Gujarat, the 'Jewel of the West,' is a tourist destination that offers something for every visitor. A journey through Gujarat unfolds a religious, cultural and historical panorama. With unstinted support from faith, mythology and history, the temple town in Gujarat Somnath proudly stands with the towering shikharas of grand old ancient Somnath temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. The state with the longest coast line (1290km) in the country is renowned for its beaches, holy temples, historic capitals replete with immense architectural assets, wildlife sanctuaries and hill resorts. Somnath temple, dedicated to one of the 12 revered Jyothirlingas, directs all the movements in city. It enlivens the life of the locals and visitors. Somnath at Somnath Patan, near Veraval in Gujarat is a pilgrimage center held in great reverence throughout India. Somnath, literally means Lord of Moon, derived its name from the temple Somnath temple. This religious destination was earlier known as ‘Prabhas Patan’. This town, unaffected by the modern luxuries and concrete jungles, still holds its historical, mythological and religious appeal to masses of Hindu devotees. Somnath is considered to be the first of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Shiva. Somnath Gujarat is situated on the south coast of Saurashtra. Most recently it was rebuilt in November 1947, when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel visited the area for the integration of Junagadh and mooted a plan for restoration. After Patel's death, the rebuilding continued under K. M. Munshi, another minister of the Government of India.
Somnath has got its mention in Puranas and Hindu Epics including Mahabharata. This place is considered as a place where Moon (Soma) worshipping the Lord Shiva and hence Shiva is called as Somnath here. Soma was cursed by his father-in-law Daksha to wane because Soma loved only one of his wives, all of whom happened to be Daksha's daughters. Another Hindu mythological story mentions Somnath as the place where Lord Krishna was shot by an arrow in his foot. According to the legend, Soma or the Moon God built the temple in gold, Ravana in silver, and Shri Krishna in wood. The temple is situated at such a place that there is no land in straight-line between Somnath seashore till Antarctica, such an inscription in Sanskrit is found on the Arrow-Pillar called Baan-Stambh erected on the sea-protection wall at the Somnath Temple. This sacred temple town vibrant with ‘Shiv Bhajan’ is visited by millions of tourists every year. Several nearby attractions, including Somnath Museum, Somnath Beach, Junagadh gate, Bhakta Teertha, Akhilabai temple and Mai Puri, makes this town as a perfect tourist destination for the pilgrims to India.
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By Air : Gujarat has 10 domestic airports apart from an international airport at Ahmedabad. There are daily flights to Mumbai, Delhi and other cities from Ahemedabad. Other airports are at Vadodara, Bhavnagar, Bhuj, Surat, Jamnagar, Kandla, Keshod, Porbandar and Rajkot.
By Rail : Gujarat has a good railway network that not only connects the state internally but connects the state to other places in India also.
By Road : Gujarat has a better road network than most of the other Indian states and they are in a fairly good condition. The total road length in the state is 73,397 km by the end of 1999-2000, out of which 1,572 km is the share of National Highway, making the state easily accessible.
