Digha - West Bengal’s popular Sea Resort and Tourist Spot

Digha is one of the most popular vacation destinations in West Bengal. Read this article to get the details of how to reach there, where to stay and what to see in Digha.

Digha is one of the most popular sea beach resorts and weekend gateways for the people of West Bengal. Digha is around 187 km away from Kolkata. Digha originally known as the Beerkul during Warren Hastings time was discovered in the late 18th century by the British. It is mentioned as the “Brighton of the East" in one of Warren Hasting's letters to his wife in the year 1780 AD. Digha is well known for its hard flat beaches, calm and shallow sea. It is considered as a major tourist attraction in West Bengal.

How to reach Digha

By Road
Regular direct buses are available from Kolkata to Digha. CSTC buses, Luxury buses from West Bengal Tourist Bureau ply daily from Esplanade (Kolkata) to Digha. There are also frequent bus services to Digha from Dharmatala bus stand, Garia Bus stand, Kudghat Bus stand, Golpark Bus stand, but you have to do the bookings in advance.

By Rail
Digha is well connected with rail from Howrah as well as Kharagpur. From Howrah daily 2 trains and from Kharagpur weekly 1 train is running. The average travel time on direct bus services from Kolkata to Digha is five hours.

Best Time to visit Digha
The best time to visit there is the winter months from November to March. One can also plan their visit from October to March.

Where to Stay at Digha, West Bengal
There are several good hotels to stay in Digha. Some are Sea Hawk Hotel, Palm Resort, Geetanjali Hotel, Sonar Bangla Hotel and many more.

Attractions of Digha

The principal attraction of Digha is the flat hard beach, which stretches for miles. It is considered as one of the widest beaches in the world. The sea starts about a mile away from the start of the beach. The view is really very charming.

One can view both sunrise and sunset at Digha sea beach, which are absolutely spectacular.

The sea at Digha is quiet and shallow making it a popular spot for swimming.

You can also do shopping here and buy gifts for your near and dear ones. You can get here ornaments made of sea shells, curios made of sea shells, hand woven mats etc.

There are a number of good restaurants on sea front serving cheap but good quality Bengali dishes. You can find varieties of fried fishes on the sea front in the evening.

Places of Interest Around Digha

New Digha
The major tourist hub is New Digha. New Digha is an extension of Digha. The major attraction of New Digha is s Science Center, which was established by the National Council of Science Museum. This center offers a wide variety of mechanisms to make science an enjoyable learning experience. A park representing the Jurassic Age has also been built at the Center.
There is a small lake called Amravati Lake where you can enjoy boat ride. There is also a Snake Farm that is situated in close proximity to the Amravati Lake.

Junput Beach Resort, Digha
Junput is a beautiful beach resort, which is about 40km away from Digha. It offers enchanting sea view and cashew trees by the side of the sea. Brackish water fish cultivation and research are done in Junput by the State Government Fisheries Department.

Shankarpur beach at Digha
Shankarpur is another beautiful sea beach resort, which is located at a distance of eight kms from Digha. It is much less crowded than Digha. The casuarinas trees, kissed by the gentle breeze at Shankarpur are a soothing sight. The main attraction of this beach is the long tree lined beach. Another attraction of this place is the Fishing Harbour Project.

Chandaneswar Temple at Digha
Chandaneswar is 8km away from Digha and is famous for its ancient temple namely the Shiva Temple.
Also one can visit Lankeswari Temple, which is 14km away, and Kapal Kundala Temple, which is 45km away from Digha.

So visiting Digha will be a wonderful experience for everyone.