Velas Turtle Festival

Overview

Velas Turtle Festival, is held in a coastal village, Velas which is situated in Maharashtra’s Ratnagiri district. Velas turtle festival is a popular annual festival where new born baby turtles and released back to sea. Tourists and photographers enjoy the time watching baby turtles take first steps of their life towards sea and then start their long journey of life which is full of challenges.

During this time, the Olive Ridley Turtles, which are known as marine turtles’ most treasured species, come ashore in hundreds in number to breed and lay eggs.

More than a festival it, in fact, is an experience wherein you get to see the baby Ridley Turtles come out of the egg and then crawl towards the sea. It is especially more important for the female baby turtles as, after a few years, they have to return to the same beach to lay eggs of their own. This is the time for them to get acquainted with the beach

The Velas Turtle Festival is simply a treat for photographers as well as nature lovers and that is the reason why it is super popular in the whole of Maharashtra.

An experience of the turtle festival is also ideal for children. For the young ones, otherwise buried in the digital universe of tablets and cell-phones, this festival is a welcome episode amid nature.

• Harihareshwar Beach. Known as the best and the most naturally-preserved beach of the area, it is here that most of the turtles arrive to lay their eggs.
• Harihareshwar Temple. Not just the beach, but this temple is also equally popular among the tourists. This place is of high significance for the Lord Shiva Bhakts.
• Bankot Fort. During your stay in this region, you can also visit this fort which was Southern Konkan’s foothold of the British Raj. For the unversed, it was in 1756 that Bankot Fort became part of the Bombay Presidency.

Itinerary