Hampi, now a World Heritage site and earlier capital of Vijayanagara Empire

Are you a history lover, nature lover or want to feel and enjoy slow-paced village life staying away from hustle and bustle of city life? If yes, then Hampi is for you 👍

Hampi, a UNESCO World Heritage site is about 350 km north of Bangalore (Karnataka), the state capital. It is a marvellous gem of South India.

From a History perspective, Hampi has 2 histories:

1. Ruins, monuments, temples which are one side (Where Virupaksha temple is) of the Tungabhadra river has history mainly related to Vijaynagara empire, Hampi used to be capital of 13th century Vijayanagara empire.

2. Temples, hills, caves which are other sides of the river has a history related to Hindu Mythology (Ramayana). Sabri cave, Hanuman birthplace, Bali cave, Pampa Sarovar are there only.

Attractions & short Itinerary (2 Days):

Day 1: 8:00 Am to 8:00 Pm (Hampi sightseeing)

Virupaksha Temple, Kadale Kalu Ganesha (Hemkunta sunset viewpoint), Sasive Kalu Ganesha, Krishna Temple, Laxmi Narasimha, BadaviLinga, Sister Stones, Underground Temple, Mint House
Lotus Mahal, Elephant Stable, Hazara Rama Temple, Mahanavami Dibba, Stepped Tank, Queen’s Bath
Vijaya Vithala Temple (Stone chariot, musical pillars can be seen), King’s Balance, Purandara Dasara Mandapa, Old Bridge Pillars, Kodanrama Temple, Achutaraya Temple

Try to reach on top of the hills👇 for Sunset or Sunrise:

Hemkunta hills (Best for Sunset),
Matanga Hills (for Beautiful panoramic view of Hampi, reach there for sunset or sunrise, but best for sunrise, It is approx. 25-30 min hike to reach the top)

Day 2: Other side of the Tungabhadra River

Anjanadri Hills (575 steps, 20 min take to reach the top) Either go here in the morning for Sunrise or in the evening for Sunset, else afternoon it will be hot and full sun, good place for Beautiful view of Hampi)
Pampa Sarovar, Durga temple, Sabri Cave, Ganesh Temple

If anyone has sufficient time, then Sanapur village, Anegundi also can be visited for beautiful Lakes and some waterfalls.

👉 Few points to know before you go:

1. Best time to visit Hampi during monsoon season(unless there is excessive rain) or mainly November to January. Even in February 1st week when I went, it was very hot between 12 pm to 4 pm. But yes at midnight and early morning, temperature was low only.

2. In Hampi, only BSNL network is currently available. Airtel or jio has extremely weak coverage, almost no. In Kamlapur, you can get network proper. so need to keep ready offline Maps in case you are planning to use map for navigation in Hampi, or you can take help from local guys for navigation.

3. One interesting fact I came to know, in Hampi currently only approx 2000 voter currently, so you can imagine the population, quite small residential place and only few families are living there.

Currently, Hampi has less population, As per archaeologists, during the time of the Vijayanagara Empire it used to be the largest city in the world and It was the richest empire.

Now this place is extremely peaceful and has slow pace life there. It is crowded only due to tourists, but that too in certain seasons not in all months of the year. I went just after lockdown lifted, so very few tourists were there.

4. I have been told that Hampi becomes completely different during festival time (Vijay festival). It is celebrated every year since the reign of Vijaynagara. So you can visit during the festival time also, but keep in mind, it will be crowded during festival time.

5. As few monuments and temples are on top of the rocky hills and not on plane area, one must wear comfortable footwear, preferably walking shoes and yes comfortable clothes also. And need to hydrate yourself often and yes not to forget sunscreen as Hampi is hot and requires a lot of walking for exploring places.

6. Due to wildlife animals, going early morning or late evening is not recommended at top of the rocky hills or near the ruins or forest area, although there are security guards who ask to vacate the hills and ruins after sunset. But still, need to be careful mainly if going solo.

7. If you want to see Elephant Bath, then behind Virupaksha temple, Tungabhadra River side, elephant bath can be seen around 9 AM, this is the same female elephant which is always in Virupaksha temple and It is considered as a form of Laxmi. But still, It is bad seeing the elephant captivated in the temple, away from the Nature (Jungle) where it should be actually.

8. About the coracle ride, earlier coracle ride was operational from Tungabhadra river back side of Virupaksha temple, but recently there is only motorboat available to cross the river and go another side of the river. But still coracle ride you can enjoy from konkanada Ram temple. Here for boat ride price is 500 per person currently (Feb 2021) on sharing basis. It will be approx 30 min ride and they will show you some temples after crossing the river and will bring you back.

9. To explore Hampi, Bicycle and Moped/Scooty available on rent or you can hire a Auto.

In my case, 1st day I took cycle for sightseeing that I somehow managed as I felt very tiring with cycle as roads are not plane everywhere, cycling was taking lot of energy.

And 2nd day I hired auto for sightseeing.

10. For shopping, you will really love Hampi Bazar 😍, you can get colourful inexpensive Hippie clothes, ornaments, leather crafts, musical instruments, antiques and so on.

Days required to visit Hampi: To explore Hampi properly, atleast require 4-5 Days.

However I had only 2 days time, so I visited in 2 day. But yes I felt I needed atleast 1-2 more day.

How to reach Hampi:

Nearest airport: Hubli (Aprox 162 km away from Hampi)
Nearest railway station: Hospet (a small town about 12 km from Hampi).
Nearest Bus station: Hospet

Further to reach Hampi from Hospet, one can take a local bus which is available every 10 min and charge around 20 rs. Otherwise, auto can also be booked, they charge somewhere around 150-200 rs.

How I Reached Hampi:

I reached Hospet through a sleeper bus (PSR tours and travels) from Chennai, as there is no direct train between Chennai and Hospet. But bus journey was extremely uncomfortable & tiring due to bad road conditions. Also Bus took 15 hours to reach instead 10:30 hour what they mentioned. So I will not suggest Bus journey at all for long distance.

After I reached Hospet, I took another Bus for Hampi from Hospet Bus stop, and it dropped me near Virupaksha temple in some 30-40 min.