The Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse (near Vizag) is one of the city’s most promoted tourist spots, often listed alongside Yarada Beach, Kailasagiri, and the Submarine Museum. The name comes from the cliff’s unique shape — it resembles a dolphin’s nose jutting into the Bay of Bengal.
While the location sounds promising in internet pictures, our real-life visit told a different story. The viewpoint is under the observation of the Indian Navy, making it a restricted and heavily protected area. Although this level of security is completely acceptable for such a sensitive spot, it also makes the visitor experience slower and less enjoyable, especially during peak tourist season, weekends, and holiday rushes.
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How to Visit Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse
- By Road: Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse is around 22 km from Vizag city center, at the top of Dolphin Hill. You can hire a cab or rented car to reach the spot. Local buses also run up to Scindia Junction, from where the site is about a 10-minute drive by local auto.
- Nearest Railway Station: Visakhapatnam Junction (approx. 22.5 km).
- Nearest Airport: Visakhapatnam International Airport (approx. 22 km).
- Nearby Attractions: Yarada Beach, Ross Hill, and the Vizag Port area.
Ideal Time to Visit
The best time to visit Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse is between November and February, when the weather is pleasant, and the sea breeze feels refreshing.
Try to go on weekdays to avoid the heavy rush. Weekends and public holidays often see long queues at the entry gate and the watchtower.
Entry Rules and Security Checks
Since the Dolphin Hill area falls under Navy supervision, every visitor must go through a security process before entering. You’ll be asked to present an identity card — such as a Voter ID, Aadhaar, Driving License, or Passport.
If you don’t have a hard copy, you can show the digital version, but you’ll still need to write the ID number in the entry logbook. While this is perfectly fine from a safety point of view, it creates a major bottleneck for tourists during the peak season.
On busy days, long queues of cars and tourist vehicles form outside the gate as each visitor completes the entry process. What should be a quick stop often turns into a 30–45 minute wait just to get inside.
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Ticket Prices at Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse
Once you reach the entry counter, you’ll find the fees are fairly reasonable:
- Indian Adults: ₹10
- Indian Children: ₹5
- Foreigners: ₹25
- Still Cam/Mobile photography: ₹20
- Video Cam: ₹25
Note: the entry timing is 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM daily. So plan accordingly.
What to Expect Inside
Once you complete the entry formalities at the checkpoint, you’ll start your short uphill drive toward the Lighthouse area, which serves as the main viewpoint.
At the end of the route lies a small parking zone, a few snack shops, and a ticket counter where you pay ₹10 per adult, ₹5 per child, and ₹20 for mobile/still photography. From here, a pathway leads you to the watch tower, the most prominent spot at the viewpoint. The structure offers sweeping views of the Bay of Bengal, the port area, and the Vizag city skyline.
However, space near the tower is limited. There’s hardly any shaded sitting area or rest zone, and on sunny days, it can feel quite exhausting, especially if you are in a queue for a heavy crowd. Facilities like food stalls (outside the entry gate), washrooms, or souvenir shops are minimal, so it’s best to carry your own water and essentials.
The viewpoint is best enjoyed during weekdays, when crowds are minimal; also, avoid the peak tourist season.
Related: Things to do in Kailasagiri Hill Park, Vizag
Why We Think Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse Is Overrated
From our personal experience, Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse (Vizag) felt a bit less impressive than what most travel sites claim, especially when it is overcrowded. The place has its importance — it’s a strategic point under the Indian Navy’s observation, the cliff shape truly resembles a dolphin’s nose, offering a fantastic bird’s eye view of the ocean. But as travelers, we felt it’s overhyped, and you can feel the essence only if the place remains less crowded. Let me explain:
1. Time-consuming entry procedure
Because the viewpoint is under the strict supervision of the Indian Navy, every visitor must undergo an identity check. This includes showing a valid ID (like Aadhaar, Voter ID, or Passport) and writing down details in a register. So far, it’s absolutely fine, but during peak season or weekends, when tourist traffic is high, this entire process becomes painfully slow. Cars pile up in a queue, and people often wait 30–45 minutes just to cross the checkpoint.
2. Overcrowding at the watchtower
Once inside, after getting the entry tickets, the road leads to the watchtower (lighthouse), which is supposed to offer the best birds-eye view of the sea. This viewing tower — the most advertised attraction — can handle only a limited number of people at once. On peak days, the line to enter the tower hardly moves. Tourists who reach the top prefer staying longer for photos, which makes everyone else wait even more.
When we visited, the line was so long that we estimated at least an hour of waiting time — so we simply enjoyed the sea view from behind the tower and decided to leave.
3. Poor return on time invested
A major disappointment for many visitors is that the total time spent waiting — for entry, security check, and climbing the tower — far exceeds the few minutes you actually spend enjoying the view. The entire experience feels like a poor “time-to-value” trade-off.
One of the fellow tourists we met on the spot felt the time spent here wasn’t worth the short view at the end. We avoided hiking to the watch tower, but they waited for 1.5 hours, hiked to the top, and returned with frustration.
5. Over-promotion by tour operators
On peak tourist season, cab drivers and local tour operators often include Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse in their itinerary, mainly to fill up the day’s trip schedule. They know the spot consumes time because of entry procedures and queues — which helps them avoid covering more distant or time-intensive points. From a tourist’s perspective, if you want a peaceful and scenic coastal experience, we’d strongly recommend Yarada Beach instead — it’s close by, crowd-free, and far more rewarding.
Overall,
- Lengthy entry process due to ID verification.
- Heavy rush during holidays with long vehicle queues.
- Limited viewing area, with overcrowding near the watchtower.
- Poor time-to-reward ratio — you spend more time waiting than exploring.
- Tour operators often push it to fill up trip schedules, even though the experience doesn’t justify the time spent.
Also read: Top 19 Things to Do in Pondicherry for a Blissful Coastal Getaway
A Better Alternative – Yarada Beach
If your goal is to enjoy the best coastal view in Vizag, skip the long lines and instead visit Yarada Beach, which lies nearby. This serene beach offers golden sands, calm waves, and stunning sea-cliff backdrops — all without the crowd and hassle.
At Yarada Beach, you can sit by the shore, enjoy the breeze, and relax. On the way the Yarada Beach, there is a point from where you can get a similar ocean view (though the height is lower than Dolphin’s Nose), but in a much calmer and more relaxing environment.
Explore More: Yarada Beach — Vizag’s Quiet Coastal Gem: How to Reach, Things to Do & Travel Tips
Practical Tips Before You Visit Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse
- Carry a valid ID card (hard or digital) for entry.
- Avoid peak tourist season, weekends or public holidays — visit on weekdays instead for fast coverage.
- Plan your visit early (within 3:00 PM – first batch entry) to beat the crowd.
- Keep small change handy for entry and photography fees.
- Combine it with a trip to Yarada Beach (Must-visit) for a more balanced experience.
Final Thoughts
Dolphin’s Nose Lighthouse (Vishakhapatnam) is an iconic landmark with its unique cliff shape and strategic naval location. However, from a tourist’s perspective, the overall experience often feels tedious during peak tourist season due to long queues and overcrowding at the tower.
If you have limited time in Visakhapatnam, we’d recommend focusing on Yarada Beach, which offers a more peaceful and fulfilling coastal experience; in fact, the best around Vizag. Dolphin’s Nose might be worth a quick stop — but not ideal for a long wait.
Dr. Suvankar Das is a scientific advisor by profession, associated with a CRO organization. He pursued his doctoral degree in Chemistry in 2015. Later, he worked as a postdoctoral researcher & scientist in a couple of institutes/companies.
Besides his scientific journey, Dr. Das is also a passionate traveler and travel blogger. He loves to share all his travel experiences with other travelers so that everyone can enjoy hassle-free holidays with their own tour plans.
He believes, the most beautiful thing in this world is the WORLD itself. so there is no way to live like a clock; rather live it like a compass!
