Kedarnath Temple Darshan Timings 2022 (Updated)

Kedarnath Temple is among the popular and sacred Hindu Temples located in the Rudraprayag, Uttarakhand. Apart from this, it is one of the “Four Dhams”. Kedarnath’s height is around 3553 meters above sea level, which is why Kedarnath Temple is the highest among the 12 Jyotirlinga.

The Mandakini river flowing in front of the temple and the mountains of snow on all sides enhance the beauty of this temple to manifolds and make this place one of the most popular and sacred places to visit in India. Every year lakhs of tourists and devotees come here to see this beauty. Let us tell you one more thing, the present Kedarnath Temple has been built by Adi Shankaracharya, but originally it was built by Pandavas, around a thousand years back from huge stone slabs.

‘Kedar’ is also a name out of many names of Lord Shiva, which means protector. Kedarnath is the sacred temple of Hindus dedicated to Lord Shiva, about which it is said that visiting this temple once gets salvation. If you are also planning to visit for Kedarnath Trip, then must read our blog to get the full information about Kedarnath Mandir History, Temple Opening and Closing time, Aarti Timings, and how to reach Kedarnath Temple, and the best time to visit Kedarnath. No doubt Kedarnath is among the top places to visit in Uttarakhand. Must visit this place once in your life.

You can also check “Bhimashankar Temple“

Table of Contents

Kedarnath Temple History and Story

The Kedarnath Story is associated with the mythology of Mahabharata. After the Mahabharata ended, Pandavas were feeling guilty after killing their cousins and other relatives. So, they decided to go to Lord Shiva, to get rid of their sins, but Shiva was angry with them and did not want to free them from their sins so soon. To please Lord Shiva, the Pandavas first went to Kashi, but shiv was not there. Here they came to know that Shiva was in the Himalayas, so they went to the Himalayas but Shiva didn’t want to meet them.

That’s why Lord Shiva disguised himself as a bull and went to Guptkashi. When the Pandavas came to know that Shiva went to Guptkashi, the Pandavas also reached there, where they saw a unique-looking bull. Bhima grabbed the tail of the bull and start pulling, due to which the bull got scattered in different directions. The hump of the bull fell in Kedarnath and this hump shape Shivling of Kedarnath Mandir is today called “Kedarnath Jyotirling”.

The places where other parts of the bull had fallen are Tungnath, Rudranath, Madhyamaheshwar, and Kalpeshwar. Kedarnath and these four places are known as ‘Panch Kedar’. After that Lord Shiva forgave the sins of the Pandavas and decided to reside in Kedarnath in the form of Jyotirlinga. At Kedarnath, after getting rid of his sins and taking Lord Shiva’s blessings, the mountain from which the Pandavas went to heaven is called “Swargarohini”.

The Architecture of Kedarnath Temple

As grand and beautiful as the Kedarnath Mandir is, its architecture is equally beautiful. Standing on a 6 feet high platform, this beautiful temple has been built in ‘Ashlar style’. In this style, cement is not required to join the stones together, instead, they are placed in such a way that they are interlocked with each other. In the sanctum of this temple, a sharp rock is worshiped in the form of Lord Shiva and outside in the courtyard, Nandi Ji is seated, who is also the vehicle of Lord Shiva.

Kedarnath Temple Darshan Timings 2022 (Updated)

In view of the decreasing number of pilgrims due to heavy monsoon rains in Uttarakhand, Shri Kedarnath Temple Committee has changed the timings for the opening and the closing of the temple. Now the devotees of Baba Kedarnath will be able to have darshan from 5 am to 9 pm.

Even today, 5 to 6 thousand devotees are reaching Kedarnath Dham daily for the darshan of Baba Kedarnath. However, in view of the weather and the decreasing number of devotees, the Shri Badrinath-Kedarnath Temple Committee has reduced the time of darshan by four hours. Now devotees will be able to visit Baba Kedarnath only from 5 am to 9 pm. Earlier, where devotees were having darshan of Baba Kedar from 4 in the morning to 11 at night. At the same time, darshan will start in Kedarnath temple from 5 in the morning and after evening aarti and makeup darshan, the temple will be closed for devotees at 9 pm.

Kedarnath Trek

If you are planning to visit the Kedarnath Temple, then let us tell you that the Kedarnath Trek distance is 16 km, which is starts from Gaurikund. You can also cover this trek by riding a horse or pony. If you want to complete this trek on foot, then you can relax in the sheds built every few kilometers, which are specially designed for the purpose that devotees can stay here for a while and rest.

Best Time to Visit Kedarnath

Kedarnath weather remains cool for most of the year and in the winter season, there is a lot of snow here, due to which this temple is closed for 6 months. This means that if you are planning for Kedarnath Trip, then choosing the summertime for this journey will be a good decision.

In winters, between November-April, temperatures here reach -15 Degrees Celsius with heavy snowfall. This is the time when Kedarnath Temple remains closed. And in July-August Heavy rainfall occurs here because of which landslides and travel interruptions occur. In final words, summertime, which is May-June, is the best time to visit Kedarnath.

How to Reach Kedarnath

By Road: If you are from Delhi and searching for “How to reach Kedarnath from Delhi“, then your search ends here. You will get here full information about the different ways to reach Kedarnath Temple. From Delhi, you can reach Kedarnath via Rishikesh, Haridwar, or Dehradun, and to reach these places you can get a direct bus from ISBT Delhi. Buses will take around 8-9 hours to reach Haridwar, Rishikesh, or Dehradun. After reaching these places you can easily get a taxi, cab, or bus for Kedarnath or Gaurikund directly. You can select the route at your convenience.

Delhi to Kedarnath distance is 452 km
Delhi to Haridwar distance is 242 km
Haridwar to Kedarnath distance is 123 km
Delhi to Rishikesh distance is 263 km
Rishikesh to Kedarnath distance is 105 km
Delhi to Dehradun distance is 247 km
Dehradun to Kedarnath distance is 254 km
Kedarnath to Badrinath distance is 281 km

By Train: The nearest railway station to Kedarnath is Rishikesh, which is 216 km away from Kedarnath. The train route is considered the best route to reach Kedarnath easily and comfortably. Rishikesh is well connected to other major cities via Rail Route, hence you will easily get a train to Rishikesh from any major city. After reaching here, you can hire a taxi or ride a local bus to reach Gaurikund.

By Air: The nearest airport to Kedarnath is Jolly Grant Airport, from here you can easily reach Gaurikund via taxi. The 18 km trek to Kedarnath starts from Gaurikund itself, which you can complete by riding a horse or pony. If you do not like trekking at all, then you can also use helicopter service to reach the Kedarnath Temple.

Kedarnath Helicopter Service

Situated at the height of 3553, this beautiful Kedarnath temple, which is also one of the 12 Jyotirlingas. Who would not wish to visit this sacred place? But there are many devotees who want to come to Kedarnath but they don’t come because they cannot cover such a long track.

Devotees who cannot visit the Kedarnath Mandir due to their age or any other disability, for those this Kedarnath helicopter service is started. Every year thousands of devotees visit the Kedarnath temple with the help of this service. If you also want to visit the temple by using Kedarnath Helicopter Service, then we tell you how much you will have to pay for this service.

There are three operational helipads and many operator companies, who provide this service for Kedarnath. Here is the Kedarnath Helicopter Booking Price from each location.