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Kurseong – The land of the white orchid
The serenity and beauty of Kurseong has also attracted and inspired famous personalities like Rabindranath Tagore, Atul Prasad Sen, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose and Sister Nivedita. Mark Twain is also supposed to have visited Kurseong in 1885 and spent some time here. It is believed that Rabindranath Tagore was inspired to write a few poems when he visited the hill station while Netaji Subhash Chandra was sent to Kurseong for his internship in 1936; the house he stayed is still restored in Giddapahar, a few kilometers from Kurseong.
Even though Kurseong has lagged behind in the race to become a preferred tourist destination compared to its glamorous counterpart Darjeeling, there is tranquility and peace about the place that does not fail to affect a visitor – and that quest for peace and tranquility brings him back again. Kurseong is connected to Siliguri by two alternative routes; one is the Pankhabari route which is faster but very steep. The other road traverses through Rongtong, Ghayabari, Mahanadi and Gidda Pahar which provides a breathtaking view of the natural surroundings. If you travel through this road in monsoon you can enjoy the magnificent sight of waterfalls cascading from the hills. What to see
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General
Information
Kurseong
was ceded to the British Empire by the king of Sikkim in 1835. Later in
1880, the small hamlet became a tourist destination for the colonial authorities
and was a preferred place for sanatoriums where the sick would recuperate.
Thereafter, the Kurseong T.B. Sanatorium was built because the climate
and environment was healthy and rejuvenating for the sick and elderly.
As
you leave the small town you can find acres of verdant slopes covered
with tea bushes – one of the finest varieties of Darjeeling Tea
is found in the tea gardens surrounding Kurseong. The finest teas are
produced by Castleton, Makaibari and Ambootia Tea Estate. Visitor can
have a first hand experience of how tea leaves are processed and prepared
for production by visiting the nearby tea factories. 
Eagle’s
Craig view point – This view point is located near the
town seemingly perched on a cliff. One can have a sweeping view of the
surrounding mountain, hill, hamlets and slopes from here. It has a cafeteria,
a watch tower and a flower garden; this place also houses the water reservoir
for the entire town of Kurseong. The place also has a concrete altar built
in the park with a khukri on top called shahid smarak; it was built by
the Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council to pay tribute to the lives that were
lost in the agitation of 1988. From here you will get a magnificent view
of the plains of Siliguri dotted with bright lights in the distance at
night.
Giddapahar
view point – Giddapahar view point in Giddapahar, a few
kilometers from Kurseong, provides a great view of the mountains and is
a great place for clicking photographs.