Udayagiri & Khandagiri Caves
At a distance of 9 km from Bhubaneswar Railway Station and Bhubaneswar Airport to Udayagiri & Khandagiri caves distance 13 km, Udayagiri & Khandagiri are two ancient Jain rock-cut caves located in the vicinity of Bhubaneswar. Called as twin hills caves, these caves are one of the most popular places to visit in Bhubaneswar and also one of the best places of heritage in Odisha.
Distance between Lingaraj Temple to Rajarani Temple 2km, Lingaraj Temple to Dhauli 7km. Lingaraj Temple to Nandankanan Zoological Park 20.1km. Lingaraj Temple to Khandagiri and Udayagiri Hills 11.8km.
October – mid March is the best time to visit the city. The temperature remains low and the weather is very pleasant and cool. December and January months are usually cold.
Udayagiri and Khandagiri Caves have derived their names, owing to their location on two hills, Udayagiri and Khandagiri. Mentioned as Kumari & Kumara Parvatas in Hathi Gumpha inscription, the two caves face each other across the road. These two hills represent one of the earliest groups of Jaina rock-cut architecture in eastern India in the field of architecture, art and religion. The caves of Udayagiri and Khandagiri, called Lena in the inscriptions, were dug out mostly during the reign of Kharavela for the abode of Jaina monks during 1st century BC. These caves were first brought to the notice by A. Stirling in 1825 AD.
