Dwarka

Dwarka, at the western tip of Gujarat's Saurashtra peninsula on the Arabian Sea, is one of the four Char Dhams of Hinduism and one of the seven Saptapuri sacred cities — the site where Lord Krishna, after leaving Mathura, established the underwater city of Dwaraka (the "City of Gates") as his new kingdom.

• The Dwarkadhish Temple (the Jagat Mandir, 5th-storey shikhara, 72-column hall, constructed and reconstructed between the 5th and 16th centuries CE) is the primary shrine — dedicated to Krishna in his Dwarkadhish ("Lord of Dwarka") aspect, the 78-metre five-storey shikhara visible from the Arabian Sea.
• The temple is open to all Hindus (non-Hindus are not permitted inside the inner sanctum but can view the exterior and approach the sabha mandap); darshan queues are manageable outside peak festival periods.
• Bet Dwarka island (30 km from Dwarka town, accessible by a 15-20-minute boat ride from Okha harbour), the legendary actual submerged city of Dwaraka (marine-archaeology surveys off the Dwarka coast have reported submerged stone structures), is a major pilgrimage: Satyanarayan Temple and the Lakshmi-Narayan Temple on the island are the primary shrines, accessible by regular government ferry services.
• The Rukmini Devi Temple, 3 km from Dwarka town (dedicated to Krishna's principal consort, set apart from Dwarka by a Durvasa sage's curse in the Mahabharata), is an unusually tender and intimate 12th-century Solanki-style mandir.
• The Nageshwar Jyotirlinga (one of the twelve sacred Jyotirlinga shrines of Shiva, 15 km from Dwarka on the Bet Dwarka road) and the Gomti Ghat — reached across the Sudama Setu pedestrian suspension bridge over the Gomti creek, where the evening aarti is performed at the river's meeting with the Arabian Sea — complete the Dwarka pilgrimage circuit.
• The Gopi Talab and the Lighthouse at the harbour's edge round out a full day.
• For vegetarian travellers, Dwarka maintains a completely vegetarian character as a Vaishnava Char Dham city: the temple serves annadanam (free vegetarian meals) to all pilgrims, and the town's restaurants and dhabas are all vegetarian.
• The Gujarati thali and hot milk-sweets (basundi, shrikhand) at the sweet shops near the temple entrance are the essential tastes. November-March is comfortable.