Let’s help you
plan your journey
Explore responsibly, discover offbeat places, guided by locals, rooted in culture.
Let’s help you
plan your journey
Explore responsibly, discover offbeat places, guided by locals, rooted in culture.
Soumen Bhowmick
Soumen Bhowmick founded Pollen Dots in 2024 to plan journeys across India and Bhutan. He works in the Commercial Department of Indian Railways, where he has been since 2000. From 2016 to 2020 he was Head of Business Development and Partnerships at ScoutMyTrip, a community-driven road trip planning platform. There he built a nationwide network of local Scouts who helped travellers on the road, and grew the Road Trippers Club to 16 Indian cities. As a core member of Devil On Wheels, he helped travellers plan Himalayan trips and started Spreading Smiles. He has driven solo from Arunachal to Goa and from Himachal to Karnataka, and has run his own caravan for more than ten years. His photographs have won national and international salon awards, and his writing has appeared in Outlook Traveller.
A trip to Karnataka covers four separate regions: the dry northern plains, the Western Ghats hills, a coast of about 320 kilometres, and the cities in the middle. The state holds three World Heritage temple sites, and the third of them was added to the list in 2023. Hampi sits in the north and Mysuru in the south, and the road between them is a full day's drive.
Karnataka's seasons also split along those lines. The north is dry, the hills and the coast are wet from June to September, and the coast is warm all year.
The state divides into four regions, and each has its own airport and its own season.
Bengaluru to Mysuru is about 145 kilometres and three hours by road. Bengaluru to Hampi is about 340 kilometres. Hubballi to Hampi is two to three hours.
Three temple sites, and forests that form part of a fourth listing.
| Site | Listed |
|---|---|
| Group of Monuments at Hampi | 1986 |
| Group of Monuments at Pattadakal | 1987 |
| Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas | 2023 |
The Hoysala listing covers three temples. Chennakeshava at Belur and Hoysaleshvara at Halebidu, both in Hassan district, and Keshava at Somanathapura in Mysuru district.
Several Karnataka forests belong to the Western Ghats World Heritage listing. That listing covers forest rather than buildings and is counted separately from the three above.
October to February is dry and cool across the whole state.
Yes, on reduced hours.
Safaris in both reserves were stopped on 7 November 2025, after tiger attacks killed people near the forest edge. They restarted in phases from 21 and 22 February 2026, under a forest department order.
The reduced hours still stand.
| Reserve or zone | Hours a day |
|---|---|
| Bandipur, cut from eight | 5 |
| Sunkadakatte zone | 6 |
| Nagarahole | 4 |
Gate timings move with the season, so each booking carries its own slot.
They are two separate World Heritage sites, listed a year apart, in different districts.
Hampi was the capital of the Vijayanagara kingdom. The site runs for several kilometres of granite boulders beside the Tungabhadra river, with temples, market streets and palace enclosures.
Pattadakal is a close group of sandstone temples in Bagalkot district, built several centuries earlier. Badami and Aihole stand nearby in the same district.
Each site has a temple called Virupaksha. The one at Pattadakal was built around the year 740. The one at Hampi stands at the end of the old bazaar and holds daily worship.
By train to Hosapete Junction, about 13 kilometres from the ruins.
Trains reach Hosapete from Bengaluru, Hubballi and Hyderabad. The nearest airstrip is Jindal Vijayanagar at Toranagallu, around 40 kilometres away, with very few scheduled flights. Hubballi has more flights and a drive of two to three hours.
Our seven day journey through coastal Karnataka and the Western Ghats runs the coast and the hills in one line. Journeys Just for You runs on your own dates. A short guide to getting ready for a trip in India covers papers and bookings.
Three temple sites. Hampi, listed in 1986, Pattadakal, listed in 1987, and the Sacred Ensembles of the Hoysalas, listed in 2023. Several Karnataka forests also belong to the Western Ghats listing.
Three. Chennakeshava at Belur, Hoysaleshvara at Halebidu and Keshava at Somanathapura. The first two are in Hassan district and the third is in Mysuru district.
Hampi is open granite with almost no shade. A December afternoon is hot on the rock even when the air is cool. Mornings and late afternoons are the cooler hours.
Yes. Both restarted in phases from 21 and 22 February 2026, after a stop that began on 7 November 2025. Bandipur runs five hours a day, the Sunkadakatte zone six and Nagarahole four.
Hosapete Junction, about 13 kilometres from the ruins. Trains run there from Bengaluru, Hubballi and Hyderabad.
About 145 kilometres, which is three hours by road and less by train. Channapatna, the toy town, stands on that road.