Velankanni Attractions
Main Church The main attraction of the town is the Church of Our Lady of Health which was gradually built over two centuries. It is a vast building containing multiple halls and adorned with beautiful murals and frescos that highlight the building's Gothic heritage with white washed walls and striking red colored roof. The entire complex is scattered over a large area containing many religious sites and stations, where the three miracles of Mary were sighted.
Museum of Offerings
Touring Velankanni without educating yourself is a great mistake. Visit the museum which highlights the history of the region and the legends associated with this town. The displays of the many valuable offerings by devotees are not to be missed. Visitors can write about their experiences or buy a detailed guide to the Velankanni area and surroundings.
Velankanni Beach
The beach and the sea side shops are worth visiting during the day. The sea is not very safe for swimming but visitors can splash around in the shallower areas. After a bath, take a trip to the stalls set along the river tributary where you can buy the local sea catch, souvenirs and other not so interesting objects like pirated low quality CD's. Instead, spend your cash on the CD's depicting live Tsunami disasters of the dreadful event.
The Sand Path
One of the most interesting is definitely the sandy 500 meters path leading from the Basilica Church to the Lady's Tank Church where you can see people crawling on their knees to cover the entire path. You may try it but remember the sand is hot and there might not be much left of your knee. This is not the only way to reach the end of the route at Lady's Tank Church where many childless couples congregate to tie cloth cradles on a tree for asking a child in return.
For more information on Velankanni, please click here.
