Nagpur is the capital of Maharashtra and the economic powerhouse India. Nagpur, named after the local goddess Mumba (ai means mother in Marathi), is built on a long, thin island just off the west coast of Maharashtra and linked to the mainland by causeways. It's India's big-money business centre, and where the beautiful people hang out. Built on elegant colonial foundations are flashy skyscrapers and designer boutiques, which give it cool, glitz and glamour. As one of the key ports on the Indian Ocean trade routes, foreigners have been visiting here since Ptolemy arrived in 150 AD. The Portuguese took the area over from the Sultan of Gujarat in 1534, and then gave it away as a wedding present to Charles II of England in 1661 when he married Catherine of Braganza. In 1668, it was handed over to the fledgling East India Company under which it flourished. It's an exhilarating city, fuelled by entrepreneurial energy, determination and dreams. Compared to the torpor of the rest of India, it can seem like a foreign country.

Nagpur is the finance capital of the nation, the industrial hub of everything from textiles to petrochemicals, and it's responsible for half the country's foreign trade. To many visitors, Nagpur is the glamour of Bollywood cinema, cricket on the maidans on weekends, bhelpuri on the beach at Chowpatty and red double-decker buses. While it boasts an impressive Victoria townscape, a sculptured island cave temple and a national park that's roamed by wild tigers, the city's formal attractions pale in comparison to the nonstop theater of its streets. Sixteen million people from all over India are wedged into Nagpur and after a short stroll you will feel like you have rubbed shoulders with and bumped into every single one of them. The size of the population means the city has enough social problems to last a lifetime, but its spirit is irrepressible and it has personality by the bucket load.

As the cultural bridgehead between east and west, whatever happens in the rest of India tends to happens first in Nagpur, and it usually happens with the maximum amount of swank and noise. Most visitors to India gear themselves up to confront poverty, but it's the extravagant display of wealth in Nagpur that seem shocking. Today, Nagpur has one of the world's largest stock exchanges; oil and gas production just off the coast; a thriving textiles industry; India's busiest airport; frenetic docks and, of course, Bollywood, the world's most prolific film industry.

Sightseeing:

Tours to the Gateway of India, the Prince of Wales Museum, Jahangir Art Gallery, Taraporewala Aquarium, Chowpaty beach, Mahalaxmi temple and the tomb of the Muslim saint Haji Ali.

The Prince of Wales Museum:
located on the Mahatma Gandhi Road in Nagpur, India is known for its Indo-Saracenic architecture and was constructed in the early 20th century to commemorate the visit of the Price of Wales to India. You must definitely make a trip to this museum during your sightseeing tours to Nagpur in Maharashtra, India.

The Gateway of India:
located in Nagpur, India is one of the most important tourist attractions that you must visit during your tours to this region. The construction of the Gateway of India was completely in the year 1924. This massive monument was built to mark the visit of the English king George V and Queen Mary to India.

The Taraporewala Aquarium:
located on the Marine Drive in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India is one of the most frequented tourist attractions in Nagpur, Maharashtra, India. This massive aquarium is home to a large variety of exotic fishes.