Top 10 Places to Visit in Chennai

The metropolitan area now stretches roughly 30 kilometres along the Bay of Bengal, from the older commercial lanes of George Town in the north through the temple neighbourhoods of Triplicane and Mylapore to the IT corridor running south along Old Mahabalipuram Road. Marina Beach, one of the longest urban beaches in the world at roughly 13 kilometres, runs along the city's central spine and doubles as its largest public gathering ground, lined with memorials to Tamil Nadu's political and literary figures. Mylapore and Triplicane preserve the city's older Dravidian temple architecture and agraharam housing, while George Town and Fort St. George hold the colonial administrative core still in active government use today. Chennai functions as South India's principal rail and air gateway: Chennai Central and Chennai Egmore handle long-distance trains toward Bengaluru, Madurai, and beyond, while Chennai International Airport connects the city to the rest of India and to Southeast Asia and the Gulf. The Northeast monsoon brings heavy rain between October and early December, making the drier months from mid-December through March the most comfortable window for walking the city's temples and beach promenade, though January's Pongal harvest festival adds its own crowds and shorter opening hours worth planning around.