List of tourist attractions in Kolkata

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
(Redirected from
Places of interest in Kolkata
)

Kolkata City Skyline
Kolkata, the City of Joy

Kolkata (also known as Calcutta) is currently the third-most populous metropolitan city in India after Mumbai and Delhi.

Museums and libraries

Asiatic Society
Metcalfe Hall
  • Nawab of Bengal, many lithographs and documents of historical interest, and various post-Raj artefacts significant in the history of Kolkata (added to the collection after independence). The memorial is set in extensive and beautiful lawns and is lit up at night. A laser audio-visual show is held on the lawns every evening. 'Nike', the Greek Goddess of victory, on the top of the museum is said to be haunted and has been prominently featured in many Kolkata stories and novels. It is regarded with pride and joy in Kolkata and colloquially referred to as the "Victoria".[1]


  • The
    Bidhan Nagar
    recently. The Indian Museum has a library of excellent historical value, with a special focus on the Raj and Kolkata.



  • OMNIMAX
    theatre.




  • Sabarna Sangrahashala
    located at Baro Bari, Barisha, is the only family museum of Kolkata which is open to public. It was established in 2005 by the Sabarna Roy Choudhury Paribar Parishad and is a tourist destination specially for those who want to know more about the history of Kolkata. It is also a research institute in the making. The museum possesses some of the rarest Kabulatipatras, documents and articles of historical importance besides several artifacts dating back to the 17th century. The museum is dedicated to students for creating an awareness of history, heritage, and culture of the land. Every year in the month of February, the museum organizes the International History and Heritage Exhibition which is the only one of its kind in Eastern India.





  • The other historically significant libraries are
    St. Xavier's College, Calcutta
    .

Heritage administrative offices

Facade of the Calcutta High Court
The facade of the Raj Bhavan
Town Hall
A panoramic view of Writers' Building in Central Kolkata
The General Post Office (GPO) in Kolkata

Historic hotels

Great Eastern Hotel
(officially Lalit Great Eastern Hotel) in February 2014, a large part of the hotel is still under renovation
Grand Hotel
, now

The

The Telegraph
exposed the sorry state of the hotel in the 1990s. The hotel was privatized in November 2005 with the help of PricewaterhouseCoopers and has been re-christened The Lalit Great Eastern Kolkata. After an extensive restoration, a part of the property was reopened in November 2013. The Lalit Great Eastern offers 244 rooms and suites along with four restaurants and bars, the largest conference and banqueting facility in Kolkata, besides all other five-star deluxe facilities and services.

The

Calcutta
and proceeded to make his fortune in the jewellery business. By the early 20th century he had put together a sizeable fortune and had purchased numbers 16 and 17 Chowringhee. Soon he purchased Mrs. Monk's boarding house and number 18 Chowringhee as well, and proceeded to develop all the properties together into the hotel that came to be known as the Grand Hotel.

The Grand Hotel had humble beginnings as Mrs. Monte's Boarding House at 13, Jawahar Lal Nehru Road. Acquired by the real-estate baron Arrathoon Stephen, it turned into a 3-story 500-room hotel. Acquired by hotelier Mohan Singh Oberoi in 1938, it became the Oberoi Grand. The hotel got a major lift during World War II when about 4000 soldiers were billeted there and would party regularly. Events like the U.S. Marines' Ball at the hotel remind visitors of such times.

City parks

Main article:
List of urban parks in Kolkata
Maidan, overlooking the Chowringhee Skyline
Alipore Zoological Gardens

Gostho Pal. Elliot Park, Mohor Kunja and Victoria Memorial
complex are three parks which are situated in the Maidan area.

Lake Club
.

A view of Rabindra Sarobar in South Kolkata
New Town Eco Park

The

Kolkata Metropolitan Area
, with a lake in the middle and information technology and government offices along its fringes.

Kolkata Metropolitan Area, is situated on a 480 acres (190 ha) plot and is surrounded by a 104 acres (42 ha) waterbody with an island called Ekanto in the middle.[9][10] The park has been divided into three broad parts; (1) ecological zones like wetlands, grasslands, and urban forest, (2) theme gardens and open spaces, and (3) urban recreational spaces.[10] The Eco Park is further divided into different sub-parts according to the different types of fauna planted.[11]
Recently in the month of November 2017, it also opened up another section which displays the replica of "The seven wonders of the World". Toy trains and chair cars are available for the tourists on rent for making round around the park. There are four Gates for entry and exit purpose.

The Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden (previously known as Indian Botanical Garden) spread over 270 acres (1.1 km2), was founded in 1786 and is the oldest botanical gardens in India. It is located at the bank of Hoogly River, Shibpur, Howrah near Kolkata. Housing 50,000 species, the Botanical Survey of India and one of the world's most historically relevant herbariums, it is famous for its 250-year-old, 98-foot-tall The Great Banyan tree - which has the largest girth of any banyan tree ever recorded (1300 ft).

migratory birds like the sarus crane
.

A host of new amusement parks have sprung up in recent times - the most notable being are

Kolkata Metropolitan Area and Aquatica in New Town - the theme water park. Other important parks include Nalban in Bidhannagar
and Captain Bhery Eco & Aquatic Hub in Chingrighata.

Bishwa Bangla Sarani, Baishnabghata Patuli Township. The Nature Park of India
is a reserved area administered by the government of India.

Statues and memorials

Victoria Memorial, Kolkata
The Shaheed Minar or Ochterlony Monument, Kolkata
A view of Prinsep Ghat in the evening
Gwalior Monument

The

Gurkha War (1814–1816). It was renamed Shaheed Minar in honor of the fallen freedom fighters
after Indian independence.

Situated at

Fort William, the monument to Prinsep is rich in Greek and Gothic inlays. It was restored by the state's public works department in November 2001 and has since been well-maintained.[12] In its initial years, all royal British entourages used the Prinsep Ghat jetty for embarkation and disembarkation.[13][14][15]

Other memorials in Kolkata include the

British Navy during the World War I. Gwalior Monument
, also known as Ellenborough’s Folly is an octagonal cenotaph about 60 feet high, crowned with a bronze dome cast from guns captured from the Marathas. It was erected in 1847 by Lord Ellenborough, the Governor-General of India, as a memorial to the officers and men who fell during the Gwalior War in 1843.

Kolkata has many statues celebrating British heritage and the Indian Renaissance and freedom movement. The Maidan is a particularly good place for statue-hunting. A few of the more notable landmarks are as follows:

  • The statue of Subhas Chandra Bose, by Marathi sculptor Nagesh Yoglekar is located at the Shyambazar five-point crossing.
  • The statue of
    Chowringhee Avenue
    crossing.
  • The statue of
    Sanskrit College
    .
  • The statue of Rabindranath Tagore by Soviet Belarusian sculptor of Jewish origin Zair Azgur, built in 1963, is located at the premises of Jorasanko Thakur Bari, the Tagore family residence.
  • The statue of
    Presidency University
    .
  • Besides, the statue of the celebrated Bengali film star Uttam Kumar stands at the Deshapran Sashmal Road.
  • The statue of Karl Marx near Maidan.
  • Bengali War Memorial, located at Vidyasagar Udyan, is a war memorial dedicated to the fallen soldiers of 49th Bengali Regiment, the only British Indian Army regiment to consist entirely of ethnic Bengalis, who served in World War I.

Sports venues

Eden Gardens Cricket Stadium
Salt Lake Stadium, Kolkata
  • V.V.S. Laxman
    's 281), and not least the intense crowd support. The stadium has a history of crowd violence - involving riots in the stands in 1967 (when the stadium burnt), 1996 and 1999.
  • South Asian Federation Games
    in Kolkata in 1987.
  • The Netaji Indoor Stadium, adjacent to the Eden Gardens, is a 12,000 seater air-conditioned indoor stadium, having hosted internationally significant events like the state funeral of Mother Teresa in 1997. Constructed in 1975 to host the World Table Tennis Championships, it also has the Kshudiram Anusilani Kendra - a smaller auditorium without gallery facilities for training purposes.
  • The
    Hickey's Bengal Gazette
    , suggests the club existed in 1780 - which would make it the oldest cricket club in the world.
  • The Royal Calcutta Turf Club is the oldest turf club in India, and one of the most beautiful and largest in the world. Encompassing a significant area of the Maidan, it was founded in 1847, and is distinguished for its "Monsoon Track" - one of the fastest draining tracks in the world. It was conferred the epithet "Royal" by George V in 1912.
  • Kolkata is one of the few cities in the world to boast of three beautiful 18 holes
    Tollygunj and was conferred the epithet "Royal' by George V at the Delhi Durbar
    in 1911.
  • Kolkata is home to the world's oldest active polo club, the Calcutta Polo Club. Situated on the Maidan, the club was founded in 1862 and is the second oldest polo club in the world. Kolkata has yet another polo club in the Fort William Polo Club. The CPC polo grounds are located in the maidan and maintained jointly with the RCTC.
  • Mohun Bagan Athletic Club, located in the Maidan area of Kolkata, is one of the oldest sporting institutions in the country. It was founded on 15 August 1889 and is one of India's top football clubs. The club is also known for its exploits in cricket, hockey, tennis, and athletics. Mohun Bagan club was also associated with India's freedom struggle.
  • Kolkata is also home to one of the oldest squash and rackets clubs in the world - the Calcutta Racket Club, founded in 1793.
  • South Club, established in 1920, has beautiful tennis courts and has been the venue for Davis Cup matches.
  • Lake Club, Bengal Rowing Club and Calcutta Rowing Club
    .

Markets and malls

Main article:
List of shopping malls in Kolkata
South City Mall Interior
South City Mall, biggest mall of Kolkata
New Market
), Kolkata

New Market is Kolkata's historic shopping district. Opened in 1874, it was named Hogg Market after the commissioner Sir Stuart Hogg. The beautiful fountain and benches at the market no longer exist, but the popularity of the market has not waned, and the beautiful gothic clock tower recalls the British heritage of the market. It was renamed New Market after Independence. New Market led the way for Christmas and New Year
festivities with confectionery shops like Nahoum's putting up a special spread. The market is organized on the basis of merchandise. It burnt down partially in 1985 but has been restored and expanded with a new building which houses very famous Kashmir Handicraft store-Pumposh.

The

Abanindra Nath Tagore Sarani and Shakespeare Sarani are considered to be a high street of Kolkata with many commercial establishments and shopping complexes, boutiques, restaurants and stand-alone retail outlets.[16] Gariahat and Shyambazar are two shopping districts catering mostly to the middle class and lower middle class of Kolkata. College Street
is an area famous for its bookstores.

Kolkata has seen a spurt of shopping malls with the rise of the buying power of the Kolkata populace. Shopping arcades like

Godiva to the city, breaking the city's dependence on the older market complexes like A.C. Market, Dakshinapan shopping center and Vardaan Market, which were mainly Chinese
import dependent.

Most of the new malls in Kolkata are located in the newer developed areas like

ethnic shopping arcade near the Bishwa Bangla Sarani in Phoolbagan. A new luxury shopping mall, Quest Mall has been opened in Park Circus by the RP-Sanjiv Goenka Group, which has brought many foreign brands such as Breitling, Burberry and Gucci for the first time to Kolkata.[17][18]

Places of worship

Badridas Jain Temple
Dakshineswar Kali Temple
Kalighat Kali Temple
St. Paul’s Cathedral, Kolkata
Deity in Nam Soon Church, a temple devoted to Chinese folk religion god

Temples

Mosques

Main article: Mosques in Kolkata

Churches

Gurdwaras

  • Bhowanipore Gurudwara
  • Gurudwara Bara Sikh Sangat
  • Gurdwara Sant Kutiya
  • Gurdwara Sahib Ballygunge, Bondel Gate

Other religious establishments

Bridges

Howrah Bridge at night
Second Hooghly Bridge shot at night from Prinsep Ghat

Mentioned below are some of the few famous bridges in the city of Kolkata. There are more bridges. The few famous bridges are as follows:

Clubs

In Calcutta, the word "club" still means a watering hole and not a discothèque. Calcutta has a number of clubs that hark back to the Raj days but have modernised over time without sacrificing their traditions. Most clubs have bakeries, dining facilities and accommodation at reasonable prices. They also have reciprocal arrangements with clubs in different countries. The most noted clubs are:

Other notable landmarks

Howrah Station

Educational institutes of academic and historical interest

Streets

References

  1. ^ Victoria Memorial Archived 15 June 2018 at the Wayback Machine. iloveindia.com
  2. ^ "The General Library, Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture". sriramakrishna.org. Archived from the original on 15 October 2017. Retrieved 15 October 2017.
  3. ^ "Mamata Banerjee walks full distance from log cabin to Writer's Building". The Times Of India. 14 May 2011. Archived from the original on 16 June 2016. Retrieved 23 May 2012.
  4. ^ Das, Soumitra (20 May 2011). "Writ of Writers'". The Telegraph. Calcutta, India. Archived from the original on 9 October 2011. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
  5. ^ Mazumdar, Jaideep (13 September 2012). "Kolkata walk: Tracing the heritage footsteps of the Raj". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 19 January 2012.
  6. ^ Teething troubles at Nabanna ease out Archived 19 March 2023 at the Wayback Machine. Indian Express (9 October 2013).
  7. ^ "Chaos greets employees at Nabanna". The Times of India. (8 October 2013).
  8. ^ Facelift for Writers' Building: Didi shifts to Nabanna Archived 24 September 2015 at the Wayback Machine. Business Standard (8 October 2013).
  9. ^ Chakraborti, Suman (17 January 2012). "Tourism hub at wetland". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  10. ^ a b "Development of Eco-Resort within Eco Park in New Town, Kolkata" (PDF). WBHIDCO. Archived from the original (PDF) on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 11 December 2012.
  11. ^ "Island of green". The Telegraph. 3 August 2012. Archived from the original on 3 January 2014. Retrieved 10 December 2012.
  12. ^ "Hooghly River around Kolkata". Gits4u.com. Archived from the original on 15 August 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  13. ^ "Ghats in Kolkata - Kolkata Ghats - Information about Kolkata Ghats - Kolkata". Kolkata.clickindia.com. Archived from the original on 23 April 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  14. ^ "Princep Ghat Kolkata". Indfy.com. Archived from the original on 8 August 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  15. ^ "Princep Ghat – Kolkata". Where Was It Shot. 10 November 2010. Archived from the original on 21 July 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  16. ^ "BSNL may take two weeks to be back online". The Times of India. 9 July 2009. Archived from the original on 1 July 2012. Retrieved 6 December 2011.
  17. ^ "historical places in Kolkata". heritageindiaholidays.com. Archived from the original on 31 January 2018. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
  18. ^ "Business News Today: Read Latest Business news, India Business News Live, Share Market & Economy News". Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 3 March 2014.
  19. ^ "Pathbari Temple, Baranagar". wbtourismgov.in. Department of Tourism Government of West Bengal. Retrieved 19 November 2019.
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