# Srivilliputhur

Srivilliputhur is a temple town, 75 km (47 mi) from Madurai, 20 km (12 mi) from Sivakasi near the Western Ghats in India.

## Understand

Srivilliputtur is one of the old historical town that was ruled by Pandya kings initially. This town has a 1000 year old temple, 200 year old Hindu School, 135 year old Pennington Public Library that are standing as remarkable historical evidence for culturally importance of this place. Thiruppavai, one of the important constituent of devotional Tamil literature period was from this temple town. The remarkable landmark of Srivilliputhur is 11-tiered tower structure dedicated to the Lord of Srivilliputhur, known as Vatapatrasayee, an avatar of Lord Vishnu.

### Festivals

Important Festivals at "Srivilliputhur" are
* Andal Thirukalyanam (Divine Marriage)- Festival during March and April.
* Car Festival (Rath Uthsav) in the month of August.
* Periya Mariamman Temple Pookuzhi

## Get in
### By plane

The nearest domestic airport is Madurai Airport (~70 km) and about one and a half hours away.

### By train

The Pothigai Express train from Chennai Egmore to Shenkottai reaches Srivilliputhur daily at 6.13 AM. From April to June, special trains are available from Virdhunagar Junction. A daily passenger train service is also available from Madurai and Shenkottai. The station is a gateway to Andal Temple. Virudhunagar is used to reach Coimbatore and Bangalore by the Nagercoil-Coimbatore Express and Tutucorin-Mysore Express respectively.

### By bus

Buses arrive from Periyar (involving a transfer at Thirumangalam) and Mattuthavani (direct) bus stands of Madurai. Buses from both places pass through Srivilliputhur en route to other cities. Buses from Tirunelveli, Virudhunagar starting from the main bus stand depart every half hour. Buses from Tamil Nadu to Srivilliputhur are frequent.
Buses from Chennai to Tenkasi, Shenkottai travel via Srivilliputhur only.
NH208: Thirumangalam-Srivilliputhur-Rajapalayam-Tenkasi-Kollam
SH42 Srivilliputhur-Sivakasi-Virudhunagar-Aruppukottai-Tiruchuli-Narikudi-Parthibanur

## Get around

* Auto Rickshaw - Auto stand located near Roman Catholic Church, outside Srivilliputtur Bus Stand
* Horse Cart - Located behind Srivilliputtur Bus Stand
* Mini-bus - Green/yellow-red painted minibuses connecting nearby villages and Srivilliputtur

## See

* 9.5732477.561021 Kaattalagar Kovil.
* Madavar Valagam. This is a Shiva Temple dedicated to Sri Vaidhyanatha Swamy.
* Shenbaga Thoppu.
* 9.50888977.6322222 Srivilliputhur Andal Temple, Mada St, Mangapuram, ☏ +91 4563 260 254. A popular Hindu temple and one of the 108 Divya Desams, and the most important abodes of Lord Vishnu.
* Thiruvannamalai. A Vaishnav Temple on the hillock near Western Ghats - attracting good crowds during Saturdays, especially in October / November. An important Vaishanav Temple and one among DIVYA DESAMs(108), Birth Place of Kothai - Andal , One of the 12 Alwars (Vaishnav saints). Also a birth place of Peria Alwar. Both of them wrote a number of Pasurams (lyrics or poems) on Lord Vishnu. Their Pasurams have been practiced in Vaishnav Temples all over South India and in some places in the North too. You can find a Replica of this temple ( Sri Rangji Mandhir) at Brindavan in Uttar Pradesh near Mathura.

## Do

* Shopping in small shops inside Andal Temple Complex
* Bicycling and Trekking in Western Ghats - Shenbaga Thoppu
* Visit Sriraam Palkova Factory to see how Palkova is made
* Visit Pennington Library, one of the oldest library in the town.

## Buy

* Palkova - Venkateshwara sweets, Inside Andal temple compound. This place will always be crowded, and you may have to wait a bit to buy it. Puliyamaruthukadai or Singh Palkova Stall near Srivilliputtur Bus Stand also sells tasty Palkova.

## Eat

* Food Park Restaurant - Veg & Non Vegetarian food, at a very low price. Door Delivery. Located on the State Highway between Srivilliputtur and Krishnankoil, Pilayarnatham Bus stop.
* Hotel Arasan.
* Hotel Dinakaran, 39 East car street. Its well known as Gothandam pillai hotel in this area. Its from one of the partners from Kathiravan. Very tasty food and safe home made food. It is well known for Saambar. Every day morning and evening 4 different types of Saambar are served with Dosas and Idlis. If one is lucky, one can find traditional food like Kaeppai Dosai, Susiyam, Gothumai Dosai etc. Also services available for traditional functions. Sunday Spl mid day meals.
* Hotel HumNight. A/C
* Hotel SriDevi. A/C
* Hotel Suresh. Non vegetarian food, famous for Parotta, flour made layered flat bread.
* Kathiravan Restaurant, National Highway 744, 91, East, S Car St, Mangapuram (near the Andal Temple), ☏ +91 98942 42424. 7AM-10PM. Pure veg restaurant. It's very crowded during lunch and dinner. (updated Aug 2020)
* Annapoorna Unavagam, madurai kollam BYPASS (MADURAI BYPASS INDRANAGAR), ☏ +91 9597910532. 5.00 AM TO 3.30 PM. (updated Jul 2022)

## Drink

* Palmyrah Juice, sold by Tamil Nadu Government Co-Operative Society, located near Srivilliputtur Bus Stand Entrance
* Rose milk, flavored sweetened milk drink from Ananda Bakery
* Filter coffee and tea from Dinakaran, 39 East car street. Its from one of the partners from Kathiravan.

## Sleep

The best time to visit this town is during the Margazhi Thirunal (December–January) and the Adi Thirunal (July–August) which are very popular and provide a rare experience of the traditional temple festivals, some of them unique to this town.
There are many hotels and lodges available to support the visitors. However, some of the houses at the street where the Andal temple is situated have been converted to convenient boarding places.
* Hotel Sasitharan Lodge. A/C
* Ram Lodge. A/C
* Sri Nachiar Boarding and Lodging.
* Sri Raja Lodge. A/C
* Subam Lodge. A/C (updated Jan 2016)

## Connect

| OFFICE NAME | PHONE NUMBER |
| Ambulance | 108 |
| Police station | 260208 |
| Fire station | 260250 |
| Railway station | 260280 |
| Head post office | 260221 |
| Government hospital | 260220 |
| Electricity board(eb) | 260406 |
| Travellers bungallow (pwd) | 260399 |
| Deputy superindent of police | 261337 |
| Forest office | 262215 |
| Telephone enquiry | 181 |
| Telephone call booking | 180 |
| Sde phones | 265000 |
| Sde telegraph | 260330 |
| State transport corporation | 260422 |

## Go next

* Courtallam
* Pilavakkal Dam
* Sathuragiri Hills