Take a break at any of the amusement parks just outside the city. Kids and adults will have a wonderful time at MGM dizzy world. The Artists' village in Cholamandal, 10 kms from Tiruvanmiyur is where some of the best artist of South India live and work together. The Art Gallery exhibits breathtaking paintings and beautiful craftwork. Dance performance and poetry readings are often held in the open-air theatre.

Mamallapuram, 36 km away from Chennai you will encounter the beautiful backwaters of Muttukadu where you can experience different types of boating. From early January for four weeks there's the Mamallapuram Dance Festival. Dances from all over India are staged here including Bharatha Natyam ( Tamil Nadu), Kathakali (Kerla), Kuchipudi (Andhra Pradesh) as well as tribal dances, puppet shows and classical ,traditional music. Pick up a leaflet of events of the tourist office in Chennai.

Crocodile Bank, 44 km away from Chennai. It is to save the Indian Crocodile from becoming extinct. It is home to over 3,000 muggers and gharials and various species of crocodiles and lizards from other countries.

Vedanthangal Birds Sanctuary, 75 km away from the city of Chennai, is one of the most impressive aquatic birds' breeding sanctuaries. This bird sanctuary is home to egrets, herons, cormorants, spoonbills, grebes, pelicans, stroks, ibies and many more. The best season to visit is after the monsoon and the months of December and January. Nearly 30,000 birds can flock here. For over 250 years the nearby villagers have protected the bird life in this sanctuary.

Tirupathi, 84 km from Chennai at the extreme south of Andhra Pradesh. It is one of the most important pilgrimage centres of India. The temple of Lord Venkateshwara rests on a hill at Tirumala overlooking the little town of Tirupathi. At this holy place there are never less than 5,000 pilgrims a day and often as many as a 100,000 who come in hope of being granted wishes by Lord Venkateshwara, an incarnation of Lord Vishnu.