Rushikonda Beach – The Perfect Weekend Getaway

Have you ever been so rejuvenated that you actually felt like getting back to work on a Monday morning? Life is nothing but a mind blowing experience and our job is just to find those special moments which make it worth living. I found one of those special moments prancing on the golden sands of the Rushikonda Beach with the water tickling my feet!

Rushikonda Beach is considered to be one of the most untouched beaches in Andhra Pradesh. Situated at a distance of about 10 kms from the city of Vishakhapatnam (Vizag), it serves as perfect weekend getaway. We fell in love with the place at the very first glimpse! The road from Vizag which leads to

the beach is extremely scenic with the Ramakrishna beach on one side and the mountain on the other. We arrived at the Haritha Beach Resort in Rushikonda. This resort is well placed on the top of a hill and one can descend to the beach by a flight of stairs. All the rooms at the resort are sea facing with extremely reasonable tariff rates. It has an amazing sea food restaurant known as ‘Off Shores’ right next to it, which also serves as a pub.

The name Rushikonda means ‘Hill of the Sages’, it is named after Saptarshiswaralayam, the temple of Lord Shiva built on the coast by seven sages. The beach is spectacular with patches filled with golden sand on one side and a rocky area on the other. This particular rocky area serves as a perfect spot to witness the sunset in the evening. However, one piece of advice to travellers: never take off your shoes when you are sitting on these rocks, for the water is waiting to steal them away!

On our first day at the resort, we decided to explore the place a little. We hired a taxi for the day and our first halt was the Bheemli Beach (Bheemunipatnam), the ideal place for rejuvenation. This beach is extremely serene with the Bay of Bengal reaching out to its coast. The town of Bheemunipatnam has an interesting past; it was a flourishing port established by the Dutch settlers in the 17th Century. Unfortunately, there is no sign of a flourishing port now; all that remains is a Dutch cemetery and a light-house by its coast.
The cemetery was known as ‘Hollander’s Green’ and contains graves with memorial tomb stones of Dutch and English settlers. The most captivating tomb stones are the ones built in a conical shape with Dutch inscriptions. Recently, the local people have built statues of Buddha and the five Pandavas on the beach. A fascinating mermaid sculpture also sits on the rocks by the sea, whose origins are unknown. We spent most of our early morning, playing at this beach and struggling to build a sand castle! There is nothing more mesmerizing than a day at an untouched beach listening to the silent lull of the tides.

Our next halt was the well known Ramakrishna Beach near Vizag. This beach has an extremely high ocean current and it is not at all advisable to enter this beach, as it has proven to be fatal in the past. However, one can enjoy these scenic waters by a ship/boat cruise which is conducted every half an hour at a reasonable rate.

Moving on, our next destination was the Kailasgiri Hill Rope Way. A short ride on to this hill gives you a spectacular view of RK Beach and Rushikonda Beach on its either side. It has a children’s play area and a toy train which goes around the hill giving you a breath taking experience of the ‘City of Destiny’.
Once you drive out of Kailasgiri Hill and head towards Rushikonda, you would come across ‘Bay Leaf’, an ayurvedic spa resort. This is an ideal place for all those out there looking for a calm afternoon to unwind. We discovered this place during a search for a restaurant one afternoon.

The food here is very good and holds a personal touch to it. It also has beautiful cottages for a night stay. The spa treatments include chocolate and milk spa ritual, hot stone massage, ayurvedic facial and hair treatment and many more such relaxing treatments for a peaceful mind, body and soul. The overall experience on this particular weekend along with the spa treatments was completely pleasurable.

— Fact-file —

• Nearest Town – Vishakhapatnam

• Transport – By taxi or local bus from Vishakhapatnam city

• Place to stay – Haritha Beach Resort (APTDC), Rushikonda

• Other attractions – Borra Caves, Arakku Valley, Matsyadarshini (Aquarium)

• Food – sea food, especially prawns