Keonjhar was once a princely state that came under a number of rulers before it joined the state of Orissa as we known today. A quiet hillside town, Keonjhar district is the playground of nature, away from the hoards of tourists that throng the popular hill stations.

Keonjhar enjoys a hospitable climate, cool almost through the year round. Surrounded by hills and forests that are home to bears and other wild animals, Keonjhar is well known for its mineral resources. However, tours to Keonjhar would reveal a whole new world of breathtaking beauty and scenic locals that you may have never associated with the coal mining town of Keonjhar without Tourism of Orissa packages.

Keonjhar is a great place to visit on an eco or tribal tour of Orissa. The prominent tribal communities that reside in the Keonjhar district include Santhal, Oraon and Munda. The Jagannath Temple and its temple terrace, the Vishnu Temple, the Ghaghra Falls and the shrines on the outskirts of Keonjhar such as Siddha Jagannath, Siddha Kali, Tarini Shrine at Ghatagaon and Panchabati are the popular tourist attractions in Keonjhar.

Keonjhar can also be used as a base camp to tour the nearby attractions of Orissa. Sitabinji is a must visit on your tour to Keonjhar for its fresco of a royal procession painted on the walls of Ravan Chhaya, a rock shelter that resembles a semi drawn umbrella.

There are many waterfalls around Keonjhar that are popular picnic spots for tourists on exploration of areas around Keonjhar. The 500 ft waterfall amidst dense forest at Khandadhar, a modest Sanghagara Waterfall, and the most popular Badghagara Waterfall are the prominent tourist attractions when the topic is waterfalls in Keonjhar.

The Brahmeswar Mahadev Temple on the banks of river Vaitarani in Gonasika is a popular pilgrimage site near Keonjhar. Gonasika is also frequented for its scenic beauty as it is a densely forested river valley.

The Vaitarani River goes underground for a while and comes to be known as the Guptganga just before it springs to the surface again. The emergence point of the Guptganga resembles the flared nostrils of a cow, thereby enhancing the religious significance of the river and the town.

You can also visit Murga Mahadeva Temple and the perennial spring at Thakurani Hills in Champua near Keonjhar. Other tourist attractions are the Kushaleswar Temple in Deogaon and the Baladevjeu Temple in Keonjhargarh that you can visit on your tour to Keonjhar with Tourism of Orissa packages.

Access:

Keonjhar : Keonjhar is 112 km away from Jajpur-Keonjhar Road rly stn. Buses are available. Buses connect not only from 225 km distant Bhubaneswar, but also from other parts of the state. Even ORT's bus for Barbil come from Babughat, Calcutta at 5-30 in 9 hr via 62 km distant Joshipur, it returns at 17-00; fare Rs 58. Bus is convenient for a through journey from Calcutta. To Simlipal tourists it would be wiser to see Khiching first and then take a bus to Keonjhar.