Chittoor is a town and the head quarters of the Chittoor District in the state of Andhra Pradesh. It is located on the Renigunta – Katipadi railway line and on the National Highway between Chennai and Bangalore. Chittoor is also termed as the Temple Town of Tirumala and Tirupati, one of the major pilgrim centres in the entire country. The town is regarded as the gateway to most of the pilgrims coming to visit Tirupati from South Indian states like Karnataka, Kerala and Tamilnadu.

A fast growing town due to its pilgrimage importance, Chittoor has a population of about 1, 52,654 as per the census taken in 2001. The climate here is moderate with tolerable summer and good rains. Best time to visit is between September and February. The warm and friendly people of the town are welcoming and make the visitor feel comfortable. The local language spoken by its denizens is basically Telugu and Tamil while English and Hindi are understood and spoken comfortably. With picturesque lush green fields all around, the basic economy of the town is based on agriculture, the main produce being sugarcane, jaggery, peanuts/groundnuts, grains and mangoes. Before leaving the town, don’t forget to carry these fresh produce back home, as they are reasonably cheaper.

The town has a perfect balance of sophisticated city and small town charm. Once you are in town, there are many places to visit in and around Chittoor, where you can spend your time. The town itself offers many places to see and things do. Right from parks, shrines, restaurants to entertainment centres and prominent landmarks, you find them all. There is a deer park, Masonics Chittoor Stadium, and Church in the church street, Sugar Factories, Nutrine Confectionery, which you can visit while in town. There are small but prominent temples like Subramanian Swami temple on the hill, Sai Baba Temple, Sri Venkateshwara Temple in Thangal, Anjaneya Swami temple in Aragonda and many others, which you can visit to know the customs, traditions and beliefs of the local people. There are also pilgrimage centres, heritage centres, wild life sanctuaries, waterfalls, holiday resort and theme parks, around the town. There goes no time when you get bored while you are staying at Chittoor.

The town also offers entertainment of all kinds with cinema halls, bars and pubs around. Some of the good theatres are Chanakya, Raghava, Srinivasa and MSR movie land where you can watch many Telugu but a few Hindi and English movies. Some good places where you get to taste the local gastronomy are Pratap restaurant just opposite to the bus stand, which is a good place for non-vegetarian lover. The best hotel in Chittoor is CTR with good quality and best price. For some pure vegetarian culinary, you can step into Sri Valli Bhavan, which is a best place for a vegan.

LOCAL INFO AND ACCOMADATION

There are plenty of local transportation facilities available for you to move from one part of the town to another. There are local APSRTC buses with different numbers to indicate a particular bus route. Enquire at a local bus stand before boarding a bus. Autos are the best option to travel, as they are fast and comfortable. They charge as per the digital meter, which a minimum fare of Rs.12. If you have an own vehicle (car) or can manage to hire a taxi, then driving down is the best option.

GETTING THERE

Chittoor is well connected by road and rail. There are buses from other parts of the state as well as the neighbouring states, which take you to Chittoor.

From Chennai: Chittoor is at a distance of 155 kms from Chennai and takes about 3 hours to reach. There are buses from here and Route No.144 bus from Chennai’s Koyembedu Bus Stand (CMBT) or a train from Lalbagh takes you to Katpadi. There are plenty of buses from Katpadi to Chittoor. Boarding a government-run bus is the best option to avoid too many stops by the private buses. The nearest airport to Chittoor is at Chennai, which has many international and domestic flights from most of the parts of the world. From here, you can reach Chittoor either by bus or train.

From Bangalore: Chittoor is at a distance of 173 kms from Bangalore and it takes nearly 3 ½ hours to reach here. You can board any KSRTC (Karnataka State Road Transport Corporation) bus from Bangalore Majestic bus stand going to Tirupati, Nellore, Vijayawada and Guntur. Getting down near CTR is convenient as there are local transportations available, which can take you to your desired destination. Don't take the private bus "Kalasipalya" as there are too many stops. There is an airport at Bangalore, which is connected to many other states in India.

From Hyderabad: Chittoor is at a distance of 580 kms from Hyderabad and takes 10 hours approximately for you to reach here. There are nearly 3 buses from JBT (Jubilee Bus Terminal), the TTS Travels runs a bus from Ameerpet cross roads which usually runs everyday, the APSRTC (Andhra Pradesh State Road Transport Corporation) has 7 buses from MGBS (Mahatma Gandhi Bus Stand). There is a train, Venkatadri Express, which starts from Kachiguda at 8:05 PM and reaches Chittoor by morning at around 9:00 AM. There are also domestic and international flights to Hyderabad from where you can travel to Chittoor either by bus or train. From Tirupati: Tirupati is just 72 kms from Chittoor and there are APSRTC buses that ply every 10 minutes to and from Chittoor.