Karnataka Nature and Heritage Circuit - 13 Nights / 14 Days

Visit Tipu Sultan's Summer Palace, a magnificent two-story teak structure with ornate Persian arches built in 1791. View the neoclassical Vidhana Soudha, Karnataka's state legislature, one of India's most imposing government buildings. Explore the Krishnarajendra Market (Chickpet), Bengaluru's oldest bazaar, selling flowers, spices, and silk. Evening at Bengaluru's craft brewery district on Indiranagar's 100 Feet Road. 

Overnight Stay in Bengaluru

Morning visit to ISKCON Temple Bengaluru, one of the world's largest ISKCON complexes, an architectural marvel of white marble and granite. Explore Bengaluru Palace, a Tudor-style royal residence of the Wadiyar dynasty set in 45 acres of gardens. Afternoon at the HAL Aerospace Museum, India's first aerospace museum, displaying fighter jets and space capsules. Evening at leisure in Koramangala.

Overnight Stay in Bengaluru

Drive 140 km to Mysuru, Karnataka's City of Palaces. Visit the magnificent Mysuru Palace, the official residence of the Wadiyar royal dynasty, one of India's most visited monuments and the third-largest palace in the country. On Sunday evenings, 100,000 bulbs illuminate the palace in a breathtaking spectacle. Visit the Devaraja Market, a riot of jasmine garlands, turmeric, and Mysuru's famous agarbatti.

Overnight Stay in Mysuru

Start your morning early and start your journey to Chamundi Hills. Here you visit the Chamundeshwari Temple, Mysuru's most sacred shrine atop a 1,000-step hill, with panoramic city views. Visit the colossal Nandi statue carved from a single rock. Afternoon at Brindavan Gardens, illuminated terraced gardens on the Krishnarajasagara Dam, spectacular after sunset. Visit St. Philomena's Church, one of India's largest and most beautiful Gothic cathedrals, built in 1936.

Overnight Stay in Mysuru

Start your monring early and eat a hearty meal at your hotel. Drive 120 km to Coorg (Kodagu), Karnataka's most beloved hill district at 900 to 1,700 metres. Check in to a coffee estate homestay or plantation resort. Visit Raja's Seat, a hilltop garden and sunset viewpoint beloved by the Kodava kings, offering sweeping views of the Western Ghats valleys. Evening walk through your estate's coffee and pepper groves.

Overnight Stay in Coorg

Start your morning with a refreshing cup of twa. Visit Abbey Falls, which is a dramatic 70-foot waterfall deep in a private coffee estate forest. Here you can either participate in a trek to a lush jungle trail. Drive to Iruppu Falls on the Lakshmana Tirtha River, a sacred waterfall where pilgrims bathe on Shivaratri. Afternoon jeep safari at Nagarhole National Park (Rajiv Gandhi National Park), tracking leopard, elephant, gaur, and the elusive tiger through teak and rosewood forest.

Overnight Stay in Coorg

Spend your morning at Dubare Elephant Camp. It is situated on the Cauvery River. Here you can feed, bathe, and interact with trained elephants under mahout supervision. 

After spending a fun-filled morning with an elephant drive to Bylakuppe. It is India's largest Tibetan settlement outside Tibet, which is home to over 20,000 Tibetan refugees. Visit the Namdroling Monastery's Golden Temple (Padmasambhava Buddhist Vihara), its three golden towers and elaborate murals are among the most spectacular in South Asia.

Overnight Stay in Coorg

Continue your journey to Chikmagalur, which is the birthplace of coffee in India. This is where Baba Budan Giri brought seven coffee beans from Yemen in the 17th century. Check into a coffee plantation resort. Visit Mullayanagiri, Karnataka's highest peak at 1,930 meters, with a small Shiva temple at the summit and panoramic views of the Western Ghats stretching to the horizon.

Overnight Stay in Chikmagalur

Drive to Belur, home to the Chennakeshava Temple. It is a masterpiece of Hoysala architecture built in 1117 AD. Spend your morning here basking in the serenity of this place. Continue to Halebidu which is the Hoysaleswara Temple complex, another supreme achievement of 12th-century Hoysala stone craft, its twin temples featuring over 200 metres of continuous narrative sculpture.

Overnight Stay in Chikmagalur

Drive to Hampi, the UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the world's most extraordinary archaeological landscapes. The ruins of Vijayanagara, capital of the 14th to 16th-century Vijayanagara Empire, the largest Hindu empire in Indian history, are spread across 26 square kilometres of surreal granite boulder terrain on the Tungabhadra River. Check in and explore the Hampi Bazaar at sunset.

Overnight Stay in Hampi

Start your Hampi exploration with a visit to Virupaksha Temple. It is a living, active temple dedicated to Lord Shiva, continuously worshipped since the 7th century, and the spiritual heart of Hampi. After that, explore the Vittala Temple complex, home to the iconic Stone Chariot and the legendary Musical Pillars that produce distinct musical notes when struck. Walk the Royal Enclosure, the Vijayanagara emperor's ceremonial grounds with the Mahanavami Dibba platform, Queens' Bath, and Lotus Mahal.

Overnight Stay in Hampi

Sunrise at Hemakuta Hill, a cluster of pre-Vijayanagara Jain and Shaiva temples on a hill above Hampi Bazaar, offering the finest sunrise views of the Virupaksha Temple tower and the boulder-strewn Tungabhadra valley. Cross the Tungabhadra River by traditional coracle, a round woven basket boat, to Anegundi village, the mythological Kishkindha of the Ramayana, for a bicycle tour through sugarcane fields and ancient Anjaneya Hill.

Overnight Stay in Hampi

After breakfast, transfer to Hospet Railway Station (13 km) or Bellary Airport (65 km) for onward journey. This tour concludes with the extraordinary arc of Karnataka and its amazing exploration . 

Tour Concludes