CHANDIGARH
"India's first planned city"
Chandigarh, a union territory that is the capital of both Punjab as well as Haryana, is India's first planned city. A traditionally Punjabi city at heart with a healthy dose of modernity, Chandigarh's food and gedi culture (a leisure drive or ride the city) is what the capital is really known for. Located at a distance of 265 km from Delhi, Chandigarh is one of the favourite weekend road trip destinations of from the capital city of India and other major cities but also acts an important staging point when one heads to destinations in Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir.
A favourite activity of the locals at Chandigarh is boating at the beautiful Sukhna Lake. The other important attractions in the city are the Rock Garden, the Leisure Valley & Rose Garden. Chandigarh's Rock Garden is very well known for having been entirely designed out of discarded industrial and urban waste while the Leisure Valley is an 8-kilometre-long well-maintained park which houses Asia's most extensive rose garden, a very popular draw among tourists and locals alike.
Location: Punjab
Best Time To Visit: October to February.
Famous for: Rock Garden, Sukhna Lake, Zakir Hussain Rose Garden, International Dolls Museum, Pinjore Garden