Annai Velankanni Shrine Basilica

The Annai Velankanni Shrine Basilica features a towering white steeple that rises above the coastline of the Bay of Bengal. Fishermen built the original small chapel here in the nineteen sixties to express gratitude after surviving a massive cyclone that devastated the nearby coast. When the structure was later expanded into this basilica, builders discovered the foundation rested directly on the path of the original, smaller shrine. It remains a gathering place for thousands who come to pray for protection from the sea.