Planning the 12 Jyotirlinga yatra

The 12 Jyotirlingas are spread from Somnath on the Gujarat coast to Rameswaram at the southern tip and Kedarnath at 3,583 metres in the Himalaya. Nobody should do all twelve in one stretch. We plan the yatra in regional stages, each a comfortable tour on its own, with hotels near the temple and the early aartis built into the day before.

The stages we recommend

• Gujarat — Somnath (Veraval) and Nageshwar (near Dwarka): two shrines, one coastal drive, 3–4 days
• Maharashtra — Bhimashankar (near Pune), Trimbakeshwar (Nashik) and Grishneshwar (Ellora): 4–5 days, with the Ellora caves beside Grishneshwar
• Madhya Pradesh — Omkareshwar and Mahakaleshwar (Ujjain): 3 days, timed around the 4 am Bhasma Aarti
• The north — Kashi Vishwanath (Varanasi) and Baidyanath Dham (Deoghar): 4 days by train
• Kedarnath — a separate Himalayan tour, May to October, with the trek or helicopter arranged
• The south — Mallikarjuna (Srisailam) and Ramanathaswamy (Rameswaram): 5 days with flights

Temple timings

Sparsh darshan

Sparsh (touch) darshan is arranged where the temple permits it — Somnath, Mallikarjuna, Kedarnath, Baidyanath, Bhimashankar, Kashi Vishwanath, Nageshwar and Grishneshwar on our list. Timings and dress rules change with the season and festivals; we confirm them the week before travel.

For parents and senior citizens

• Hotels within a short drive of the temple, ground-floor or lift access requested
• Private cab throughout; no sharing days
• Wheelchair and VIP darshan assistance requested where temples offer it
• One long drive per day at most; rest days between stages
• Vegetarian meals arranged; early-morning tea before the aartis

Visiting all 12 Jyotirlingas is considered highly auspicious and spiritually rewarding. Our job is to make the travel part quiet enough that the darshan is what you remember.