Frequently asked questions
Where do the tours that start in Chennai finish?
Not back in Chennai. The South India Temple Trail spends its last two nights at Kanyakumari, at the southern tip of India. The 10 Days South India Tour Package ends with a night in Kochi, on the Kerala coast. Flights in and out are not included, so you can book your return from an airport near the end of the route, and your specialist plans the last day around it.
What can I see in Chennai with one spare day?
Start in Mylapore at the Kapaleeshwarar Temple, then San Thome Basilica close by. Fort St George has St Mary's Church, consecrated in 1680, and the Fort Museum, open 9 am to 5 pm and closed on Fridays. The Government Museum's bronze gallery deserves an hour or two. Marina Beach suits an evening walk rather than a swim: Tamil Nadu Tourism says its undercurrent makes it unsafe for swimming.
How far is Chennai airport from the city's sights?
Chennai International Airport is at Meenambakkam, on the south-western side of the city. Tamil Nadu Tourism puts Marina Beach about 19 km from it, the Government Museum about 20 km and Fort St George about 23 km. Every package listed here gives you a private car and driver from day 1, so if you land early, the Kapaleeshwarar Temple in Mylapore or an evening on the Marina fits in before your first night.
Can I add Kanchipuram to a trip from Chennai?
Yes. Kanchipuram, about 75 km inland from Chennai Central, is known as the Golden City of a Thousand Temples and for its silk saris, and its Kailasanathar Temple is among the best known. No package listed here includes it, so ask for it when you plan. With a second night in Chennai it makes a full day out before the drive south to Mahabalipuram.
Can I visit Tirumala from Chennai?
Yes. Tirupati, at the foot of the Tirumala hills, is about three hours from Chennai by road, and the Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams, which runs the temple, names Chennai's airport as a gateway for pilgrims flying in from further away. Our Tirupati darshan tour is planned around the temple trust's darshan booking system, so it can begin or end a trip from Chennai. See Tirupati tour packages.
When is Chennai's December music season?
It is built around the Music Academy's annual concerts, which run from mid-December into the first days of January, with academic sessions alongside. The academy's yearly conferences, held since 1929, grew into what it calls the December music festival of Madras, a season of Carnatic music. If your trip starts in late December, ask your specialist to time your Chennai night for a concert.
About Chennai Tour Packages
Our private trips from Chennai suit first-time visitors to South India who want to start at Tamil Nadu's main international airport. The South India Temple Trail runs south through Mahabalipuram, Thanjavur and Madurai to Kanyakumari. The 10 Days South India Tour Package crosses into Kerala's hills and backwaters. Each is tailor-made around your dates, budget and group, and confirmed with a written quote before you pay anything.
Reviewed by Experience My India Editorial Team · Updated 20 Oct 2026
Why go to Chennai
Chennai, the capital of Tamil Nadu and once called Madras, lies on the Coromandel Coast of the Bay of Bengal, and its international airport makes it the natural first night of a trip south. In Mylapore, the Kapaleeshwarar Temple to Shiva is entered through a 37-metre gopuram, a gateway tower crowded with mythological figures. San Thome Basilica stands over the tomb of St Thomas the Apostle and was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style in 1893. Fort St George, completed in 1644 for the East India Company, holds St Mary's Church and the Fort Museum, and the Government Museum, founded in 1851, has a celebrated gallery of South Indian bronzes. More in our Chennai travel guide.
How many days to give Chennai
Chennai is the arrival stop on every package listed here: you land on day 1, stay one night and set off down the coast to Mahabalipuram on day 2. That night is mostly for getting over the flight, with time for the Kapaleeshwarar Temple if you land early. To see the city properly, with Mylapore, the fort and the museum's bronzes, add a second night before starting the South India Temple Trail or the 10 Days South India Tour Package. A third night makes room for a day at Kanchipuram, about 75 km inland.
When to go
November to February is the coolest and most comfortable time in Chennai, warm rather than hot. This coast keeps a different calendar from most of India: the northeast monsoon normally sets in around 20 October and brings about 60% of the city's yearly rain by the end of December, with November usually the wettest month. Cyclones also form over the Bay of Bengal in these months, so a spare day helps then. From April to June the city is hot and humid, and afternoons can pass 40°C. See our guide to the best time to visit Tamil Nadu.
How to reach Chennai
Chennai International Airport at Meenambakkam has a domestic terminal (Kamaraj) and an international one (Anna), with direct flights from Delhi and across India. Flights are not included in the packages listed here, so you can arrive from wherever suits you. By train, the city's main terminals are Chennai Central (officially Puratchi Thalaivar Dr. M.G. Ramachandran Central), Chennai Egmore, Chennai Beach and Tambaram. From the city, Mahabalipuram is about 57 km down the coast, Kanchipuram about 75 km inland, and Tirupati, across the Andhra Pradesh border, about three hours by road.
What our Chennai tour packages include
From your first day in Chennai, the packages listed here provide a private car and driver throughout, a local guide at the major temple sites and daily breakfast. Hotels are included where a package lists them: the South India Temple Trail lists hotel stays, confirmed at enquiry, and the 10-day route into Kerala adds a night on an Alleppey houseboat with all meals on board. Flights in and out, temple camera and special-entry fees, other lunches and dinners, and travel insurance are not included; the Temple Trail also leaves out the boat to the Vivekananda Rock Memorial.
How to choose your Chennai tour package
The routes follow the same road south from Chennai as far as Madurai, then part. The South India Temple Trail stays in Tamil Nadu all the way to Kanyakumari and suits travellers with a real interest in temple architecture who are comfortable with modest dress and barefoot walking on hot stone. The 10 Days South India Tour Package suits anyone who wants temples and backwaters in one trip, with Munnar's tea country and an Alleppey houseboat. If Chennai, Kanchipuram or Tirumala matter more, a specialist builds a tailor-made trip around them; Tamil Nadu tour packages lists more routes.
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