Hajipur Tourism And Travel Guide

Hajipur today is well known on account of it being only 13 km away from Patna, the capital of Bihar. However, there was a time when in the ancient days it used to be known as Ukkacala. It was then the very first village that one would come to immediately after crossing the Ganga at Patna. During the time of Lord Buddha, Hajipur was selected as one of the venues where Buddha gave one of his discourses. It was here that a part of the ashes of Buddha’s closest disciple, Ananda, was enshrined and Mahavir Jain took birth. The town of Hajipur was also very well- known during the days of the freedom struggle. Tourism in Hajipur is mostly about seeing the popular sites in Patna. A travel guide for Hajipur is placed below.

Hajipur is among the leading cities of Bihar and today it is possibly next to Patna in the speed of development. The city grows a large crop of bananas and it is only the river Ganga that separates Hajipur from Patna. The Gandhi Setu Bridge connects these two cities. Hajipur is well connected with the rest of the country.

By Road:

The roads leading to and away from Hajipur are in a good condition and further improvements are continuously being taken. There are three national highways, NH 19, NH 103 and NH 77 that connect Hajipur with the rest of the country. Being close to Patna Hajipur has excellent bus connections as well. One can quite easily get taxis in Hajipur.

By Rail:

Hajipur is also well connected by rail with other principal cities in the country. While Delhi has some 29 train connections, Mumbai has 8 connections and Kolkata too has two fast train connections.

By Air:

While Hajipur does not have its own aiport, Patna, the capital of Bihar is only about 30 km from Hajipur and has several flights right through the day and night. Patna’s airport is modern and has excellent capabilities of handling a large number of aircraft landing or taking off at any given time.

The weather in Hajipur is similar to that in the rest of the state of Bihar. It is temperate and tends to be warm and dry most of the year around. However, there is a fair dip in temperatures during the winter while the rainy season is generally quite pleasant.

Summer (April-June):

Summers in Hajipur are hot and dry with a little bit of humidity creeping in closer to the monsoon season. May and June are extremely hot with June temperatures shooting up to beyond 38.7°C.

Monsoon (July-September):

Monsoon brings relief to the environment while the winds blow strong and damp. August is very humid and the annual rainfall is around 993mm.

Winter (October-March):

Winters in Hajipur are very pleasant with bright and sunny but cool days and fairly cold nights. The day temperatures hover around 20°C while night temperatures may drop to below 6°C. 

There are several things to do while in Hajipur. Although the place itself is small, it is very close to Patna. This enables the tourist to enjoy the sights available in the capital such as its museum and open grounds. 

Enjoy The Call of the Past in Buddha Smriti Park:

The Buddha Smriti Park is loaded with some of the most amazing memorable qualities. It was created in commemoration of the 2554^th birth anniversary of Lord Buddha and it has two trees from the saplings of the sacred Bodhi Tree. One sapling is from Sri Lanka and the other from Mahabodhi Temple. The Stupa in the centre of the park contains some of the Lord’s holy ashes and the park has a laser show in the evenings as well as a museum.  

The Charming Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park:

The Sanjay Gandhi Biological Park is truly most charming. It is a great place for picnics and has a zoo and a botanical garden. The land on which the park is built is today a protected forest and home to some 800 animals with species such as elephants and crocodiles besides the tiger and the leopard.

The Historical Gandhi Maidan: 

The Gandhi Maidan located near the banks of the Ganges was once a golf course and a racing track for horses. During India’s fight for independence the grounds were used for gathering people around for arousing them towards the struggle. Gandhi has spoken here as well as Nehru and J P Narayan besides several others. Soak in some history as you walk around the place.

The Lush Green Rajdhani Vatika:

The Rajdhani Vatika was once known as Ecological Park or just Eco Park. The park was inaugurated by the Chief Minister of Bihar, Shri Nitesh Kumar in Octorber 2011. The Eco Park covers around 1.5km of pathways and in addition has a joggers’ track which is 1.2km long. The park is built on an area of some 9.18ha of land and this also includes two lakes which serve to take some load off the Patna Zoo.

Pay Homage at Gandhi Ghat Near NIT Patna:

The Gandhi Ghat was created to remember the unchallenged leader of India’s freedom struggle and is among the many ghats on the Ganga in Patna. Gandhi’s ashes were immersed at this ghat which is a great source for visitors to Patna or Hajipur. An added attraction is the aarti that is conducted at this ghat in the evenings. This ceremony is similar to the ceremony in Haridwar and Varanasi and is a great crowd-puller.

Be Amazed at the Patna Museum:

The Patna Museum is an excellent place for all those who would like to know about India’s heritage. It contains among the most unique items that are of architectural value such as paintings and coins, instruments and textiles as well as beautiful thankas. You will also see a 200 million years old tree in a fossilized state besides a casket that contains Lord Buddha’s sacred relics.

There are some good places to eat out in Hajipur although since Patna is a stone’s throw away one could quite easily try out some of the capital’s food as well. In Hajipur you will find restaurants such as Bollywood Mirchi and Barbecue Live besides The Family Choice Restaurant located on Cinema Road. There is the Golden Curry too on Dak Bungalow Road for you to try out. Try out Dyanas Family Restaurant too as it has received quite a few reviews. 

For shopping it is advisable for you to try out The Mall which is just 13.4km away from Hajipur Station. It has a food court also and you could combine a bit of eating with your shopping here. Try out the P&M Mall which is about the same distance as The Mall. This one is right after the Big Bazaar and you could do a movie here as well. The Maurya Lok Shopping Complex is supposed to be a great place for shopping and food too.