Traditionally, Indians are not seaside vacationers. Come summer and the scorching heat drives them to the highlands, and when the weather is clement there are pilgrimages to be taken to improve one's karma. Besides, as the cheeky one-liner goes, chasing the sun has traditionally been the preoccupation of “mad dogs and Englishmen” ! And so, those who have cultivated a taste for toasting the body, will find that they have Gopalpur pretty much to themselves.

Not a hotspot like Goa, Gopalpur has an old-fashioned colonial ambience to it and has inherited the very English appellation to its name. The beach is long, clean and uncrowded, overlooking the blue brilliance of the Bay of Bengal.

Behind the beach is the small town of Gopalpur, once an ancient seaport from where merchant ships set sail on business exchanges. The beach borders a lush green network of backwater creeks and limpid lagoons. Just the ticket for a lazy day of angling, or picnicking in a quiet grove of casuarina and coconut palms.
 

History of Gopalpur

This otherwise non-descript town was once a part of the ancient and wealthy kingdom of Kalinga. It was called Paloura then. During its prosperous days, the city traded with Sumatra, Java and Bali in silk and pearls. The East India Company would transport cheap labor from here to the Company-owned tea estates in Assam.

Orientation of Gopalpur

Gopalpur enamours the visitor with its pristine beauty and solitude. This picturesque place offers a relaxed vacation amidst casuarina groves on the Bay of Bengal. Desolate beaches, vacant resorts is what the place sees during most seasons. Gopalpur falls within the Berhampur district, famous for its trade in silk fabric. Silk-weavers line the street beside the Jagannath and Nilkantheswar temple at Berhampur, 17 kms from here.

Quick Gateways near Gopalpur

Taptapani - It literally means 'boiling water'. A short drive west of Gopalpur, hot sulphur springs well up in low forested hills here. The water, believed to have curative powers, is channeled into a pool where tribal women bathe to cure infertility.

Chandragiri - This lies about 32 kilometers south of Taptapani. The place is famous for the Tibetan carpet weavers who have settled in a refugee colony here. The temple and the Buddhist prayer flags here make up for a distinctive atmosphere. There are enough handicrafts shops to step around (quite reasonably priced) or you may just watch the weavers and craftsmen at work.

Getting There & Away to Gopalpur

The nearest airport to Gopalpur is Bhubaneshwar, 170 kms away. There are daily, direct flights from Calcutta to Bhubaneshwar. However, the closest railhead is at Behrampur on the Howrah-Madras line. The town is a short 16 kms drive away. And you can always get taxis from Behrampur.