Hello all, One of my colleagues from BLR is visiting tirumala with his father. He wants to have darshan through srivani trust donation. Can we get srivani trust tickets directly from counters or it's just that we have to donate it and try to book online?
Pls respond
Hi all, arriving in Tirupati on Monday afternoon, Sept 7th. I must finish Darshan on Tuesday, Sept 8th because my train to Varanasi leaves early on Wednesday morning (Sept 9, 6:05 AM).
Need quick advice from frequent travelers on these doubts:
Appreciate any recent ground realities. Thanks!
We are reaching renigunta around 9 pm(19 august) and our accommodation is at Srinivasam rest house check-in time slot is 12am-5am (20 august).
By any chance early check in is possible? We will be reaching Srinivasam guest house around 10 pm after having dinner?
Traveled 40hrs but booked late slot so bit stressed.
Thanks for answering.
​
The Dhatipanchakam guides devotees towards devotion and surrender and teaches them to seek the divine feet of Lord Srimannarayana, said Sri Sthalasayi Swamy of Bhadrachalam.
The second day of the national conference on “Spiritual Services of Sri Vaishnava Acharyas”, organised by the TTD Alwar Divya Prabandha Project at Annamacharya Kala Mandiram in Tirupati, featured detailed discourses on the teachings of Sri Ramanujacharya and the Sri Vaishnava tradition.
Sri Sthalasayi Swamy said Dhatipanchakam, composed by Dasarathi, highlights devotion, surrender and devotion to the Acharya. It inspires devotees to follow the path of devotion under the guidance of Acharyas.
Ten Teachings of Sri Ramanuja to Dasarathi
Sri Jaggu Venkatesam Swamy of Melkote explained the ten teachings given by Sri Ramanujacharya to Dasarathi. He said these teachings emphasise faith in the Lord, surrender and service to devotees as sacred kainkaryam.
They continue to offer valuable spiritual guidance to the present generation.
Ramanuja’s Unique Interpretation of Kapyasam Sruti
Acharya Sampath Kumar Swamy of Tirupati explained the significance of Sri Ramanujacharya’s interpretation of Kapyasam Sruti. He said Ramanujacharya brought out the deeper spiritual meaning of the Vedic passage and explained the divine qualities and beauty of the Lord.
Jada Bharata’s Story in Sri Bhashya
Sri Ayi Narasimhan Swamy of Melkote spoke on the references to Jada Bharata in Sri Bhashya. He explained how the story conveys important concepts such as the nature of the soul, the distinction between the body and soul, devotion and detachment. He said Sri Ramanujacharya used such examples to make Vedantic principles easily understandable to common people.
Ramanuja Spread Nammalvar’s Spiritual Wisdom
Sri Maringanti Kulashekaracharyulu of Hyderabad explained the significance of the verse “Lakshminathakhya Sindhau.” He said the spiritual wisdom received by Nammalvar from the ocean of knowledge of Lord Srimannarayana was passed down through the Acharya tradition and was further spread widely by Sri Ramanujacharya.
Professor Ranganathan Explains Embar’s Life
Professor Ranganathan Swamy of the Tirupati Sanskrit Vidyapeetham explained the life and contributions of Govinda Bhattar, popularly known as Embar. He highlighted Embar’s service to Sri Ramanujacharya, devotion to the Acharya and contribution to the preservation of the Sri Vaishnava tradition.
Special Officer of the Alwar Divya Prabandha Project Sri Tirumalaishai Alwar, scholars, researchers and devotees participated in the programme.
TTD Additional EO Sri Ch. Venkaiah Chowdary appreciated the contribution of vegetable donors as vital to the Srivari Annaprasadam (free food distribution) programme of TTD.
A review meeting in connection with ensuing brahmotsavam was held at Sudharma Hall in Tirumala on Tuesday evening to discuss supply, transport, storage, quality and future needs.
Excerpts from the meeting :
Vegetable consumption has risen from about 5.34 tonnes per day three years ago to 8.44 tonnes at present with the serving of over 4lakh portions every day on an average.
The Additional EO appreciated the services of round 30 donors from 3–4 states who have been supplying 33 types of vegetables from the past 25–30 years.
He said TTD coordinates advance planning with donors to reduce rejection and spoilage; donors maintain quality, packing and transport standards.
Cold storage is used to preserve longer‑lasting vegetables; perishable items are prioritized for early use.
TTD will develop a donor policy and an online real‑time coordination system to communicate needs and speed responses, encouraging more donors to participate.
Participants included Deputy EO Annaprasadam Sri Rajendra, Catering Officer Sri GLN Shastry, vegetable donors from various states and other officials.
Hello! Can you guys tell what are the options for depositing mobile phones, small personal items and backpacks before Srivani Darshanam? Also how would the rush and wait time at the locker zones be?
Are there any options for people who climb up through alipiri or srivaari metlu to change their costumes before Darshanam if in case we don't have an accomodation in Tirumala. Insights?
TIA
Every daily pilgrim count TTD has published since October 2013, recovered from 6,614 bulletins, reconciled to one figure per date
Namaskaram 🙏
I donated ₹1 lakh to TTD under the Srivani Trust. I am currently overseas and won’t be travelling to Tirumala myself. My family would like to avail the darshan benefit on my behalf.
Could someone please guide me on how to get the darshan without me (donor) present.
Any guidance from someone who has gone through this recently would be greatly appreciated. 🙏
Govindas, last Tuesday Tirumala lo naku and naa friend ki chala baaga darshan ayyindi... I wanna share my experience here
Memu May lo Electronic Dip vesam. Out of nowhere, he chose us for Ashtadala Padmaradhana. Literally, memu asalu ee seva enti ani kuda teliyadu. Once telusukunnaka, days count chesthu kurchunnam eppudeppudu ayana deggariki velthama ani. Ika nenu and naa friend same outfits ani, avi ani ivi ani full excitement tho teesukunnam. Finally aa day raney vachindi.
Morning 4:00 ki Ala Vaikuntham Queue Complex ki velli report chesam. So, ma laga inka around 50 members waiting unnaru. Ee darshan week lo one time and only Tuesday roju untadi, and limited members ki naaku telsi around 60 members ki.
Chivariki queue loki allow chesaru. Me and my friend iddaram andarikante mundu parigethi line lo mundu unnam. Sadly compartment ki pampincharu. Akkada kuda nenu and naa friend gate daggara first lo unnam, eppudu open chesthara ani waiting.
After around 45 mins compartment open chesaru. Ika chuskondi, temple entry varaku aagale... parigeduthoone unnam. Lopalaki velluthunna time lo gents ki oka pancha and ladies ki oka blouse piece icharu. Ee entire process lo memu first lo ne unnam. But God had other plans. Temple enter avvagane names-wise segregation start chesaru, memu middle lo vacham.
Ippudu gents and ladies ni separate chesi, Jaya Vijayalani dati main temple lopaliki vellam. Starting entry nunchi andarini first gadapa varaku kurchopettaru. Ee process appudu Swami kanipinchakunda curtains vesesar. Once memu settle ayyam, curtain okkasariga teesesar.
Ika anthe... Govinda chants tho andarini silent chesi pooja start chesaru, Swami vaari 108 names chant chesthu. Idi almost 25 to 30 mins jarigindi. Swamini chusthunna antha sepu kallalo neellu tiruguthune unnayi and maa friend ayithe edchesadu. Asalu aa feeling surreal. Aa 30 mins ayanney chusthu, eye blink cheyyadam kuda marchipoyam.
Aa tarvatha andarni Swami vaari daggariki single line lo teesukellaru. Literally oka 5 feet untadi emo, antha daggaraki vellam. Vellatame kadu, mana local temple laga Shatari kuda pettaru. Ika bayataki kuda Swamini chusthu vacham. Ayana picture brain lo capture ayipoyindi. Bayata antha ayana trance lone unnam.
Malli alanti opportunity osthado rado telidu, kani idi matram jeevitham lo gurthundipothadi. Asalu ah 30mins ela ayyayo kuda teliyaled...Those are the best lived minutes in my life ani cheppochu...
Meeru kuda every month Electronic Dip veyyandi, meeku and mee parents ki. Vesi ayanaki vadileyandi, migathadi adi ayane chuskuntadu.
Na last one year isn't good for me. I went through a breakup, then left my job and have been jobless for almost one year. But I can say one thing - The Lord Himself is with me. Andukenemo last 8 months lo 4 times darshan ayyindi(2 special, 1 vaikunta dwara darshan and then idi)
So never lose hope. Try again and again, till you get selected in dip🤞🤞
Om Namo Venkateshaya!🙏🙏
​
The spiritual experience at Tirumala is undoubtedly special, but the crowd and people management during Darshan needs serious improvement.
After experiencing the arrangements at Ayodhya, the difference is noticeable. Ayodhya also handles massive crowds, yet the movement of devotees can feel more structured, with better queue discipline, clearer movement and comparatively smoother crowd management.
At Tirumala, devotees can face long periods of waiting, congestion and confusion about queues, tokens and movement. For pilgrims who have travelled long distances with elderly people and children, this can become extremely exhausting.
This is not a criticism of the temple or the faith—it is a request for better administration and a more dignified pilgrimage experience.
TTD manages one of India's most visited pilgrimage destinations. With better crowd-flow planning, clearer communication, stronger queue management and more efficient use of technology, the Darshan experience can be significantly improved.
Faith brings people here. Good management should make their journey easier. 🙏
#Tirupati #Tirumala #TirumalaDarshan #TTD #CrowdManagement #Ayodhya #Pilgrimage #TempleManagement
There is no NRI flaire so adding to Special Entry Darshan..
Time took for Darshan - 3 hours
I captured my timings and observations throughout the day and then had AI compile them into this post. Sharing this as a firsthand experience.
Getting to Tirumala
The buses from my home had two practical options — one reached around 1 AM, the other around 7:30 AM. I took the 1 AM bus.
- 2:00 AM – Bus to Tirumala started from RTC.
- Picked up passengers near Vishnu Nivasam.
- ~2:30 AM – Stopped at Balaji Link Station for ticket purchase/verification.
- ~3:00 AM – Reached Alipiri.
- Waited around 15 minutes for the ghat road to open.
- Security/registration took around 10 minutes.
- ~4:00–4:30 AM – Reached PAC 5 and got a locker.
PAC 5 locker experience
The locker process was simpler than I expected.
At the counter, they give you just a token. The token has the hall number.
Go to that hall and there will be a person sitting outside who gives you the key to your locker. The lock is already attached to the locker.
Important: You need your original Aadhaar and phone number for the locker.
The PACs also have a useful system: the display shows locker availability at the different PACs. So if one PAC is full or has very few lockers, you can check which one has better availability and go there instead.
The PACs are generally within walking distance of each other, so moving to another PAC is quite practical.
Lots of tiny cockroachs/insects in the locker :(
You can also get:
- A mat anytime
- A bedsheet only during nighttime
When I went, PAC 5 showed around 60 lockers available.
Tonsure + bath
~5:30 AM – Tonsuring and bath completed.
I first went to the locker, changed, and then came back to get the tonsure token.
The bathing area was quite straightforward:
- Each bathroom stall has a bucket and mug.
- Grab one and fill it with hot water from the geyser.
- There is also a cold-water pipe in every stall.
- Urinals are before the bathing stalls.
- Toilets are at the far end.
I carried my own bathroom slippers.
The area around the stalls was generally okay, but there were quite a lot of soap/shampoo wrappers and hair around the floor.
Morning
~7:00 AM – Breakfast + walk
I had breakfast at a nearby place and walked around for a while.
I was told TTD breakfast would be served around 8:30 AM at the Venhamamba annaprasadam center.
I also did some shopping between 7 and 8 AM.
NRI Darshan
I then headed towards ATC Circle.
One thing I noticed: there were already quite a lot of people around the NRI darshan area by around 8 AM.
However, in my experience, there is no need to reach there at 5–6 AM. The NRI document verification started around 10:30 AM.
I was a first-time NRI visitor and was anxious about missing something, especially because other special-darshan people were being let through that gate earlier. That can make you think you need to queue immediately.
I would personally aim to reach the area around 10–10:30 AM.
Also, from PAC 5 to ATC Circle was a bit confusing, at one point — I ended up walking through a tunnel that opened into a shopping complex. People were very helpful whenever I asked.
NRI verification
~10:30 AM – Called in for document verification.
There were two people handling the initial verification.
One person was just checking name in passport and oci while the other checked the name/date everything on the passport and signed.
Then I paid ₹300 and proceeded further.
There was another wait of around 30 minutes at a gate before we were allowed in. There are baggage and phone counters there.
After that, there was another waiting area where I spent roughly 30 minutes before joining the queue.
IMPORTANT: Later there is another point where they rescan the NRI receipt that was given to you. Do not pack that receipt away until the process is completely finished.
There was then another baggage scan. This became quite chaotic because everyone was merging into a narrow queue.
After that, things kept moving.
Darshan
I got darshan at around 12 30 PM.
The crowd was heavy and I did get pushed around during darshan. There was also a group of young people enthusiastically shouting Govinda, but they were also pushing quite a lot — I'm guessing they were doing it for fun. People were generally trying to run ahead.
Still, none of that mattered once I got the glimpse.
The ~10 seconds of darshan was all I needed.
Srivari Divya Darśanam. 🙏
Getting out
The post-darshan exit was actually more chaotic.
It took me around an hour to get out.
There were many crying children and babies in the crowd, and it was generally very congested.
I also noticed quite a few VIPs going through the exit side in the opposite direction. Some elderly people were being allowed to walk more directly towards darshan, which was good to see.
Laddoo
After darshan, I went straight to get laddoos.
There was a queue eberywhere, but it moved fairly quickly.
At my counter, the person distributing suddenly left. I waited around 20 minutes before moving to another queue. Some people continued waiting at the original counter.
So if a counter appears to have stopped moving, don't be afraid to switch queues.
Annaprasadam
Finally, I went to Sri Vengamamba Annaprasadam complex.
It's a mammoth facility capable of feeding thousands of people.
The queue took around 20 minutes to get inside.
I noticed that children and elderly people weren't automatically being allowed to bypass the queue, although I think they should be.
The food, however, was excellent.
I was a bit tired initiially , especially as I was travelling alone. In hindsight, I probably should have taken a nap somewhere in the morning instead of spending so much time anxiously waiting for the NRI process to begin. But I now know for next time.
But this was my first time visiting Tirumala as an NRI, so I was naturally anxious about getting something wrong.
My practical takeaways
- Don't go to ATC Circle before 10 for NRI darshan.
- There were already plenty of people around by ~8 AM, but actual NRI document verification started around 10:30 AM in my case.
- Take a vehicle from PAC 5 to ATC Circle if you have kids and elders.
- Original Aadhaar + phone number are required for PAC lockers.
- Check the locker availability display across PACs before committing to one. The PACs are generally walkable from each other.
- Carry bathroom slippers.
- Keep the NRI receipt accessible until all the rescanning is finished.
- Allow around an hour after darshan to get out on a crowded day.
I hope this helps someone else planning their first NRI visit.
Saw this post on Facebook claiming one guy got Thomala/Protocol darshan for April 2027. How can a protocol darshan give you t!ckets 8 months prior?
Also I got to know that they’ll be allowed to stay inside Garbha Gudi for 30 minutes. If this is legit how can we get such t!ckets? I know about MP/MLA VIP darshan but this seems different
Hi everyone,
Securing the ₹300 TTD Special Darshan Entry tickets has become brutal. I wanted to share what I've learned and ask for advice on a couple of things:
Practical Hacks: Keeping pilgrim details (Aadhaar, age, gender) ready in a notepad to copy-paste and avoiding tab-refreshing in the waiting room seem to help. Are there any other game-changing tricks that work?
Autofill extensions: Do browser-based autofill extensions actually work well in real life? and more importantly, are they safe to use without risking a ban or data privacy issues on the official TTD portal?
Would love to hear your experiences and tips below!
https://www.reddit.com/r/TirumalaDarshan/s/AvlwV1pDHM
Malli apply chesanu
Wish me all the best guys ❤️
Apply chesina vallaki all the best
TTD WARNS OF STRICT ACTION AGAINST THOSE CHEATING DEVOTEES
ONE ARRESTED FOR USING FAKE AADHAAR CARDS
POLICE CASE REGISTERED
Tirumala, 17 August 2026: The TTD Vigilance has foiled an attempt by a broker gang that was obtaining rooms at the CRO office in Tirumala using fake identity documents in the names of others and selling them to devotees at inflated prices.
On August 16, CRO office staff noticed a person who had already secured a room standing in the queue again under another identity. He was immediately apprehended. During enquiry, he was identified as Ashiq Ali P.M. (32) of Malappuram district, Kerala. Two fake Aadhaar cards, a room registration slip, Rs. 800 in cash, and a mobile phone were seized from him.
During interrogation, Ashiq Ali reportedly stated that he had been engaged by a broker named Ranjith and was being paid Rs. 1,000 per room. He said his role was to obtain rooms using fake identity documents and hand them over to the broker, who would then sell them to devotees at higher prices.
Investigation is in progress to identify other members of the gang.
Based on the complaint lodged by the TTD Vigilance Department, a case has been registered at the Tirumala-2 Town Police Station.
The Police are investigating the case on technical grounds and are also verifying the authenticity of the fake Aadhaar cards.
Devotees are advised that accommodation in Tirumala is meant exclusively for devotees. They should not approach brokers, nor share Aadhaar details, photographs, phone numbers, or other personal information with strangers.
TTD reiterated that Accommodation should be obtained only through the CRO counters, the official TTD website or mobile app.
If any broker approaches devotees offering rooms in exchange for money, or if any suspicious activity is observed, they are requested to immediately inform the TTD Vigilance & Security Control Room: 9866898630 or the TTD Call Centre: 155257.
TTD has stated that strict legal action will be taken against brokers cheating devotees and all those supporting such activities.