Shimla, city also known as Queen of Hill Stations, is the capital of the state of Himachal Pradesh. Shimla was the Summer capital of India under the British raj before independence. Shimla gets its name the Indian goddess Kali, whose temple existed in the dense forests that covered the Jakhu Hills in the early 19th century. The English were the one who named it Simla. Shimla is surrounded by pine, deodar, oak and rhododendron forests. Still Its well developed facilities, easy accessibility and numerous attractions makes it one of Indian's most popular and biggest tourist destination for both local and forgein visitors.

A narrow-railway links the town of Kalka with Shimla. This all important rail-link was built in 1924 and its "toy trains" still ply between the two stations, passing through 105 tunnels and beautiful rail-road stations. Half-way through the journey, after Solan, visiors can see the lights from the town of Shimla glittering from between the forests and wild trees. The train takes six hours, and stop at every station on the journey as smiling faces give a warm welcome to the visitors.

Shimla, Capital of Himachal Pradesh is situated in the north-West Himalayas.

418 mm. (July to September)

Summer:   28 °C - 15 °C
Winter:       7 °C - -4 °C

May to July and September to November

The airport at Shimla, 22 km from the main city, has connecting flights to Delhi and Kullu. The nearby Chandigarh airport is, however, more handy as it is connected to all the major airports in India.

Only train plying between Shimla and Kalka joins them through railways network.

Shimla is well connected by road to most towns within the state and to all major towns in Punjab and Haryana. It is linked by bus and coach to Delhi and Chandigarh as well.

The Mall, Christ Church, Jakhu Hill, Shimla State Museum, Indian Institute of Advanced Studies, Summer Hill, Annandale, Tara Devi, Sankat Mochan, Mashobra, Kufri, Naldehra, Chail.