Beyond description - Must See-Ajantha and Ellora - It is advisable to travel solo to such destinations or travel with people who are keen on seeing and admiring such historical places. Perfect time to visit Ajantha and Ellora would be during the months of Sep-Feb ideally. Ellora will require at least two days to cover whereas Ajantha can be done in a day. Ellora is just about 30 kms from the city of Aurangabad and Ajantha is about 110 Kms from Aurangabad. A few things to keep in mind. Remember to hire a good accredited guide. Remember to wear a good pair of walking shoes when you are on your trip to Ellora. I would recommend sandals or slipon’s when at Ajantha as you need to remove your footwear everytime you enter a “Cave”. Do remember to carry adequate water and a floppy hat. At both the locations there are a lot of monkeys, so be careful about plastic covers as monkeys tend to think there is food in plastic covers and have a tendency to snatch plastic covers. At both locations Maharashtra tourism runs pretty decent restaurants. Entrance tickets for both locations is Rs 40 and though there is some charge for cameras the amount is normally not collected. There is a notice saying videos and flash lights are not permitted but the same is not monitored. Please be very very careful of the hawkers selling idols and coins at both locations and semi precious stones at Ajantha. STAY AWAY FROM THEM AS THE AS MOST OF WHAT THEY HAVE IS NOT WORTH IT OR IS COUNTERFIET. Also the hawkers can be very persuasive and can turn aggressive and abusive if you show interest in buying something but walk away without purchasing anything. Ellora is closed for maintenance on Tuesdays and the timings for visitors is 0600-1800. As Ellora is close to Aurangabad city I would suggest an early entry so that you get enough time before the crowds come in. Ajantha is closed for maintenance on Mondays. The timings for visitors on other days are between 0900-1700. Calling Ajantha and Ellora as cave temples is in itself a misnomer as these are not caves per se but are huge rocks that have been chiseled away from the top downwards and from front to rear. The biggest attraction at Ellora is the Kailasa temple which is possibly the biggest and best preserved structure. It is really hard to comprehend how such a huge structure was chiseled out from a single rock. There are a total of 34 such rock cut structures in Ellora that is distributed over a area of more than 2 kms. The rock cut temples are Hindu, Buddhist and Jain temples. Kailasa temple (mentioned as cave 16) is the largest rock cut structure in the world. There are electric buggies that takes you from site to site within the two odd kilometer area. There is a small charge and I suggest the same can be used for moving around the temples of Ellora.There are very intricate panels in the Kailasa temple where Ramayana and Mahabharata have been described in detail. These structures were carved between the 7th and the 11th centuries AD. Most impressive are some of the work that has been done on the ceilings. Truly there are no words to describe the beautiful temples and idols and the effort, dedication and perseverance that should have gone into creating it. A lot of the templetes and idols have been wantonly destroyed by Muslim invaders who were against idol worship. Ajantha has about 30 rock cut temples. It is spread out in the shape of a horse shoe. The temples in Ajantha are Buddhist temples and are believed to have been carved out starting the 2nd century BC upto the 7th century AD .The temples here describe the life of Buddha and Bodhisatvas and the structures are basically called Viharas and Chaityas. The mural paintings describes the previous lives of Buddha. The paintings in Ajantha are basically the Jataka Tales. The paintings have to be seen to be believed, the colours used are all vegetable and plant dyes. The expressions and scenes that have been depicted are so natural and it is really hard to believe how such works of art could have been created inside such dark structures. The scenes depicting Buddha about to renounce his princely status is very well preserved and is breathtaking to say the least. Though the frescos are beyond beautiful the sculptures in most of the rock cut caves are equally impressive. The Stupa in cave 10 resembles a Chapel and it is believed that churches were modelled after this stupa. Some of the paintings have people with distinct Oriental and African features possibly indicating that this was an important centre of trade and learning. Wonderful three days, of course when we start thinking a bit deeper it is really unimaginable how these things were created. Were they really created by humans if yes then we have really lost it over the centuries. I am still unable to comprehend how such wonderful works of art could have been created with just a chisel and a hammer. Words and pictures will never be able to do justice to these magnificent works, it needs to be seen to be believed.

Trip of a lifetime. Stress free and full value for your money - I have to say that this was a trip of our lifetime and a big part of it is thanks to Mr Sherkhan . We ( my husband and I) booked the trip only the night before and was pleasantly surprised by the fact that we were accommodated immediately. Our driver Mr Santos was very knowledgeable, friendly and a careful driver. They were flexible and were able to give us appropriate tips about the place, timings and were also able to arrange for some good English speaking guides as necessary. We did the three day tour and all our tickets were taken care as well. It was a stress free trip. Additionally a special note of thanks to our driver Mr Santosh for showing us the hiking trial at Ajanta that allowed us to experience a fun trip and not miss out on the secret waterfall on top of the beautiful heritage. He was also able to point us to great food spots and never left us hungry. If you are looking for a good tour service, don’t think twice, this is the one!

An excellent tour from an excellent tour operator - The whole tour was excellent from start to finish. We had clear communication from the tour operator, Sherkan. Nothing was too much trouble and was genuinely friendly and helpful. We were fortunate to have an excellent driver, Samad, who was very well presented, courteous, and punctual with good communication. I really recommend, as a minimum, the Ajanta Caves and Ellora Caves. They truly are amazing. We also enjoyed visiting the Lonar Lake and both the Mini Taj Mahal (Bibi Ka Maqbara) and Daulatabad Fort in Aurangabad. Overall, we were really satisfied with Tour my choice. A very professional company. Quality and good value for money. Thanks again to Sherkan and Samad. 👍

Beautiful Experience - The tour around Aurangabad was an incredible experience and Sherkhan was a great driver who explained a lot of the background of the different areas.

Excellent service! - Very happy with Tour my choice. They provided us with transportation for our entire Aurangabad trip including airport pickup and drop. The car was in superb condition and very clean. The driver Santosh was always on time, helpful and provided us the necessary tips and guidance on what to see and how. They also provided us with water bottles daily and shoe covers for Ajanta - very thoughtful gestures. Highly recommended!

Ajanta Ellora tour - We booked three nights stay in Aurangabad & booked this tour operator to take us around.We did Ajanta ,Ellora & all the sightseeing in these three days.Our driver was very courteous & knowledgeable & took us every where very comfortably.The car too was very clean & well maintained.Full thumbs up👍 to Mr Share Khan.Highly recommend this tour operator.

A perfect enjoyment with comfort and luxury experience. - We had booked a 2 Night 3 day private tour with this travel ( Mr. Sharekhan - +91 86005 63880 ). The experience was extremely good and did not disappoint us at any time. Mr Sherkhan is the MAN , A NICE PERSON, WELL SPOKEN, HUMBLE, VERY CO-OPERATIVE, GENTLEMEN who owns the travel company was in touch through calls and WhatsApp from the beginning. He sent us the name of the driver who picked us from the Railway station and our journey started. Extremely Nice Hotel (CLICK) with buffet breakfast was provided to us that too at a very reasonable cost. GOOD FOOD. GOOD STAFF Cars provided to us were excellent, very new, well maintained, neat & clean. The Driver / Guide allocated to us were clean, well dressed , knowledgeable, experienced, patient and with good communication skills. We found that the tour was not rushed, flexible and there was plenty of opportunities to take essential breaks. The tour was very well planned. A perfect enjoyment with comfort and luxury experience. I would would certainly recommend it.