Barely 16 km away from Brahmapur, the commercial hub of southern
Orissa and close to the border of Andhra Pradesh, is the tiny town of Gopalpur on the Bay of Bengal. This languorous beach with coconut groves, casuarinas and gentle sand dunes is deserted for miles.
Development:
Renovated in 1970s at the initiative of the Orissa government, the jetties were supposed to revive the trading activities of Gopalpur port. The old jetty in Gopalpur is tourist attraction point, which was major point for trade and commerce in medieval times. The sailors of those time started their journey from this jetty to
Indonesia and Rangoon across the Indian Sea. Once the renovation of new jetty completed it will become an important port of south Orissa. It's a wonderful drive-in for the people and from the beach, vast expanse of deep blue sea and the horizon can be seen. Another thrilling sight is the long stretch of cashew nut trees. Cashew nuts are processed here and exported. A major landmark of
Gopalpur-on-Sea is its lighthouse. The view from the top is splendid and one can see at a glance the entire town of Gopalpur. Gopalour-on-sea is also famous for its 'beach festival' organized annually. A nearby beach is Dhabaleshwar, which also houses temple of the same name.
Gopalpur on sea has got a lovely beach that is absolutely deserted. The only sign of life that one gets to see is in the afternoon when the fishermen come back to shores with their fishes caught during the morning hour and the women loading them in large "tokris" (baskets) and carry them away for selling off in local markets. Apart from that you can see a lot many red crabs walking on the beach. In the evening many people from Brahmapur drive in to Gopalpur on sea to have a peaceful time sitting on sea shore
Beach festival:
Gopalpur Beach Fesival:The first Gopalpur beach festival was started in the year 1996 by
Ganjam District Hotel Association to promote tourism and culture. The concept of Gopalpur Beach Festival was conceived by Mr V.Santosh Kumar and Mr Sayed Rahim Members of Ganjam district Hotel Association,Brahmapur.
