Places to visit in Govardhan

Govardhan is a small town of about 23,000 people, and the hill is not a viewpoint. You come to walk. The parikrama road is ordinary tarmac with local traffic on it, and on it walk families, grandmothers and children, many barefoot, some measuring the whole circuit with their bodies in full prostrations. Bells from the roadside shrines, the smell of ghee from the prasad stalls and the slap of bare feet on the road set the rhythm.

Hindi and Braj Bhasha are the languages here. It is a place you feel rather than tick off; a quick drive past the main stops misses most of it.

• Danghati Mandir: where the parikrama begins and ends. Pilgrims take darshan of Giriraj (the hill worshipped as Krishna) and set off from here; it is the busiest temple gate on the circuit.
• [Mansi Ganga](/en/govardhan/mansi-ganga/): a stone-lined tank in the middle of town, where by tradition Krishna called the Ganga for villagers who could not reach the river. On Govardhan Puja and at Diwali its rim fills with floating oil lamps.
• [Kusum Sarovar](/en/govardhan/kusum-sarovar/): the finest stonework in Braj, with sandstone ghats and three domed cenotaphs whose painted ceilings are best seen around sunset.
• Radha Kund and Shyama Kund: two ponds side by side, held to be the holiest in Braj, ringed by small temples. The Chaitanya Mahaprabhu temple stands in the lane above them, and the quiet Lalita Kund is a few steps away.
• Chandra Sarovar and Sur Kuti, Parasoli: a lotus-shaped tank about 1.5 km out of town, with the hut of the blind poet Surdas on its bank.

The circuit runs 21 km clockwise, keeping the hill on your right, usually from Danghati and back, past Mansi Ganga, Kusum Sarovar, Radha Kund and Shyama Kund and the far point at Punchhari. It is flat and mostly paved, with water, food and first aid along the way. In shoes at a steady pace it takes 5–7 hours; barefoot with stops, 7–9. If your legs or your elders need help, an e-rickshaw does the whole circle for about ₹400–600. The full guide, with the route and timings, is on the [parikrama page](/en/govardhan/parikrama/).

October to March is the comfortable season, best in October, November, February and March. Start the walk between 04:00 and 06:00. The route has no shade, so May and June are dangerous: from April to June the tarmac is unbearable by mid-morning, and pilgrims set off at four or wait until after 17:00. The monsoon makes the path slippery. Full moon days and the month of Kartik (October to November) bring huge numbers of walkers, and on Govardhan Puja after Diwali and Mudiya Poono in July millions arrive and vehicles are stopped at distant cordons. Month-by-month figures are on the [weather page](/en/govardhan/weather/).

Govardhan has no railway station, so everything routes through Mathura: take the train there, then go 22 km west on the Deeg road. A taxi or shared auto from Bhuteshwar crossing takes 30–45 minutes; a car costs about ₹600–900, a state bus from about ₹30. From Vrindavan there is no direct public transport, so take a taxi, about ₹700–1,000 and an hour. From Delhi by car it is 3–3.5 hours on the Yamuna Expressway, about ₹3,500–5,000.

In town, Mansi Ganga and Danghati are within walking distance of each other; autos (about ₹10–50) are only needed for the outer ponds.