been carved during 5th and 7th Centuries. Unfortunately many of these rock cut structures are known to have been defaced and partly damaged by the Porughese soldiers who conqured these islands and also gave them the name Elephnta because of the presence of many elephants in the islands. Attempts to prevent further damage was taken up by British rulers in 1909 and then in 1950s and later by the Indian government reaching full restoration by 1970s. Visit to these caves gives every one an insight into India's glorious past of great workmanship and devotion of the ancient sculptors. Elephanta caves is a UNESCO world heritage must visit site. Some photos with descriptions are attached. The site also has facilites for snacks, cold and hot drinks besides rest rooms but no benches for old people to sit and relax within the caves. The other 3-4 behind the main cave can also be visited but beware of monkeys here, who can snatch your food items.
kushalexpert0
★1.0Wrote on 6 Dec 2023
SOLO travelers are not allowed in ferry..
Must read for solo travelers The boat/ferry company will not give solo traveler tickets. Reason - These morons will only give reason that people suicide so we don't take ticket to solo traveler. First they will ask to go to counter & will ask for Aadhar card's Xerox. If you argue then they will straight away deny entry. I was travelling on 3rd Dec 2023, and had to wander to fool them to find another solo traveler so we can ask for 2 tickets. My entire journey from Ahmedabad to Mumbai was in vein if would not hove got a ferry ride.
bekoubetts
★★★★4.0Wrote on 2 Dec 2023
The journey is better than the destination.
Two hundred and sixty rupees gets you a return boat trip from Mumbai. It’s about a 70 min trip each-way. What a lovely way to see Mumbai harbour and the dozens of commercial vessels on route. When you disembark, you’ll be harassed immediately by folk claiming to be tour guides. You don’t need a guide at all. But they are persistent. A different kind of persistence on the island from the usual Indian approach. Less cordial. More full on. You’ll pay the officials some ridiculous fee to progress. I think it was something like 15 rupees. Once you’re ’in’ you have a choice of walking the length of the pier or talking the model train. I took the train there. It was around 25 rupees. The train journey is around 300 - 400 meters. It terminates at the base of the steps you’ll need to climb to get to the entrance of the caves. Believe it or not, but you’ll be offered to be carried up the stairs on a rudimentary wooden chair. Looked a bit colonial to me. It’s quite ridiculous and unless you have mobility and / or imperialist issues, totally unnecessary. Again, the chaos offering the service are pests. The climb up is leisurely. There’s hawkers and some restaurants on both sides of the stairs. The restaurants looked ok to me but I wasn’t hungry. Once you get to the top of the stairs you’ll pop out at the kiosk to pay entry into the caves. I wasn’t too impressed by the caves. I think I’d seen enough stunning sights on my travels and felt a bit let down. However, I enjoyed the troupes of monkey and I saw a wonderful lizard who was a good two feet in length. The mangrove swamps and the jungle delighted me. As did the boat trip.
taufiques2017
★1.0Wrote on 13 Nov 2023
Locals are agressive and unkind
Most of the locals and monkeys are too much agressive and loots. They don't like even if you try helping/speaking to foreigners( specifically people with helping chairs, never get on those ). Caves appears to be artificial and hard to find any history things in it. If you really like water ride and forests then it is one time visit and tiring too.
