Mayapur Cruise Port

Mayapur sits on the Ganges River at its confluence with the Jalangi River in West Bengal, roughly 130 kilometres north of Kolkata. River cruises call here as a port of call on longer Ganges itineraries, with cruises usually embarking from or returning to Kolkata.

The town is home to the headquarters of ISKCON, the Hare Krishna movement, while Gaudiya Math, a monastic organisation established in 1920, is also based here. Mayapur has particular significance in Gaudiya Vaishnavism, the religious movement that regards the town as the birthplace of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, who lived from 1486 to 1534 and is believed to have been an incarnation of the god Krishna.

Mayapur attracts more than one million tourists and pilgrims each year. The Mayapur Chandrodaya Mandir temple has three main altars dedicated to Narasimha Deva, Sri Sri Radha Madhava and Pancha Tattva. Together with its gardens, the temple complex forms the spiritual heart of the town and is one of the main places for visitors to explore.

For cruise passengers, organised shore excursions and walks around the town provide opportunities to visit its religious sites and spend time beside the river. The slower pace of a river cruise also gives visitors time to take in the atmosphere of Mayapur, an important pilgrimage destination with deep connections to the Gaudiya Vaishnavism tradition.