Ratnagiri
Ratnagiri is located along the Southwest parts of the Konkan region in Maharashtra. It lies on the west coast near the Arabian Sea. The shyadri ranges from one side and the sea from other surround Ratnagiri. It is one of the very important ports of the konkan coasts.
You should visit Ratnagiri if you are a water lover. The Beaches of Ratnagiri have seducing effect with their shimmering water and palm trees on the sun kissed beaches. The sloping roofs of red tiled cottages transport you to another period immediately and have a soothing effect on you.
Pandhra Samudra is the beach of Ratnagiri, which is very long and clean with white stretch of sand. Hence the name Pandhra samudra, i.e. white sea.
There is a gateway of Ratnagiri which is a preposterous structure with sloppy roof in Mandavi beach. The construction overlooks the beautiful Arabian Sea. You can walk through the seashore and enjoy the cool breeze.
Some tourist attractions in Ratnagiri include the Pawas Ashram, Ratnadurg fort, Puranagad fort, Aare beach, Bhatye beach, Ratnagiri Aquarium and museum and the caves of Chiplun. Ratnagiri has some very famous shrines like the Kanakaditya temple, Ganpatipule temple, and Parashuram temple.
The Ratnagiri fort was built by the Bahamanis. Shivaji Maharaj captured this Ratnadurg fort as it lies on the shore and is surrounded by water during high tide. Ratnadurg is a massive fort and is in the shape of Horseshoe. The fort is vast a spread over the area of 120 acres. There is an ancient temple of Bhagwati in the fort premises.
Ratnagiri has a palace where the king of Burma, Thibaw and Veer Savarkar were confined. This is the Thibaw point which is nestled in the laps of majestic Arabian Sea. There is Tilak Ali Museum in Ratnagiri which is the ancestral home of Lokmanya Tilak. This is a house converted into a museum and has many pictures of freedom fighters.
Ratnagiri has a marine Aquarium and museum. Here you can see some rare and beautiful specimens like sea horse, turtles, sea snakes, lobsters, and many more sea organisms. The Ratnagiri museum has a variety of specimens of fishes, molluscans, etc. the best one is the precious and age old skeleton of whale. It is 55 feet long and 5000 kg in weight.
Bhatye has mind blowing flat sea shore. The Ratnagiri lighthouse and the Mandavi beach are seen from here. There is a famous temple of Zari Vinayak situated on the beach and the view during high tide is breathtaking.