Best time to visit : October to February
Amidst many tourist places of Chattisgarh, the town of Durg is a renowned pilgrimage owing to its vast mythological legacy. This temple town is crowded by devotees throughout the year. During the festive season, Durg turns into a wonderful cultural hub. The ancient temple Deorbhijia is one among the must visit places at Durg. Though in ruins, it is still visited by innumerable devotees. Durg has its mention in many texts related to Indian mythology. This town has featured in many Indian mythologies including Mahabharata and has a lot of religious significance. Durg also serves as a great picnic spot and hosts adventurous activities like hiking and bird watching.
Facts
Durg is the headquarters of Durg District. The nomenclature of the town is from the primeval name of Shiva Durg that was constructed by King Shiva Deva. During pre-independence days, Durg was visited by eminent personalities like Jawaharlal Nehru, Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Rajendra Prasad. It has a rich cultural heritage in terms of local dance forms like Panthi, Soowa, Raut Nacha and Pandwani, narrating the incidents of Mahabharata, and also their delectable local cuisine. The main language spoken here is Hindi. Durg becomes extremely hot and dry during summers. This travel guide will unfold many more interesting facts about this East Indian town.
Durg offers a great assortment of local specialties. Rice being the staple food is eaten with side dishes made of fish, meat and pork. Fish delicacies are really popular here as they are fresh catches from the local water bodies done on a large scale. Jalebi is commonly eaten as a sweet dish and the most popular liquor is brewed from Mahuwa flower. Collect tourist information from the town to taste this authentic tribal liquor. The tribal cuisine of the state is unique and interesting. Some of the delightful places to eat in Durg are Ginger Hotel, Sagar International Hotel and Dream Palace Hotel.
Textiles and handicrafts are the first priorities what tourists want to carry home from Durg. The locally handcrafted items made from natural materials like bamboo, stone, wood, bone, horn, feathers, gold, silver, bell metal and paper are special attractions of Durg. According to our tourist guide, you can also opt for the colourful hand woven fabric, Dokra metal animals and figurines, Pithora paintings, wood carvings, colourful beads and tribal jewellery items.
Nearby Places:
Sightseeing in Durg can easily include excursions to some notable places like:
· Bhilai (about 11 km.): Apart from being a popular steel destination in India, this city has a myriad of tourist attractions and educational institutions.
· Raipur (about 40 km.): A major commercial centre of the state and also the capital city, Raipur is dotted with many galleries, temples and ashrams. Raipur is a shoppers’ paradise and one can get the best local items here.
· Bilaspur (about 147 km.): One of the most developed cities of the state, Bilaspur is famous for Ratanpur Fort and a plethora of other attractions for tourists.
Sambalpur, Hirakud and Rourkela are some of the other popular weekend excursion spots from Durg.