• 22.89555688.40251 Chinsurah (চুঁচুড়া Cũcuṛā) — headquarters of Hooghly district, former Dutch colony
• 22.8887.782 Arambagh (আরামবাগ Ārāmbāg) —
• 22.7988.323 Baidyabati (বৈদ্যবাটি Baidyabāṭi) —
• 22.92277888.3794444 Bandel (ব্যান্ডেল Byānḍel) — historic port city, former Portuguese colony, home to Bandel Church
• 22.9788.45 Bansberia (বাঁশবেড়িয়া Bāⁿśbeṛiẏā) —
• 22.86705888.3674116 Chandannagar (চন্দননগর Candannagar) — a former French colony, famous for Jagaddhatri Puja and the immersion rally
• 23.1999488.430777 Guptipara (গুপ্তিপাড়া Guptipāṛā) —
• 22.9067587.650098 Kamarpukur (কামারপুকুর Kāmārpukur) — birthplace of Sri Ramakrishna
• 23.0888.289 Pandua (পাণ্ডুয়া Pāṇḍuẏā) —
• 22.7588.3410 Serampore (শ্রীরামপুর Śrīrāmpur) — A former Danish colony
• 22.8988.0211 Tarakeswar (তারকেশ্বর Tārakeśbar) — the "City of Shiva", a popular pilgrimage spot and a major bus terminus.
• 22.6788.3512 Uttarpara (উত্তরপাড়া Uttarpāṛā) —

• 22.5888.32944413 Howrah (হাওড়া Hāoṛā) — Kolkata's twin city with a botanical garden, a monastery and the largest railway complex in India
• 22.4521887.9185914 Deulti (দেউলটি Deulṭi) — A picnic spot, known for the residence of Bengali writer Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay
• 22.2288.0515 Gadiara (গাদিয়াড়া Gādiẏāṛā) — A marvellous picnic spot with zoo and park nearby

The Hooghly district gets its name from the old riverside town founded by the Portuguese in 1579. However, due to the name's increasing association with the whole district, the old town eventually lost its identity and was subsumed by neighbouring Bandel and Chinsurah.

The Howrah district is named after Howrah, its headquarters. Unlike Hooghly, the name Howrah is associated with the city, the district, and even the main railway station.

Hooghly and Howrah have thousands of years of rich heritage as part of the Bengali kingdom of Bhurshut, also known as Bhurishrestha. Its riverside urban area is called the "Little Europe of India", with each town having its unique fragrance of history and culture, as different European powers colonised them. For example, the Portuguese held Bandel, the Dutch held Chinsurah, the French held Chandannagar and the Danish held Serampore. However, many of these colonies later came under British rule, and most of their distinctive non-British colonial charms in their heydays are now lost.

But Chandannagar remained under French rule, outside British hoards until 1954, when it came under India. The city is known for the conservation of its non-British colonial heritage.

The whole area was initially covered by a single district called Hooghly. The Howrah district was later formed by splitting the southern part of the Hooghly district.

During the 20th century, the Hooghly and Howrah districts were home to many industrial complexes, including one of the largest car-making plants in India, the Hindustan Motors plant in Uttarpara. However, at the dawn of the 21st century, the once-flourishing manufacturing belt still has some units working well, but the industrial area is no longer in the pink of health and is often in the news for the wrong reasons.

The Hooghly and Howrah districts are home to Howrah Junction railway station, some of the busiest railway stations in India. Other major railheads in the region include Hooghly (Bandel Junction) and Tarakeswar.

The NH 19 (formerly NH 2), also known as the Durgapur Expressway, terminates at Dankuni, near Howrah. The highway is part of the Golden Quadrilateral that connects four megacities of India. The NH 19 is also part of the Asian Highway 1 (AH 1) that continues further east to Bangladesh and eventually to Japan.