Temples on the Barakar, dams among low hills, a poet’s village and the terracotta town of Bishnupur. These are the places our guests ask about most, with how long each takes to reach from the hotel.
Distances and drive times are approximate road figures from the hotel. Traffic on G.T. Road and NH-19 can add to them, so leave a little extra time.
Showing 10 places, nearest first.
Temples
Asansol’s oldest temple, founded in 1620 on the bank of the Nunia river. The small shrine to Ghagar Buri, worshipped as a form of Chandi, draws devotees from across the city, and a fair is held here every year on 15 January.
Our tip: Tuesdays and Saturdays are the main days of worship and the busiest; other mornings are quieter.
Riverside
The IISCO steel plant laid out this park on the bank of the Damodar as Riverside Park; it was renamed Nehru Park in 1989, the centenary of Jawaharlal Nehru’s birth. There is a large pond with boating, a play area for children and a view across to Biharinath hill, and the riverbank has long been a picnic spot for Asansol families.
Our tip: Come in the late afternoon and stay for sunset over the river.
Temples
A centre of Shakti worship for around 500 years, on the bank of the Barakar river about 5 km downstream of Maithon dam. The goddess Kalyaneshwari is believed to answer the prayers of couples hoping for a child, and families visit through the year. The rocky river bed behind the temple is a quiet place to sit after darshan.
Our tip: Maithon dam is a short drive further on, so the two fit easily into one outing.
History & heritage
The village on the south bank of the Ajay river where Kazi Nazrul Islam, the rebel poet of Bengal and the national poet of Bangladesh, was born in 1899. The Nazrul Academy, set up here in 1958, keeps his manuscripts, medals and personal belongings, and his wife Pramila Devi is buried in the village.
Our tip: The Nazrul Academy is a working institution rather than a large museum, so call ahead to check it is open.
Lakes & dams
The Damodar Valley Corporation’s dam across the Barakar river, inaugurated in 1957, holds back a wide reservoir ringed by low hills on the Jharkhand border. Its hydel power station was built underground in the river bank, the first of its kind in India. Most people come for the water: boats can be hired on the reservoir, and the evening light over the hills is worth timing your visit for.
Our tip: Leave after lunch, take a boat out in the late afternoon and stop at Kalyaneshwari temple on the way back.
Lakes & dams
The last of the four dams in the Damodar Valley Corporation’s first phase, opened across the Damodar in December 1959. It takes its name from Panchet hill, which rises over a reservoir of close to 28 sq km. The long earthen embankment is a popular picnic spot and a pleasant place for an evening walk.
Our tip: Garh Panchkot lies at the foot of the same hill, so the two make a comfortable half-day together.
History & heritage
The ruined fort of the Panchkot kings, whose name means 'fort of the five clans', at the foot of Panchet hill in Purulia. Maratha raiders, the Bargis, laid it waste in the 18th century and the royal family later moved to Kashipur. What survives are brick temples in the pirha, jor-bangla and pancharatna styles, some still carrying terracotta work, against the forested slope of the hill.
Our tip: Wear sturdy shoes: the ruins are spread out and the ground is uneven.
Hills & outdoors
A cluster of rocky hills near Raghunathpur in Purulia, with a temple to the goddess Joychandi on top. Satyajit Ray shot much of Hirak Rajar Deshe here, and the rock faces are used for climbing courses. The Joychandi Pahar Paryatan Utsav, a tourism festival of local music and craft, runs from after Christmas into the first days of January.
Our tip: Go up to the temple in the late afternoon, when the rock is cooler and the light is soft.
History & heritage
The town where Rabindranath Tagore founded Visva-Bharati in 1921, inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2023. Walk the older ashram grounds, including the Upasana Griha, the prayer hall of stained glass and white ironwork built by his father Debendranath Tagore, and the university’s open campus beyond.
Our tip: Wednesday is Santiniketan’s weekly holiday and Visva-Bharati’s museums are closed, so plan the trip for another day.
History & heritage
The old capital of the Malla kings, known for its temples of terracotta and laterite. The finest date from Raghunath Singha’s reign in the mid-1600s, among them the pancharatna Shyam Rai temple and the Jor Bangla, while the pyramid-shaped Rasmancha is older still, from around 1600. Bishnupur is also where the Baluchari sari is woven.
Our tip: Set out early: it is a long day there and back, and the temples are spread across the town.
The hotel is on G.T. Road in Ushagram, about 3 km from Asansol Junction. Tell us when you arrive and we can have a car waiting.
Asansol Junction railway station
3 km from the hotel
Kazi Nazrul Islam Airport, Andal
35 km from the hotel
Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose International Airport, Kolkata
210 km from the hotel
Distances are approximate road distances.
For the station, the airport or a day out to any of the places on this page. Reception is open 24 hours: tell us where you’re going and when, and we’ll arrange the rest.
Front desk: +91 98003 08888