Haridwar

Haridwar is an ancient city and important Hindu pilgrimage site in North India's Uttarakhand state, where the River Ganges exits the Himalayan foothills. The largest of several sacred ghats (bathing steps), Har Ki Pauri hosts a nightly Ganga Aarti (river-worshipping ceremony) in which tiny flickering lamps are floated off the steps. Worshipers fill the city during major festivals including the annual Kanwar Mela.

Barkot

Barkot - A Safe Haven. In the lap of Uttarakhand lies a sleepy town called Barkot, where even silence is understood. It is located on the banks of the Yamuna river.

Yamunotri Temple

Yamunotri Temple is situated in the western region of Garhwal Himalayas at an altitude of 3,291 metres in Uttarkashi district, Uttarakhand. The temple is dedicated to Goddess Yamuna and has a black marble idol of the goddess. The Yamunotri temple has a shrine dedicated to the goddess. There is also an 18th-century temple at Gangotri, it was built by Amar Singh Thapa, it was damaged and re-innovated in the 19th century. The temple has been destroyed twice by snow and floods before being rebuilt. It is located on the backdrop of Bandarpunch.

Uttarkashi

Kashi Vishwanath Temple is located in the Uttarkashi district of Uttarakhand. The revered temple is located few meters away from the banks of Bhagirathi River. Uttarkashi is situated at a distance of 154 kilometres from Rishikesh, on the Rishikesh- Gangotri route. The Viswanath Temple is the most important and ancient holy shrine in this region. Of the many temples in Uttarkashi, the temple of Lord Vishwanath is unrivalled in importance.

Gangotri Temple

Gangotri, the origin of the River Ganges and seat of the goddess Ganga. The original Gangotri Temple was built by the Nepalese general Amar Singh Thapa. The river is called Bhagirathi at the source and acquires the name Ganga (the Ganges) from Devprayag onwards where it meets the Alaknanda. The origin of the holy river is at Gaumukh, set in the Gangotri Glacier, and is a 19 km trek from Gangotri. The temple is closed from Diwali day every year and is reopened in May. During this time, the idol of the goddess is kept at Mukhba village, near Harsil. Ritual duties of the temple are supervised by the Semwal family of pujaris.

Guptakashi

Guptakashi is located in the Northern Himalayan belt within the Mandakini river valley, which has lush green forests. A number of streams and rivulets drain into the main Mandakini River. It has salubrious climate with its elevation being around 1,319 metres (4,327 ft). The snow sparkling view of the Chaukhamba peak is a lovely sight to behold in the morning hours from here. The valley has large magnolia trees (locally called Champa) that provide a sweet scented atmosphere to the place. The temple of Madhyamaheshwar is 25 kilometres (16 mi) northeast of Guptkashi. The road from Guptkashi to Kalimath and the trek from Kalimath to Madhmaheshwar provide the scenic beauty of Chaukhamba, Kedarnath and Neelkanth peaks.

Kedarnath

Kedarnath has been a pilgrimage centre since the ancient times. A mythological account ascribes the temple's construction to the legendary Pandava brothers mentioned in the Mahabharata. One of the earliest references to Kedarnath occurs in the Skanda Purana (c. 7th-8th century), which names Kedara (Kedarnath) as the place where Shiva released the holy water from his matted hair, resulting in the formation of the Ganges river.  Kedarnath was definitely a prominent pilgrimage centre by the 12th century, when it is mentioned in Kritya-kalpataru written by the Gahadavala minister Bhatta Lakshmidhara.

Kedarnath is located in the Himalayas, about 3,583 m (11,755 ft) above sea level near Chorabari Glacier, the head of river Mandakini, and is flanked by snow-capped peaks, most prominently Kedarnath mountain. The nearest road head is at Gaurikund.

Rudraprayag

Rudraprayag has a religious significance as devotees from distant places come here to witness the phenomenal 'Sangam' or the confluence of the two holy rivers. The cardinal Hindu temples of Rudraprayag are the Jagdamba temple and the Shiva temple.Rudraprayag is one of the Panch Prayag (five confluences) of Alaknanda River, the point of confluence of rivers Alaknanda and Mandakini.

Badrinath

Badrinath or Badrinarayan Temple is a Hindu temple dedicated to Lord Vishnu which is situated in the town of Badrinath in Uttarakhand, India. The temple is also one of the 108 Divya Desams dedicated to Vishnu, who is worshipped as Badrinath—holy shrines for Vaishnavites. It is open for six months every year (between the end of April and the beginning of November), because of extreme weather conditions in the Himalayan region.  It is one of the most visited pilgrimage centers of India, having recorded 1,060,000 visits.

The image of the presiding deity worshipped in the temple is a 1 ft (0.30 m), the black stone statue of Vishnu in the form of Badrinarayan. The statue is considered by many Hindus to be one of eight swayam vyakta kshetras, or self-manifested statues of Vishnu. Although Badrinath is located in North India, the head priest, or Rawal, is traditionally a Nambudiri Brahmin chosen from the South Indian state of Kerala. 

Ganga Aarti, Haridwar

Ganga Aarti (ritual of offering prayer to the Ganges river) is held daily at dusk. Several priests perform this ritual by carrying deepam and moving it up and down in a rhythmic tune of bhajans.

Special aartis are held on Tuesdays and on religious festivals. The Ganga Aarti starts soon after sunset and lasts for about 45 minutes. In summer the Aarti begins at about 7pm due to late sunsets and in winter it starts at around 6pm. Hundreds of people gather at the ghat every evening to watch the event.