Places to Visit in Anna Salai

Originally the Banqueting Hall, it was built in 1802 within the Government Estate to commemorate the British victory over Tipu Sultan at Seringapatam. Designed in imposing Neoclassical style with towering Ionic columns, it later hosted state functions and lyings-in-state of Tamil Nadu leaders. It is named after C. Rajagopalachari, independent India's last Governor-General.

The site of Spencer & Co., established in the 1860s, whose grand department store was among the earliest and largest shopping arcades in India before a 1983 fire destroyed the original Indo-Saracenic building. The present mall retains the historic Spencer's name and remains a Mount Road landmark. It is often cited as the first shopping mall in the country.

This Vishnu temple honours Chenna Kesava Perumal, regarded as the patron deity of Chennai, and the city's name 'Chennapattanam' is widely believed to derive from it. The original was built by Beri Thimappa, the dubash who brokered the 1639 land deal that created Madras. After the East India Company demolished the first structure in 1757, the present temple was rebuilt in 1762 by Manali Muthukrishna Mudaliar.

A Shiva temple built alongside the Chennakesava Perumal Temple by Manali Muthukrishna Mudaliar in 1762, the two are known together as the 'Twin Temples' or Pattinam Temples of Chennai and share an interlinking passage. It replaced an earlier shrine razed by the East India Company. The paired Vishnu-Shiva complex is one of the oldest surviving temple foundations of colonial Madras.

A Shakti temple on Thambu Chetty Street where the presiding deity is the goddess Kalikambal (Kamakshi) with her consort Kamateswarar. Tradition holds that the Maratha emperor Shivaji worshipped here in 1677, and it is famously the temple where actor Rajinikanth prays. Originally sited near the seashore, it was relocated inland by the British in 1670.

Two full days, planned around the traffic, cover the colonial core, the coast, the temples and the culture belt. This is the route, in order, with how to get between stops.

Eight places within about two hours of the city, sorted by what each one is for, with approximate road distances and a sensible way to fit one into a single day.

Three well-paced days in the Tamil Nadu capital: British-era Fort St George and the Government Museum, Mylapore’s temple quarter and the beaches, then a drive down the ECR to the Pallava stone temples of Mahabalipuram.