Chennai Marina Beach

Marina Beach Tours in Chennai Tamilnadu

Marina Beach Tours South India - Location
Marina Beach in Chennai - Situated on the eastern side of Chennai adjacent to the shore of the Bay of Bengal, this 12-km long Marina beach has the privilege of being the longest beach in India. Its clean blue sea, with golden sand and good surf make it one of the loveliest beaches in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.


Marina Beach Tours in Chennai Tamilnadu - Overview
The enchanting location and the picturesque surroundings of the Marina beach are a major attraction for the visitors to Chennai. The beach offers some enthralling views of sunrises and sunsets. Several beautiful buildings, memorials and gardens also make it a favorite hangout spot for the visitors. Its wonderful facelift constructed by Governor Mountstuart Elphinstone Grant Duff in early part of 1880's makes it more beautiful today. One can see a number of local vendors selling shell, kites, fruit juice. There are also various kinds of food stalls and shops selling local handicraft items. It is also an important venue for various kinds of functions held every year. The coastline was severely affected by the 'Tsunami' occurred on 26th December, 2004.

Marina Beach Tours South India Activities & Attractions
Marina Beach in Chennai - The beach offers several entertaining activities to the visitors. As the water undercurrent is very strong here, it is dangerous to swim or bath, still people enjoy swimming by taking precautionary measures. In the evening the beach becomes a fair ground with visitors, local people, hawkers and vendors.

Marina Beach Tours South India and another important feature of the beach is the beautiful buildings standing alongside. Some of them include the University of Madras, the Senate House, the Presidency College, the Ice House, the Chepauk Palace including a lighthouse.Marina Beach in Chennai and also one can see several statues and memorials to several Tamil scholars and leaders. Some popular ones are the Statue of Labour, statue of Mahatma Gandhi and the memorials to M.G Ramachandran and Anna; two former Chief ministers of the state.


Ideal Time
The ideal time to visit Chennai and the Marina beach is from November to February when the weather remains cool.
Beach Resorts & Hotels

The beach offers enough accommodation facilities for visitors in several beachside hotels and resorts of different categories. Hotels and resorts offer outstanding comfort and services, including facilities for water sports like scuba diving and fishing and others.

Reaching the Beach

The beach can easily be reached from any part of India by frequent air, rail and bus services. The capital city of Tamil Nadu has both domestic and international terminals and is connected to all the major cities of India by regular flights. Indian railway also has train services to Chennai from all the important towns and cities. Government and private buses connect Chennai with other major towns and cities within and beyond Tamil Nadu

Marina Beach

Welcome to the longest beach of India, Marina Beach, comprising of golden sand, good surf and a shimmering clean blue sea. This beach is counted among one of the longest beaches in Asia. Its 12-km long stretch was made beautiful by the wonderful facelift given by Governor Mountstuart Elphinstone Grant Duff in the early 1880's, and is Chennai's major tourist attraction today.

Leisure & Entertainment Activities At Marina Beach
Marina beach is located on the eastern side of Chennai, adjoining the Bay of Bengal. Watching the sun set and rise from the beach is a fascinating experience. Though bathing and swimming can be dangerous, as the undercurrent is very strong, even then people come for swimming here. In the evenings, the beach is virtually a fair ground with various kinds of entertainment and food stalls lining the beach.

With its natural sandy beauty and spacious promenade and beautiful gardens, the Marina beach is a major attraction for tourists visiting Chennai. One can even shop around the beach, with local vendors hawking wares ranging from shell and glass baubles to kites and fruit juices. The Marina, however, is large enough to accommodate all visitors as well as the hawkers and is often the venue for important state functions. There are also facilities of pony rides at the beach site, which attract the children's interest the most.
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Attractions Around Marina Beach

Some of the most beautiful buildings in Chennai such as the University of Madras, Senate-House, Chepauk Palace, Presidency College, P.W.D office and Ice House are located on the beach drive. At the other end of the beach is the new lighthouse. In between, sentinels on the promenade, are several statues of Tamil scholars and two splendid bits of sculpture- the Victory of Labour and the Mahatma Gandhi.

Aquarium:
Close to the Marina beach is the aquarium, which has some of the most exotic collection of tropical sea fishes and fresh water fishes. The aquarium gives a chance to have a closer look at the aquatic life. The Ice House, which was used to store ice brought from Great Lakes in North America, is south to the Aquarium.

Anna And MGR Samadhis:

Situated on the beach, the Anna and MGR Samadhis, which are the memorials of the most popular, former Chief ministers of the state; attracts a good chunk of crowd everyday.

Elliot's Beach:

Elliot's Beach is spread along the coast down south from Marina. It is also the night beach for Chennai youth. This beach is comparatively quieter and an ideal place to go sea bathing. It is located near Besant Nagar. At the end of this beach are the Velankanni church and the Ashtalakshmi temple. Good roads, pavements, illuminated sands, makes a visit to this beach a real pleasure.

Covelong Beach:

Now a luxury beach resort. This beach has a fort built by the Nawab of Carnatic. It was here that the French General Laboudonnais landed his troops in 1746. Later it was taken by Robert Clive in 1752 and destroyed. The Beach is separated from the mainland by the canal running from Chennai to Mahabalipuram. Taj Group of Hotels runs the Fisherman's Cove Resort with rooms in the main buildings and cottages and the sandy beach here. It is located on the way to Mahabalipuram.

Abutting the Bay of Bengal, Chennai has one of the loveliest beaches. The 4.5 km long beach is the second longest beach in the world. A stroll along the Marina, whether in the morning or evening, refreshes one.The old Saracenic buildings dotting the other side of Kamarajar Salai, a main road along the Marina, would bring back memories of good old British Raj. The Senate House of the University of Madras and the old buildings now housing government offices, such as Ezhilagam and the Director General of Police office. They wear a mystical look in the morning when the Sun rises. A walkway along the beach bordered with a green lawn entices you to go on a leisurely stroll. At the intersections of this promenade stand beautiful statues of Tamil scholars, patriots, and noted personalities. Of these, the Statue of Labour is a splendid sculpture depicting the efforts of a team of labourers who are at strenuous, manual work. The sea in this part is not recommended for swimming, as the currents are violent. Statues on the Beach: Mahatma Gandhi: Father of the nation who spear headed the freedom struggle in the non-violent mode. Subash Chandra Bose, the Lion of Bengal, who led (Indian National Army) against the British. He is believed to be dead in an air crash. His death still remains a mystery. Sir Thomas Munro: Former Governor of erstwhile Madras presidency. He was known for his humanism and sense of justice. He persuaded the then colonial administratators to induct native Indians into regular administrative machinery. His statue has been erected at the middle Anna Salai close to Gymkhana club. The elegant equestrian statue compels attention. Tilak Bhavan: Mahatma Gandhi spent the historic night of March18, 1919, when the sad news of passing of the Rowlatt Act reached him. Before the day dawned, the idea of a nation wide strike dawned on him. This later blossomed into

Satyagraha. Referring to this Gandhiji writes: 'I was still in that twilight condition between sleep and consciousness when suddenly the idea broke upon me it was as if in a dream - that we should call upon the country to observe a general hartal - the whole of India from one end to the other, towns as well as villages observed a complete hartal on that day. It was a most wonderful spectacle.' Tiruvalluvar: Was born in 30 B.C. He authored the world renowned Tirukkural couplets that shines the torch of right living for the mankind as a whole. Tirukkural has been translated into 60 languages world wide. He lived in Mylapore, Chennai. Bharathidasan:Kankasuppurathinam was his real name. As an ardent disciple of poet laureate Bharathi, he named himself as his slave. He celebrated the Dravidian movement, and he composed many poems highlighting the plight of the poor and decrying capitalism. Kamarajar: The late chief minister of Tamil Nadu, made a revolution in education by offering free education for all the poor up to secondary school level. His period is said to be the golden period of Tamil Nadu state. Avvaiyar: A great woman poet of Sangam period in Tamil, she wrote a number of poems of beauty and learning. Swami Sivananda: Medical practitioner turned Saint, founded Divine life Society. Thanthai Periyar: Thanthai means father. He is the fore most leader of the Dravidian movement in Tamil Nadu. He practised and propogated atheism and fought against superstitions. Kannagi: The much worshipped heroine of 'Silappathikaaram', an epic in Tamil.