Pre-requisites -
1- Preferably you should have darshan tickets available with you. But it's not necessary as many pilgrims may opt for Sarvadarshan(Free Darshan)
2- Accommodation reservations if available , is icing on the cake.
Booking can be done on TTD official website. We did booking on March for June. Quota gets released on third Friday of the month. But monitoring of TTD website is required for regular updates.
How to reach:
It is very comfortable to go to Tirupati in a 4 wheeler from Bangalore as it takes only 5 hours. We opted for train this time as we wanted our 18 months old son to have that experience too. We boraded YPR HATIA EXP at 8.30 am and reached TPTY at 2.30 pm.
As we had accomodation tickets in tirumala, we directly proceeded from station to uphill. Frequent buses at affordable prices are available , which gives quite a wonderful and different experience on the ghat road. Bus fare is around 75/- per person . In our childhood we always use to opt for buses. Cabs are also available directly from TPTY station. Charges varies from 1000-1300/- based on AC/ Non AC cars. Bargaining is allowed . However cab drivers avoid AC uphill to save on the diesel. It's a 20-25 minute ride from tirupati to tirumala.At the toll gate all your luggage along with you gets scanned.
For allotment of accommodation you need to proceed to CRO office and get the accommodation ticket scanned. Once the scanning is successful you get a message in the registered mobile number with the name of the guest house alongwith the room number. We were allotted Kaustubham guest house ,which is a 5 minute cab ride to the main temple.
We were settled in our room by 4 pm. Usually tonsure facilities ( Kalyanakatta) are available in the guest house. We also had one. Pilgrims can get tonsured here to fulfill their vows. As we had Darshan scheduled for the next day at noon,we had the whole evening at our leisure. We proceeded for the Sri Varaha swamy temple which is located on the Mada Street. The main Venkateshwara swamy temple is surrounded by Mada streets. Please note that pilgrims should not enter mada streets with slippers on. In fact whenever we left our guest house , we left the slippers inside our room. Or else you need to deposit them and again collect later. Just facing the Balaji temple are stairs which lead you to Bedi Anjaneya swamy temple where pilgrims can offer coconuts and camphor ( karpuram) to the God. The top of the stairs leads you to the market area where you can buy various religious items and have refreshments after tredding a lot . And if you are with kids , you will definitely be famished. While proceeding out of the market area towards Ram Bagicha guest house , there is a book stall affiliated to Sri Ramkrishna Math . You can find a variety of wonderful books there related to self help, Swami Vivekananda sayings, mythology books for kids etc. I purchased Gita Darshan from there which I am currently loving. It provides a peek into the Bhagvad Gita for the new generation , youngsters and kids in a simpler language.
Day of Darshan:
We had Darshan ticket for noon.We started from guest house at 10 am in a cab.It dropped us at ATC complex entrance.
Things to keep handy :
1- Darshan tickets
2- Original Aadhar cards
3- Some cash
4- Water
5- Anything else which you feel necessary
Things not allowed:
1- Mobiles
2- Slippers
Please leave them at guest house otherwise you have to make a roundabout to collect them later , which makes you lose time and burn your legs . Though this time to my wonder there have been great arrangements done by temple management to avoid burning of legs. All the Mada streets have been painted where pilgrims can walk bare legged without feeling the heat. Continuous water supply has been provided on the streets for the comfort of pilgrims in this scorching heat.
We have been coming to Tirupati since childhood sometimes multiple times in a year. We cannot imagine our trip without feeling the heat on our soles. This has changed now . Thanks to TTD.
Please wear traditional wear only while visiting Balaji temple and traditional doesn't mean Lehenga choli. I was astonished seeing some ladies in lehenga ,skirts and trousers. Kindly avoid . Traditional wear for women means Salwar chudidar with dupatta or Saree. Traditional wear for men means Panchi ,top with kandua . Kindly follow this .
After you reach ATC complex tag along with the crowd and follow the signs to enter the Q for 300/- darshan. First you will find luggage/mobiles/slipper deposit counter. After that darshan ticket will be scanned along with aadhar verification. You will be able to get laddoos only if your darshan ticket gets scanned here. Then there is separate scanning for ladies and gents. If you have a bag that will get checked too. Carry minimum luggage with you. As i was with my son I had a big bag with me which got personally checked. But I had no option. Drinking water and toilets are available frequently in the queue and now it's like a cake walk . When we were kids darshan used to take 3-4 sometimes 6 hours which made us really remember God. Now management has taken various steps to make it as easy as possible for pilgrims . Finally we come face to face with God at the Garbha Gudi. It always makes me emotional , each time. God does that to you. He makes you surrender yourself to Him and asks you to have complete faith on Him.
Things to do after main darshan :
1- Collect prasadam
2- Donate in Srivari Hundi
3- See Vimana Venkateshwara swamy
4- Visit the other small temples
5- Sit for sometime in temple premises
Time comes to come out of the main temple now. Please note that you will face more crowd here. I still don't understand why it's always crowded while going out. Kindly fix a meeting point with your family members well in advance if at all someone gets separated,as you won't have mobile access.
Proceeding for laddoo collection:
Just after coming out of temple proceed for laddo collection center towards left side. On first floor you can collect your free quota and also buy extra laddoos.
After that proceed to guest house and rest. It took us one and a half hour for darshan to get completed. We started at 10.30 am and finished at 12 noon. Each cab ride charges 100/- to 150/- within tirumala. Bargaining can be done. We had to leave for Tirupati next morning . So we again visited Mada Street in the Evening,spent time there and came back to guest house.
Tirupati trip :
We started at 9am from Tirumala. Places covered were -
Kapila teertham - Shivalaya
Mangapuram - Ammavaru temple
Govindaraj swamy temple
Charges -1500/- to 2000/-
Back to hotel room at Tirupati by 2.30 pm.
We boarded night train and reached Bangalore early morning.
I tried to cover all basic details i could. Kindly let me know if I can shed some more light to any other queries.
