Digha is West Bengal's most popular sea resort. Originally known as Beerkul, it is mentioned as the "Brighton of the East" in one of Warren Hasting's letters (1780 AD) to his wife.
In 1923, an English tourist John Frank Smith was charmed by the beauty of Digha and started living here. His writings about Digha slowly gave exposure to this place. After independence, he convinced West Bengal's chief minister Dr. Bidhan Chandra Roy to develop Digha as a beach resort.
A small town, Digha is crowded with hotels generally around one main road. Its proximity to Calcutta (187 kms) attracts tourists throughout the year. Digha is a hard beach where one can drive during low tide. The beach is however facing the problem of sea erosion.
Bathing is advisable only during the low tide. One can view both sunrise and sunset at Digha sea beach.
New Digha
New Digha is an extension of Digha. It too has several hotels. There is a small park with a lake here.
Shankarpur
Not far from Digha (appx 14 kms) is the Shankarpur Fishing Harbour Project. It is also being developed as a beach resort.
Chandaneshwar
Only 8 kms from Digha, Chandaneshwar is the site of an old Shiva temple.
Access
Air : Calcutta is the nearest airport which is about 210 kms away from Digha.
Rail: Though Contai Road (37 kms) is the nearest railway station for Digha but Kharagpur ( km from Digha & km from Howrah) and Mechheda ( km from Digha and km from Howrah) on the South-Eastern Railway are the most convenient railheads for Digha from where buses are available which takes 4 hours.
Road: Route 1. Calcutta-Howrah-Mechheda-Norghat-Contai-Ramnagar-Digha: 185 km.
Route 2. Calcutta-Deulti-Kolaghat-Kharagpur-Digha: 243 km.
Route 3. Tarakeswar-Harinkhola-Arambag-Vishnupur-Kharagpur-Digha: 355 km
Bus : Regular direct buses are available from Calcutta to Digha. C.S.T.C. Express buses ply from Esplanade (Calcutta) from 0630 hours to 1000 hours (Fare Rs.30/-). Luxury buses from West Bengal Tourist Bureau, 3/2 B.B.D.Bagh departs daily at 0700 hours (Fare Rs.40/-).
