interstate 95 exits Museum of Habitat (admission 10; h10am1pm & 2-5pm) with exhibits on indigenous life. APTDC runs tour

Visit Visakhapatnam also called Vizag (vie-zag) during the holiday season and you ll see domestic tourism in rare form: balloons, fairy floss (cotton candy) and, of course, weddings! But the crowds only enhance the area s kitschy coasts. The rundown boardwalk along Ramakrishna Beach has lots of spunk, and the beach at nearby Rushikonda is Andhra s best.

Vast dormitories (beds free) and guest- houses (r 50-2500) surround the temple in Tirumala, but these are intended for pilgrims. To stay, check in at the Central Reception Offi ce. Huge dining halls (meals free) serve thousands of pilgrims daily. Veg restaurants also serve meals for 15. The following places are all in Tirupathi.

Museum of Habitat (admission 10; h10am1pm & 2-5pm) with exhibits on indigenous life. APTDC runs tours ( 500) from Vizag, which take in a performance of Dhimsa, a tribal dance, and the million-year-old limestone Borra Caves (admission 40, camera 100; h10am-1pm & 2-5pm), 30km from Araku.

Mughal empire. In the 18th century interstate 95 exits the post-Mughal rulers in Hyderabad, known as nizams, retained relative control as the British and French vied for trade, though their power gradually weakened. The region became part of independent India in 1947, and in 1956 the state of Andhra Pradesh, an amalgamation of Telugu-speaking areas plus the predominantly Urdu-speaking capital, was created.