Visakhapatnam: A Travel Guide to the Jewel of the East Coast

Visakhapatnam, still affectionately known as Vizag and sometimes written as Vishakhapatnam, is the largest city in Andhra Pradesh and its commercial and administrative powerhouse. Set on the Bay of Bengal, with the Eastern Ghats rising almost directly behind it, the city has earned two enduring nicknames: the City of Destiny and the Jewel of the East Coast. Both feel justified the moment you arrive.

What makes Vizag unusual among Indian cities is how many identities it holds at once. It is home to one of the country’s largest ports, it hosts the Eastern Naval Command, and it carries real industrial weight thanks to its steel plant and shipyards. And yet none of that overshadows the other Vizag, the one with golden beaches, forested hills tumbling into the sea, and a pace of life that feels distinctly relaxed for a city its size. Locals go for a walk on the beach the way people elsewhere go to a park. Fishing boats bob beside naval ships in the harbour. A hilltop ropeway carries visitors over the water at sunset while, out at sea, container ships queue for the port.

Vizag also works as a gateway. It is the natural starting point for the Araku Valley and the wider north Andhra coast, and a clean, green and genuinely liveable base from which to explore both the shoreline and the Eastern Ghats behind it. For visitors who want sand, hills, heritage and seafood without having to choose between them, this coastal city delivers all four within a short drive of the centre.

Beaches and the coast

The heart of Vizag’s beach life is Ramakrishna Beach, universally shortened to RK Beach, a long promenade that runs along the city’s eastern edge. In the evenings it fills with families out for a walk, couples sharing roasted corn or crisp fried snacks, and children running along the sand while the tide comes in. It is also where you will find two of the city’s most memorable sights, a decommissioned submarine and a naval aircraft, both open for visitors to explore, which are covered in more detail below.

A little further north, Rushikonda Beach is cleaner and quieter, with golden sand, gentler waves and a proper resort feel. It has become known as the Jewel of Vizag, and it is the spot to head for if you want water sports such as jet-skiing and banana boat rides alongside your beach time.

For something wilder and more secluded, Yarada Beach is worth the short drive south of the city. Ringed by hills on almost every side, it has a hidden-cove feel that RK Beach and Rushikonda simply do not have, and it rewards those willing to wind down the ghat road to reach it.

Heading in the other direction, Bheemunipatnam, often shortened to Bheemili, lies around 24 kilometres north of the city and is one of the oldest towns on this stretch of coast, with a quieter beach and traces of old Dutch heritage still visible in its lanes and cemetery. Sagar Nagar and Gangavaram add further stretches of coastline along the way, and simply driving the beach road that links these spots, with the sea on one side and hills on the other, is one of the most pleasant things to do in the city.

Hills and viewpoints

No visit to Vizag is complete without Kailasagiri, a hilltop park that has become the city’s most-loved viewpoint. Giant statues of Shiva and Parvati stand at its centre, and from the surrounding gardens you get sweeping views over the city, the port and the curve of the coastline. A ropeway carries visitors up and down the hill, and there is also a small toy train for those exploring the park itself. Arriving in the late afternoon, in time to watch the light change over the bay, is a favourite local tradition.

South of the city, Dolphin’s Nose is a dramatic headland that juts out into the sea, topped by a lighthouse and offering fine views over the harbour and the naval dockyard below. It is a reminder of just how much of Vizag’s identity is tied to the sea and the ships that pass through it.

The city itself is often described as built across three hills, each crowned by a different place of worship, a temple, a mosque and a church, a detail that says a good deal about Vizag’s easy-going, mixed character. Ross Hill, topped by a church, is one of these and offers its own pleasant views over the city. Nearby, Sri Venkateswara Konda adds another hilltop perspective. For nature rather than views alone, Kambalakonda is a forested eco park on the edge of the city, home to walking trails and a modest range of wildlife, and a good escape from the beach crowds for an hour or two.

Museums and unique sights

Few Indian beaches can claim a genuine submarine, but RK Beach can. The INS Kurusura Submarine Museum is a decommissioned Indian Navy submarine that has been beached and opened to the public, and visitors can walk through its narrow, atmospheric interior, past the control room and crew quarters, getting a rare sense of what life at sea beneath the waves actually involved. It was among the first museums of its kind anywhere in Asia, and it remains one of Vizag’s genuinely unmissable experiences.

Close by, the TU-142 Aircraft Museum lets visitors climb aboard a retired naval maritime patrol aircraft, another unusual and hands-on addition to the beach that underlines just how closely this city’s story is bound up with its navy.

For a broader look at the region’s maritime and historical past, the Visakha Museum is worth a visit, while the Matsyadarshini Aquarium gives a glimpse of the marine life found off this stretch of coast. Together, these sights give Vizag a naval and maritime character that sets it apart from almost every other beach city in India.

Around Vizag: day trips into the hills

The single most popular excursion from Vizag is to Araku Valley, a coffee-growing hill station roughly 110 to 115 kilometres away in the Eastern Ghats. Many visitors choose to travel there by the Kirandul passenger train, a slow and scenic ride that winds through tunnels and over bridges cut into the hillsides, widely considered one of the loveliest train journeys in South India. Along the way, or as part of the same trip, the Borra Caves offer a striking detour, a series of limestone caves formed over millions of years, with dramatic natural rock formations lit for visitors to explore. Araku itself is known for its tribal culture, coffee plantations and waterfalls, and an overnight stay allows time to properly take it all in rather than rushing back the same day.

Closer to the city, Simhachalam Temple sits on a hill around 16 kilometres from central Vizag and is dedicated to Varaha Narasimha, an unusual form of Vishnu whose deity is permanently covered in sandalwood paste, giving the shrine a distinctive character among South Indian temples.

History buffs should not miss the region’s ancient Buddhist sites, Bojjannakonda, Thotlakonda and Bavikonda, hilltop settlements with the remains of stupas and monasteries dating back roughly two thousand years, set against fine coastal views. They are quieter than Vizag’s better-known attractions and reward visitors with an entirely different, more contemplative side of the region’s history.

Food in Vizag

This is proper Andhra coastal cooking, which means spice, seafood and plenty of both. Being right on the Bay of Bengal, Vizag is known for excellent fresh fish, prawns and crab, cooked in fiery, tangy Andhra-style curries that reward a healthy appetite for chilli. Andhra biryani is another local favourite, distinct in flavour from its Hyderabadi cousin, and worth trying at least once during a stay.

Breakfast is its own pleasure here, with idli, dosa and the Andhra speciality pesarattu, a savoury crepe made from green gram, often served alongside ginger chutney and upma. If you make it up to Araku, look out for bamboo chicken, a local speciality cooked slowly inside a bamboo stem over an open fire. To finish, try bandar laddu, a well-known Andhra sweet, alongside a cup of local filter coffee or, better still, coffee grown around Araku itself.

Where to stay

Vizag has a good spread of accommodation to suit most budgets. Along RK Beach and Beach Road you will find everything from simple budget lodges to comfortable mid-range and five-star beachfront hotels, many with sea views as standard. Rushikonda has developed a resort feel of its own, good for those wanting a quieter, more self-contained stay close to the water. The city centre also has a reasonable choice of business hotels for those combining leisure with work. If your trip includes Araku, it is well worth spending a night or two up in the hills as well, where accommodation ranges from simple guesthouses to more characterful hill stays.

Tips for visiting

Make time for the Araku train ride if you possibly can, and book your tickets ahead, since the Kirandul passenger service through the Ghats is deservedly popular. Driving up is a perfectly good alternative if the train does not fit your schedule. Whichever way you go, staying overnight in Araku lets you fit in both the valley itself and the Borra Caves without rushing.

Catch sunrise on RK Beach or Rushikonda at least once, and try to time a visit to Kailasagiri for late afternoon so you can ride the ropeway as the light softens over the sea. Do not skip the submarine museum, it really is unlike anything else on an Indian beach. Save an afternoon for the Buddhist hill sites such as Thotlakonda, which tend to be overlooked but are genuinely rewarding. And naturally, eat as much local seafood and pesarattu as you can manage.

A practical note worth bearing in mind: this stretch of the east coast can see cyclones between October and December, so if you are travelling in that window, check the forecast before you go. Also take care when swimming, as currents can be strong on some beaches, so stick to areas that are considered safe and heed any warning flags. Many visitors combine Vizag with Tirupati and Araku on a longer swing through Andhra Pradesh, and the combination works well given how well connected the state is by road, rail and air.

The jewel of the east coast

Visakhapatnam is, in many ways, the jewel of India’s east coast, a rare city where the Eastern Ghats meet the Bay of Bengal, where you can walk through a submarine on the beach over breakfast, ride a ropeway above the sea by afternoon, and board a mountain train into coffee-scented Araku by the next morning. It is a clean, green and unhurried port city, and it makes an excellent base for exploring the north Andhra coast and the hills that rise up behind it.