Panchalingeshwara Temple

Panchalingeshwara Temple is a beautifully preserved 12th-century monument located in Hooli village, near Saundatti, in the Belagavi district of Karnataka. Maintained as a protected monument , it stands out as the only fully intact ancient shrine in a village once filled with architectural wonders that now mostly lie in ruins. Built out of local red sandstone during the Kalyani Chalukya rule, the temple is celebrated for its unique structural plan and religious synthesis.

RR: 10 Countries RR (20)
Date: May 18

Rokuon-ji

Kinkaku-ji, officially named Rokuon-ji, is one of Kyoto's most iconic Zen Buddhist temples and a UNESCO World Heritage site. It is famous for its stunning main hall, which has its top two floors entirely covered in gold leaf, reflecting beautifully in the Mirror Pond. The temple's centerpiece is a three-story reliquary hall containing Buddha's ashes. Each of the three floors represents a different architectural style: Shinden, Bukke, and Zen.It is one of the most visited Buddhist temples in Kyoto and the most iconic in Japan.

Unesco: Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities)
Tag: Favourites tag
Date: March 26

Ġgantija

Ġgantija is a megalithic temple complex from the Neolithic era, on the Mediterranean island of Gozo in Malta. The Ġgantija temples are the earliest of the Megalithic Temples of Malta and are older than the pyramids of Egypt. Their makers erected the two Ġgantija temples during the Neolithic, which makes these temples more than 5,500 years old and the world's second-oldest existing manmade religious structures after Göbekli Tepe in present-day Turkey. Together with other similar structures, these have been designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Megalithic Temples of Malta. The Ġgantija temples stand at the edge of the Xagħra plateau, facing toward the south-east. The temples are built in the typical clover-leaf shape, with inner-facing blocks marking the shape.

Unesco: Megalithic Temples of Malta
RR: Unesco RR
Date: March 3

Amritsar

Amritsar, a major cultural and economic centre located in the Majha region of Punjab is well known for the Golden gurdwara, spirtial site of Sikhism. In India, the colour gold is associated with divine, holy and royal.

Founded in 1577 by the fourth Sikh guru, Guru Ram Das, Amritsar is home to the spectacular Golden Temple, Sikhism's holiest shrine and one of India’s most serene and humbling sights. The hyperactive streets surrounding the temple have been calmed to some extent by recent urban landscaping, including graceful pedestrianised walkways, but duck into any side alley and you’ll soon discover Amritsar’s fantastically frenetic old-city bazaars, sheltering a sensory overload of sights, sounds and smells.

RR: November alternative RR
Date: Nov 8

Chennakesava Temple

The Chennakesava Temple or Keshava Temple, a UNESCO Heritage site located in Somanathapura, Karnataka, is a masterpiece of Hoysala architecture. Built in the 12th century, the temple is dedicated to Lord Vishnu and showcases elaborate carvings, detailed sculptures, and intricate relief work on its walls. Visitors can explore the beautifully designed open courtyard and the sanctum housing the deity, reflecting the artistic brilliance of the Hoysala era. Its unique star-shaped structure and its detailed craftsmanship make it a significant cultural and historical destination. In 2023, the Somanathapura temple, along with the Hoysaleswara Temple at Halebidu and the Chennakeshava Temple at Belur, was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO as part of the Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas.

Unesco: Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas
RR: Unesco RR
Date: Nov 18

Sri Mariamman Temple

Sri Mariamman Temple located at South Bridge Road is a popular tourist attraction. It is the oldest and most important Hindu temple in Singapore.

It is an agamic temple, built in the Dravidian style. Located in the downtown Chinatown district, the temple serves the majority Hindu Singaporeans, Tamilians, in the city-state. Due to its architectural and historical significance, the temple has been gazetted a National Monument. Built in the South Indian architecture| style, this temple features a gopuram that rises above the main entrance along South Bridge Road. It is richly embellished with six tiers of sculptures of Hindu deities, other figures and ornamental decorations. Within the walled compound, the temple comprises a combination of covered halls, shrines and service areas, as well as courtyards open to the sky. Leading directly from the gopuram entrance through a covered hall is the main prayer area, with richly ornamented columns and ceilings with frescoes.

RR: 10 countries RR (20)
Date: Nov 2

Byodo-in

Byodo-in is a Buddhist temple in the city of Uji in Kyoto Prefecture. It is often labeled as one of the most beautiful buildings in Japan and is categorized as a Japanese National Treasure and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Byodo-in Temple is a striking representation of Buddhist Pure Land or Jodo architecture. The large, beautiful, and outstanding Phoenix Hall is one of the only remnants of architecture from the Heian Period, which lasted from 794 to 1185. Inside the hall is the famous statue of Amida Buddha and 52 bosatsu attributed to the priest-sculptor Jōchō.

Unesco: Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (Kyoto, Uji and Otsu Cities)
Tag: Favourites tag
Date: Oct 22

Shaolin Temple

Shaolin Temple is a monastic institution recognized as the birthplace of Chan Buddhism and the cradle of Shaolin kung fu. It is located at the foot of Wuru Peak of the Songshan mountain range in Dengfeng county. The Temple's historical architectural complex, standing out for its great aesthetic value and its profound cultural connotations, has been inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage List as one of the historic monuments of Dengfeng in "The Centre of Heaven and Earth". Apart from its contribution to the development of Chinese Buddhism, as well as for its historical, cultural, and artistic heritage, the temple is famous for its martial arts tradition.

Unesco: Historic Monuments of Dengfeng in "The Centre of Heaven and Earth"
Tag: Offer tag
Date: June 1

Gamzigrad

Gamzigrad is an archaeological site, spa resort, and UNESCO World Heritage Site of Serbia, located south of the Danube river, in the city of Zaječar. It is the location of the ancient Roman complex of palaces and temples Felix Romuliana, built by Emperor Galerius in Dacia Ripensis. The main area covers 10 acres. The site consists of fortifications, the palace in the north-western part of the complex, basilicas, temples, hot baths, memorial complex, and a tetrapylon. The group of buildings is also unique in its intertwining of ceremonial and memorial functions.

Unesco: Gamzigrad-Romuliana, Palace of Galerius
Tag: Unesco offer tag
Date: May 20

Wat Phra That Doi Suthep

Wat Phra That Doi Suthep is a Theravada Buddhist temple in Chiang Mai Province. Built in the early 19th Buddhist century, the beauty of Wat Phra That Doi Suthep is marked by seven-headed serpent statues that line the stairs to the temple where a Chiang Saen style golden pagoda and all its exquisite Lanna architecture is situated. The view of Chiang Mai from here is just phenomenal as well. It is the most important temple in Chiang Mai.

Tag: Favourites tag
Date: April  1

Altun Ha

Altun Ha, the archaeological site closest to Belize City, was a major Mayan culture ceremonial center and the discovery site of Belize’s famous Jade Head. Altun Ha functioned as a central trading link between the Caribbean coast and Maya centers in the interior during the Maya Classic Period. Two ain plazas with roughly 13 Maya temples and residential structures have been excavated here. A unique feature of this site is the absence of carved stelae, while its most notable artifact is a large jade carving of the Maya sun god Kinich Ahau. Weighing almost 10 pounds, this 6-inch carving is the largest carved jade object to be found in any Mayan community in the region.

Many thanks Victor!
Date: April 7

Temple of Segesta

At the top of a hill overlooking the Gulf of Castellammare, just outside the ruins of the ancient city of Segesta, is a wonderfully well preserved Doric temple. The old structure is thought to have been built around 420 BC by an architect from Athens and is regularly deemed the best surviving example of Doric architecture in Europe. But strangely, as fine as the structure is, it has several components that suggest that the temple was never actually finished. The columns have not been fluted like they typically would would have been in a finished Doric temple. Also, the tabs that were used to lift the blocks of the base into place were never removed.

Lottery: Just viewcards 
Date: March 27