Helloo friends!! This in another proof to say I am too lazy. I started this series  with intention of writing at least one post a month and see now I literally forgot about it. However I  got a sudden impulse to make another post. This time I am going to write about the day out to Golkonda fort.

The official venue for flag hoisting on August 15 ( Independence day ) has been shifted from parade ground to Golkonda fort last year … and why not? Golkonda fort stands as a symbol of  Telangana history, power and prosperity.

The 800 year old fort stood watching the change of powers, withstood many battles and represents engineering marvels of earlier brains.

Earlier when I visited as a child the fort was in some distance to the city. Now with expansion of city, it became part of it. It is surrounded by a huge rock wall which protects an area with a 10 km circumference.

Golkonda name was derived from It was first built as a mud fort by Kakathiya dynasty. ( To read about other wonderful works by Kakathiya dynasty, read Ramappa ) .  

Later it was occupied by Bahmani dynasty and from them to Qutubshahi dynasty. The later developed the once simple mud fort to a massive fort with architectural wonders. The acoustic works are especially astounding. The fort is built in  such a way that sound made at a specific point near the entrance (lowest point of fort) reaches the highest point of the fort (Bala hisar pavilion). The mechanism is supposedly  made to warn the royal family in situations of threat.

I don’t want to write about the entire history and architecture for it would take up 2-3 posts. One thing worth mentioning is its relation with few world famous diamonds. The Golkonda fort used to harbor some famous diamonds found in Andhra pradesh. These include Koh-i-noor and Hope diamonds.

We spent some 4-5 hrs at this place. Climbing all the stairs took a lot of time, later we took some rest at the baradari. There is a mini canteen where you can get some drinks.

There will be a sound and light show which is enjoyable.

Tips

It is advisable to go only on some less sunny day.

Best to carry water bottles with you.

It will be very difficult if you take  small kids or very old people with you. The stairs are made with rock and it’s troublesome to climb them. Include Sound & light show in your plan.

Timings

9:00 -5:30 daily, Entry- Rs 5/- for Indians, Rs 100/- for foreigners.

Visiting time- 3-4hrs

Sound & light show: 1st Show English (All Days) 2nd Show in Telugu on Monday, Wednesday & Friday, and Hindi on Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday & Sunday. Show Timings: (Nov to Feb) 1st Show 6:30pm 2nd Show 7.45pm (Mar to Oct) 1st Show 7:00pm 2nd Show 8.15pm

Fee: Ranges from 80rs to 140rs.

If you see  itineraries of Hyderabad from any travel companies , you will find Golkonda Fort as the first place in a day.

I hope this is helpful, Don’t forget to visit this place on your trip to Hyderabad.