Originally there were believed to be 64 jyotirlings while twelve of them are considered to be very auspicious and holy. Each of the twelve jyotirlinga sites take the name of the presiding deity, each considered a different manifestation of Shiva. At all these sites, the primary image is lingam, representing the beginningless and endless stambha pillar, symbolising the infinite nature of Shiva. Bhimashankar is an ancient shrine, one of the 12 Jyotirlingas of Shiva. Far away from the tumult of urban life, peeping through the white clouds, Bhimashankar can be termed a pilgrim's paradise. Apart from this the Bhima river flows adjacent to the temple and there is a bhima kund. It was a divine experience visiting Bhimashankar Jyotirlinga. Beautiful rock cut carving and idols of God on the wall of the temple describing various mythological stories. One needs to climb down almost 200 stairs to reach the temple but the stairs are very comfortable and easy. There are shops for Prasad, restaurants, flowers, ayurvedic medicine and other shops. One can also take Doli to temple with paying some charges to skip the steps. There is a big parking lot at the beginning of the stairs. There is a toilet and food stalls and other shops around the parking lot. It's paid parking (Rs. 50). Nandi ji is located outside the temple and also just outside the grabhghra where the main jyotirlinga is located. There is an idol of Lord Ganesha and Lord Kalbharav (shetrapal) on the entrance gate. A turtle as a symbol of Lord kuber is located in the main hall and there is a lord Shani temple just outside the main hall. You can do jal abhishek in the temple during the day at the specified time slots. You can sit in the main hall to do pooja and meditation. You should also visit the Bhima river origination place just 100m from the place where stairs start. The river originates from a small kund. There is a temple dedicated to lord bhrama, Vishnu, Shiva, chandrma, Surya adjacent to the origination pond. Apart from this there is an Anjani mata temple dedicated to lord Hanuman ji and few view points you can visit. This place is very sacred and divine. Just one request if you visit please maintain cleanliness, do not litter around and maintain peace.

Bhimashankar visit I went from Mumbai early morning, started at 5.30. Try to take talegaon, chakan, manchar road, it's good road without much problem. We stayed at Blue Mormon. It's good resort with good food. 1. Try to visit Bhimashankar in early morning at 5 am or late evening say at 7 pm. 2. If you want to visit in afternoon, try for VIP passes. 3. Try to park near start of parking n walk to mandir. While coming back, take a short ride at 20 bucks back to ur car. You might get stuck if ur far too inside. 4. Mumbaikar, best to stay for a day as it's worth it

1 of the 12 Jyotirlingas. 100 plus or minus kms from Pune ( depends on the area ).Takes 3 - 4 hours one way. Buses are available from Shivaji nagar bus stand.but last bus while coming back is around 5pm ...lot of ghat section ,so one with road journey sickness be prepared. Free parking is also available..once in temple one have to use many stairs ( some work was going on ). Please check ARTI timings as darshan line comes to halt.

One of the 12 jyotirlinga, not much crowded except for the auspicious occasion. The best time to visit is the monsoon where nature is in its best shape and colour. You can enjoy the wild life century and nature around also

We visited this temple in March 2023. There were lot of Road Construction going on and we need to park Cab KM before. Govt buses were not enough to cater the capacity. Hence Ppl were walking. People and Sr. Citizen needs to take a note of this. Queue were long as this was a Saturday. Queue were taking longer than expected and were moving very slowly. Palkis were available for the Sr. Citizen. and approx Time on the weekend will be around 3-4 Hours so plan accordingly. Night stay is recommended for the People Coming from far.

We have visited Bhimashankar on 20th January 2024. We reached at around 8 PM in the evening. We seek the blessings of Bhagwan Bholenath, Offer Prayer and left around 9.30 Pm in the night. Our destination was Bhiwandi via Bike. It was chilled in the night and we have to take multiple stops for tea brakes. We also had a face to face encounter with a wild cat in the night.

We left from Lonavala at 2:30 pm by car. Reached there around 5:30 pm. Had to park our car around 3 kms away from the temple as cops were not allowing us to go ahead due to the crowd. Then we hired bike to take us down to the temple. The line was very big. There were touts ready to take you for direct darshan by paying 300 Rs per person. If they are able to give you direct darshan that means there is a loophole somewhere. I did a survey and found the loophole and took direct darshan. Took a bike back to parking lot and left back for Lonavla by 6:30 PM

1. One of the twelve jyotirlingas shrine situated in Sahyadri Hills. 2. Road is good till temple and is part of ‘Wild Life Sanctuary’. 3. It is a place to trek also. 4. On any day it won’t take more than 30minutes. On religious days it can take a bit more.

Three hrs. from Pune, there are breathtaking scenic views on the way. One of the 12 jyotirlings, Bhimashankar has around 350 broad steps to climb down to the temple. All along the stairs you'll find lots of eatables and places to rest. People having knee problem can also climb up and down slowly but steadily, taking breaks. Avoid weekends and Mondays and also the month of Shravan, as there shall be a long queue on these occasions. Also it should be visited in the morning hours to avoid rush.