Rameshwaram is one of the four sacred Char Dham pilgrimage sites for Hindus, drawing millions of pilgrims each year. It sits on Pamban Island, connected to the mainland by the striking Pamban Bridge, at the very tip of the Indian peninsula across a narrow strait from Sri Lanka. The mythology runs deep here: according to the Ramayana, this is where Lord Rama built his bridge to Lanka and later prayed to Lord Shiva to absolve himself after defeating Ravana.
The island is small — roughly 10 km by 4 km — and the atmosphere is almost entirely shaped by pilgrimage. The Ramanathaswamy Temple dominates the town both physically and spiritually, with its 1,220-metre corridors of carved granite columns said to be the longest temple corridors in India. Pilgrims follow a circuit of ritual bathing at the 22 temple wells and in the sea at Agnitheertham before dawn.
For travellers who aren't pilgrims, Rameshwaram still rewards a visit. The ghost town of Dhanushkodi at the island's eastern tip — destroyed by a 1964 cyclone and never rebuilt — is one of the more haunting places in south India. The Gulf of Mannar marine park surrounding the island has some of the best-preserved coral reefs on India's east coast. And the train ride across the Pamban Bridge, low over the open sea, is memorable.
The town gets crowded on festival days and during school holidays. The nearest airport is at Madurai, 173 km away.