Iskcon Temple Vrindavan

 From my Journal ( 2014 Aug)

Vrindavan is full of temples !! Every nook and corner you will see a temple of  Lord Radha Krishna. Iskcon Temple is one of the tourist spot in Vrindavan. This temple is 10 minutes from Prem Mandir. When you are visiting Mathura Vrindavan make sure you have this temple in your list. I always tag Iskcon temples as temple for foreigners.Iskcon temple whether in Vrindavan or West Bengal is all about glitz and glam. Before entering we had to deposited our shoes,leather items. There is no entry fees for entering this temple.

The Marble Structure

Almost all Iskcon temples are built using white marbles.  As we entered the main area I saw foreigners wearing Chaniya Choli  and dancing on the tune of Hare Krishna Hare Rama.  I was in a trance for sometime. I sat there and enjoyed the lovely spiritual moment. It actually refreshed me.  At 7 pm they had their evening aarti. Women of all age  danced and played various musical instrument.

The main Temple

They have a canteen  where they serve pasta and pizza and various milk products ( it's not free of course). The temple opens early in the morning and in the afternoon it is closed.It opens again at 4.30 pm till 8.30pm.  Evening gets crowded and you can have problem parking your car. So it's better if you can visit it in the morning.Just close to Iskcon temple ,there is the famous Banke Bihari temple and Nidhivan but beware of the monkeys they are  real scary !

 Travel Tips:

From Delhi, Vrindavan is 185 km and takes around 3 hours . Take the Yamuna Express to shorten your journey. A stay at Mathura is a must if you want to do Mathura Vrindavan Agra sight seeing. If you are planing to visit Jaipur start from Delhi -Visit Agra Mathura Vrindavan  and then  Jaipur.  2 nights Mathura Vrindavan  and 2 night Jaipur is good enough. A whole day is need for Taj Mahal visit and an entire day for Vrindavan and Mathura Sightseeing. Hiring a car is a must for sightseeing or you might end up carrying your feet on your head!

Staying at Mathura is a good option .One of  my favorite hotel was Brijwasi .It is close to the Janmabhoomi. From Mathura -Vrindavan is app 12Km.