Nellore

Nellore (also called Simhapuri in previous centuries) is one of the more prominent cities in southern Andhra Pradesh in Southern India.

Known for its agriculture, and for its educational institutions and business, is coming to terms with its new-found stature as a city. Nellore is fast blossoming into a hub for shipping and rail/road connections, a major port being built at Krishnapatnam. Nellore has been an exporter of Rice, Sugarcane/cane-based products, prawn/shrimp and a varied set of crops. Nellore has expanded enormously over the years, with newer flyovers, roads and highways. It has a rich historical past with the Archeological Department of India findings in places such as Duvvuru.

The weather is typically hot and humid from extensive deforestation in the area. Nellore is about 177 km from Chennai and 500 km from Hyderabad, well connected by rail and road.

• Nearest airport Tirupati International Airport TIR ^IATA, Tirupati 110 km away
• Nearest major airport Chennai International Airport MAA  ^IATA, Chennai 170 km away

It takes 3 hr by train from Chennai and 10 hr from Hyderabad. Nellore railway station is on the Howrah-Chennai main line and Chennai-New Delhi rail route,

• 14.46059279.9893831 Nellore  SCR  (NLR).  (updated Mar 2022)
• 14.44447579.9834642 Nellore South  SCR  (NLS).  (updated Mar 2022)

A beautiful and modern four-lane highway connects Nellore to Chennai. It takes about 2.5 hours to reach Nellore from the outskirts Chennai.

• 14.44229779.9773223 Nellore bus station. There are so many buses connecting Nellore from Chennai and Hyderabad. There are 2 main bus stations available to connect rural areas of district called PSR Bus Station (more recognized as Atmakur bus stand) and RTC Bus Stand. All APSRTC buses to Hyderabad and Chennai start from RTC bus stand. There are also many private luxury bus services available to connect Hyderabad and Chennai from the Railway station area. Buses of Tamil Nadu state road transport corporations start from Madras bus stand very close to the RTC bus stand and they operate mainly to Chennai.  (updated Mar 2022)

Places to visit include temples such as Jonnavada/Narasimhaswamy Temple, Ramalingeswara Temple in Nellore besides several other temples in towns across Nellore district. There is a "dargah" called the barah shaheed dargah which is very popular around this part of the world.

• 14.46572179.9857691 Sri Talpagiri Ranganadha Swamy Temple. The most famous temple on the southern bank of the River Pennar, the Galigopuram of the temple is 29 m high and has seven gold Kalasams. The most beautiful chamber of the temple is the Addalamantapam (mirror parlor), walled with high-class mirrors arranged at proper angles to reflect only the deity seated in an elevated ornate seat for the Lord in the centre.  (updated Jun 2026)
• 14.43746779.9642322 Bara Shaheed Dargah. Located on the banks of the Swarnala Cheruvu lake. The shrine is dedicated to twelve martyrs (Sufi saints/warriors) who are believed to have sacrificed their lives in battle centuries ago. It stands as a profound symbol of communal harmony, drawing millions of devotees across all faiths, backgrounds, and nationalities.  (updated Jun 2026)

Other temples include:

• Buchireddy Palyem (Temple),
• Golagamudi Venkaya Swamy (Temple),
• Narsimaha Konda (Temple),
• Jonnvada Kamakshi Temple
• Sri Venugopala Swamy Temple
• Penchilokana (forest and temple)
• Ramatheertham (Beach Temple)

Naidupeta, Somasila (Dam), Krishnapatnam (port), Mypadu (Beach), Koduru (Beach), Paturu (sarees), Pennar River.

Don't miss watching movie in Nellore. Nellore has some of the best movie theaters from years.Nartaki, Siri multiplex, complex (krishna, kaveri, kalyani) now remodelled as S2 are some of the state-of-the-art theaters. It charges ₹80-100 for first class depending on the theatre/screen.

Sricity or Sri City is a Planned Integrated Business City (Township) located 55 km North of Chennai on NH 5 along the border of Andhra Pradesh (AP) and Tamil Nadu (TN) States of India. Much of Sricity area is in Tirupati District and a smaller area along the NH5 is in Nellore District and Tirupati district of AP, adjacent to Tiruvallur District of TN.

The Satish Dhawan Space Centre (aka SHAR), India's Satellite/Rocket launching centre is located at Sriharikota in Tirupati district, on the eastern side of the Pulicat Lake which separates Sricity and the Satellite launching station.

The booming economy due to the increasing industrialization in the Nellore region is making it one of the major shopping hub in the south Andhra region. All the major cloth show rooms are opening up. Nellore is famous for the best models in gold jewellery.

Nellore is famous for its spicy cuisine, so popular across Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, hot, spicy and replete with "pulusu" and "kodi kura". The Nellore Thali meals is a big hit across the state of Andhra Pradesh, and you see Nellore cuisine and Nelloreans as restauranteers in Hyderabad. Some hotels in Hyderabad serve the famous "Nellore Chaapala Pulusu".

RSR cold drinks, murali krishna ghee sweets are also very famous in Nellore.

Nellore has got a lot of bars and wine shops. You can find almost all the major varieties of drinks, with some imported types as well.

There are a lot of hotels in Nellore ranging from budget to 3 star. Due to blooming economy a lot more hotels are opening up.

The traffic here is dangerous for pedestrians due to rash driving by auto-rickshaws and city buses.

Mypadu and Kodur beaches are good tourist spots about 12 miles away.