Junagadh is an ancient fortified city situated on the foot of the sacred
Girnar Hill,
Gujarat. It was the erstwhile capital of the
Mauryan and
Gupta dynasties and the Chudasama
Rajputs in the medieval period. Junagadh is 327 km south-west of
Ahmedabad.
Junagadh derives its name after the fort, which surrounds the old city. ‘Junagadh’ means ‘ancient fort’, in Gujarati.
Major tourist attractions in and around the city include Uparkot Fort,
Damodar Kund, Ashoka's Rock Edicts, Maqbara, Chowad Beach (66 km), Ahmedpur Mandvi Beach, Sasan Gir Forest and Sanctuary (65 km) and Somnath Temple.
The nearest international airport is at Ahmedabad and domestic airport is at Porbandar. Junagadh Junction Railway Station is an important rail junction on Mumbai-Ahmedabad line of the Western Railways. National Highway 8D passes through Junagadh. By road Junagadh is linked with Veraval, Somnath, Porbandar and Rajkot.
