چنای

Get around

Getting around the heart of Chennai city often takes time, due to traffic and heavy congestion. So it is advisable to plan your journey accordingly. Travelling within Chennai is not so cheap by Indian metropolitan standards, and is quite cheap by European and USA standards.

Do

Chennai has several well-known beaches. The Marina Beach in Central Chennai is the second-longest beach in the world after Cox's Bazar in Bangladesh. Chennai is home to Guindy National Park, the smallest national park in India.

Eat

Chennai has numerous restaurants, offering an assortment of cuisine. The beach restaurants are well-maintained and serve great food during the evenings. The eat-outs in Chennai range from budget, midrange and to up-market. There are swanky star-quality restaurants, plain open traditional vegetarian or non-vegetarian restaurants- where you share a table with strangers, street stalls, tea kadais, Indian fast food centres, western fast food centres, food courts, coffee shops, bakeries to exclusive speciality establishments. Vegetarian restaurants serve tiffin and vegetarian meals. There are also a number of restaurants that serve a variety of Tamil, Andhra and Kerala vegetarian and non-vegetarian fare. Many of these restaurants have nowadays diversified and offer other Indian and Indianized Chinese dishes as well. Usually, the check includes a service charge, written next to 'S.C.' If no service charge is added, it is customary to leave a moderate tip.

The East Coast Road abounds with restaurants and eating spots, which offer a wide range of cuisines and a tasteful ambience. And you can plan your dinner or lunch in one of these hotels.

Drink

Chennai is a difficult place to drink. Government rule states that only establishments with a minimum of 21 rooms can obtain a bar or liquor license. Hence there are no standalone bars or pubs here. All the bars that are around are part of some hotel or the other and in general overpriced.

Government-run liquor stores called TASMAC are all over the place but in general not at all a pleasant experience. They usually have unpleasant staff and environment and usually will have local brands. Also, they always tend to mark up each bottle by ₹5-10 over the listed price. Go for it if you want a one-time war-like experience in order to obtain some booze!

Nightclubs close at 11PM, even on Fridays and Saturdays, according to government rule.

Sleep

The closest hotels to the airport are The Trident, Le Royal Meridian, Hilton and Radisson GRT Hotel all five-star properties.

Stay safe

Chennai is generally a safer area of India in terms of crime, although pickpocketing, muggings, and robberies sporadically occur. Keep your doors and windows shut and locked at night and do not carry or display large amounts of cash if possible.

It is advisable for women, especially unaccompanied ones, to dress modestly and limit their interaction with unfamiliar local men. Foreigners are generally overcharged by autorickshaws simply because they are ignorant of the prevailing fares. It is necessary to confirm whether the driver knows the exact destination and to fix the fare before boarding. 'Autos', as autorickshaws are known in Chennai, are notorious for fleecing customers, tourists and locals alike.

Be alert to your surroundings and watch where you step, especially if you get caught in a large crowd where it is difficult to look at what is in front of you. Cross streets extremely carefully as traffic is generally heavy. On major roads, use the underground crossings (locally called "subways"). Avoid using underground road-crossing/ subways in the night or if you notice them to be empty. Traffic signals are frequently ignored by drivers and pedestrians alike, and it is not at all advisable for tourists to try driving in Chennai.

Stay healthy

While in Chennai it is advisable to drink bottled water and keep a bottle handy as it is extremely hot. Eating fresh vegetables and fruits that have sat outside in the presence of insects can also be unhealthy, although bananas and coconuts are usually safe because they are opened only immediately before eating. Hot drinks in restaurants such as tea, coffee, and other local specialities are safe, as are packaged/bottled drinks such as Aquafina water, Frooti (a popular local mango drink) and others. If you have access to a stove, boiling tap water before drinking is also an option. Chennai summers are humid and sultry; it's better to step out with an umbrella, bottled water and some oral rehydration salts (available from pharmacies, the brand name is Electral). These come in handy if you happen to get dehydrated.

Go next

thumb|Krishna's Butter Ball, Mamallapuram Chengalpattu — home to Karikili and Vedhantangal bird sanctuaries and Vedagiriswarar Temple Covelong and Muttukadu — two adjacent coastal towns south of Chennai. They have some beach resorts and a heritage museum. Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin) — Site of the famous Vivekananda memorial. Mamallapuram or Mahabalipuram has many temples, mostly built during the Pallava Dynasty, including several on the UNESCO World Heritage List. The town is also famous for stone carving and has schools that train most of India's carvers. Carvings and other handicrafts are sold all over town. It is easy to visit Mahabalipuram as a day trip from Chennai, but there are enough attractions to make staying overnight or for a few days an attractive proposition as well, and the town has extensive tourist facilities. One of the most famous temples here is the Shore Temple, next to the beach; if coming from Chennai ensure you reach this temple between 6AM and 6PM, as it is shut down after 6PM. Pondicherry (163 km. Take a bus) — Go on a spiritual trip or volunteer at Auroville - an experimental township with no religion or politics. The drive down the East Coast Road (ECR) is delightful, with lovely beaches all along the way, and on the way you can stop over at the Botanical Gardens. Rameswaram (569 km. Take a bus or a train) Tiruvannamalai (185 km. Take a bus) Tirupati (158 km. Take a bus or a train)