Tirupati, AP

Tirupati is in Chittoor district of Andhra Pradesh, India. It is most famous for its Sri Venkateswara Temple dedicated to Vishnu, also known as Balaji in North India and Govinda in South India.
The temple is on top of Tirumala hills, while the town is in the foothills. The Tirumala hill has seven peaks ("Sapthagiri"), said to represent the seven hoods of Adisesha, the serpent under whose hoods Vishnu resides in Vaikuntha.

Lord Venkateswara is also called the Lord of the Seven Hills. This temple has acquired a special sanctity in the Hindu religion. The benefits that accrue by a pilgrimage to this holy town is mentioned in the Vedas and Puranas. Hindus all over the world believe that in Kali Yuga it's possible to attain mukti by worshiping Lord Venkateswara. Around 50,000 pilgrims visit the temple every day.

To climb Tirumala, we've 3 option's. 

1. By Road, which takes nearly an hour to climb the hill. 

2. By Walk via Alipari Mett.

3. By Walk via Srivari Mettu.

By Road, one can opt APSRTC Govt Buses or can take their own vehicle. Every vehicle must complete a thorough checking @  the checkpost near the foot-hills, beform climbing by road. The checking takes nearly 15 minutes.

via Srivari Mettu :

Tirumala, the abode of Lord Venkateswara also called as Lord Balaji, can be trekked from two paths. One is the long route from Alipiri, where there are more than 3400 steps and about 2 kms of walking. The second and the short route is "Srivari Mettu", 

Srivari Mettu, literally meaning Lord's step, is situated at a distance of about 19 Kms from Tirupathi Railway station and about 5 Kms from Srinivasa Mangapuram.

Though this route is considered to be oldest, this was defunct and not used by devotees due to the fear of wild animals and robbery. Now that TTD has renovated and provided full security, many devotees are using this path to reach Tirumala.

There are 2388 steps from Srivari Mettu and distance wise, it is about 2.1 Kms. to reach tirumala. Its a much faster route to reach Tirumala than from Alipiri. This route is well maintained throughout with sheds to avoid heat and rain.

Srivari Mettu is at a distance of about 19 Kms from Tirupathi Railway Station/ RTC Bus stand. TTD has arranged free buses from station to reach Srivari Mettu and it runs at a frequency of every 30 minutes. I've climbed Tirumala Hills from Srivari Mettu thrice. It takes around 1 hour 15 mins to climb (without halting in the middle).

via Alipari Mettu :

This is the long-route, where we;ve to cross roads, forest, deer park, 2-3 tmples in the mid.etc.

Divya Darshana ticket and laddus are provided for pilgrims who come by walking. Tickets are issued at step 1200 and they need to be stamped around 2000 step. This process takes some time. If you don’t need these coupons, you can inform guard there and skip that queue.

Drink lots of water while walking up as precipitation causes severe dehydration and may result in cramps. If it helps, drink small quantity of water frequently so that one doesnot feel heavy due to water intake.

Pro Tips :

Don't rest at the start itself. Try to climb the first 1,200 stepsquickly, get the Divya Dhatshan tickets along with the dharshan time stamp and after that, you will be having adquate amount of time for rest. I've climbed Tirumala Hills from Alipari Mettu thrice. 

For a good fit person, it takes around 75-90 minutes without or with 1 break, to reach the Gali gopuram, where the Divya Dharshan tickets wil be distributed. Overall it is a very divine experience and felt very good after reaching top.

Pilgrims can opt Srinivasa Complex for stay and getting refreshed. Thousands of people can stay here with free of cost/very minimal cost if you avail rocker facility and rooms as well. Everybody will appreciate the facilities and maintenance if once visted. Restrooms are available and we'll maintained. Every APSRTC buses will come inside the complex and go out, inorder to make smooth and hazzlefree travel for pilgrims.

Krishna transformation to Lord Krishna :

Rest @ a Tea Shop post Gali Gopuram :

Panaromic View Of Deer Park :

From Watch Tower :

Rest while waiting for our dharshan slot time :

At last, Nambi's dream of visiting Tirupati succeed with Laddu :